1978

Terry Kath, 1/31/46 – 1/23/78. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Terry was the guitarist for Chicago and also played banjo, accordion and drums. He was known for creating Chicago’s guitar sound. Terry was cleaning an automatic handgun not realizing there was a round chambered. He playfully waved it around his head erratically and the gun accidentally went off killing him instantly. Terry was 31.

Tragic ending for a multi-talented musician and vocalist. Here's a quote from my friend, Darrin, who has a great respect for Terry and his musical career, "Known for his blistering guitar solos and his remarkable ability to play rhythm and lead guitar simultaneously, Terry was held in very high esteem by many of his peers including the great, Jimi Hendrix." As a gun owner myself, I can tell you that the first rule of handling any gun is to treat it as if its loaded even when you "know" its not. I wish Terry would have followed that rule.

Chicago - Wishing You Were Here
via FoxyTunes

Sandy Denny, (Alexandra Elene Maclean Denny) 1/6/47 - 4/21/78. Born in London, England Sandy was considered "the pre-eminent British folk rock singer". She began her career as a teen in the mid 1960s and was a member of Fairport Convention. She is also known for a duet with Robert Plant on Led Zeppelin IV. She died after falling down a flight of stairs which resulted in a traumatic mid-brain hemorrhage. Sandy was 31.

Sandy is one of the artists I am unfamiliar with so have no personal thoughts to share. In reading about her I've learned that her legacy lives on and today people are still doing covers of some of her songs. She's the only person to ever appear as a guest on a Zeppelin album, you can hear her beautiful voice in the song "The Battle of Evermore". There was some controversy over her death, was the fall caused by drug use or by a brain tumor? Either way, she left us way too soon.

Sandy Denny - LATE NOVEMBER
via FoxyTunes



Keith Moon, 8/23/46 - 9/7/78. Born in London England, Keith was the drummer for The Who. Considered one of the best drummers of all time he was also known for his wild and destructive lifestyle. Keith died of an accidental overdose on Hemenephirin. He was 32.

Wild. Crazy. Destructive. Daring. Reckless. Uncontrollable. There are lots of words that can describe the antics of Keith Moon. I recently saw the famous Hyatt Hotel and envisioned him tossing a TV set out the window and blowing up a toilet with a Cherry Bomb. His restless and wild nature also showed up on stage. I saw The Who in the late 70's and witnessed firsthand his blistering powerhouse drumming. I love watching old footage of him pounding away on his drum kit with every ounce of strength and energy. Its so very sad that his overdose was on a drug prescribed to help him overcome his addiction to alcohol. Like a typical addict, he took more than he needed probably thinking it would work "better" or "faster". Instead, it killed him. It was not a shocking death like some considering his lifestyle and personality. But it was a great loss to a great band. I don't think The Who was ever the same without Keith. He was far from a typical drummer in the "background" of a band. He was the centerpiece. Pete Townsend often called him "the conductor" of the band. I heard someone in an interview describe the uniqueness of his drumming by saying that Keith played "up" and Pete played "down". You can check it out here in this video along with several drum solos.

The Who - My Generation (Mono)
via FoxyTunes

2002

Dave Van Ronk, 6/30/36 - 2/10/02. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Dave was a well known singer/songwriter and guitarist and personality in the early folk scene in New York. Although he wrote few of his own songs he was re-wrote songs by others such as of Bob Dylan, Tom Paxton, Patrick Sky, Phil Ochs and Joni Mitchell. Dave died of heart failure after a surgery for colon-cancer. He was 65.

I am not familiar with Dave or his music, I hope someone that knows a bit about him can add there thoughts in the comments. I'll share a quote here, "Van Ronk has been described as an irreverent and incomparable guitar artist and interpreter of black blues and folk, with an uncannily precise ability at improvisation. Joni Mitchell often said that his rendition of her song Both Sides Now (which he called Clouds) was the finest ever."



Mick Tucker, (Michael Thomas Tucker) 7/17/49 – 2/14/02. Born in London, England Mick was a member of several glam rock bands, best known for being the drummer of Sweet. He died of Leukemia. Mick was 55.

Sweet bandmate and friend, Steve Priest, said that Mick was the best drummer London ever produced. He added that even though Mick had been diagnosed five years earlier, his death was still a surprise because they believed he was in remission after a bone marrow transplant from his brother. Its a reminder - sometimes our blood, or our bone marrow, can save a life. I am sorry we had to lose Mick. He's gone, but like the others here, not forgotten, especially by his family and friends.



Layne Staley, 8/22/67 – 4/05/02. Born in Kirkland, Washington, Layne began playing drums at the age of twelve. He was in several glam bands in his early teens, but aspired to be a singer. In 1987 he became the singer for Alice in Chains died of a heroin/cocaine overdose. Layne was 34.

Tears. I know a lot of fans cried when Layne's death was announced. As I type this I am listening to U2 singing about how we are all One, we need to carry each other, we need to love each other. I don't know what that has to do with Layne Staley but I felt compelled to share it then opened Wiki to read more about Layne. Here is what he said about his parent's divorce (he was 7 years old when they split) "My world became a nightmare, there were just shadows around me. I got a call saying that my dad had died, but my family always knew he was around doing all kind of drugs. Since that call I always was wondering, 'Where is my dad?' I felt so sad for him and I missed him. He dropped out of my life for 15 years."In that same interview he also said that he was convinced that if he became a celebrity his dad would return." Another victim of drug abuse/addiction. Like father like son? Layne, so sorry you missed your dad so much, I know what that can do to a boy, knowing his father is out there but doesn't give a shit about him, I see it when I look into my son's eyes. Here's an interview with the band and some clips of them performing.

Alice In Chains - Down In A Hole
via FoxyTunes

Dee Dee Ramone, (Douglas Glenn Colvin), 9/18/52 – 6/5/02. Born in Fort Lee, Virginia, Dee Dee was a bassist, singer/songwriter for The Ramones. He also wrote two books, “Chelsea Horror Hotel” and “Lobotomy: Surviving The Ramones”. Dee died of an accidental heroin overdose. He was 50.

Another one. I don't even know what to say.

Dee Dee Ramone - I Wanna Be Sedated
via FoxyTunes

Robbin Crosby, (Robbinson Lance Crosby), 8/4/60 – 6/6/02. Born in La Jolla, California Robbin was co-lead guitarist along with Warren diMartini for the glam rock band Ratt. Robbin contacted AIDS and died of a heart attack that was associated with the disease. He was 42.

Okay, this one hurts. I met Robbin years ago up in LA (The Whiskey or The Wiltern? can't remember for sure) when RATT was just getting a name for themselves. He was so tall, so handsome, so sweet....seriously, he was a nice guy and he seemed almost shy to me. It was before the fame, glamor and heroin. So even though Ratt never impressed me musically I closely watched Robbin because of that night when we shared a few drinks, a bit of conversation and a kiss. Damn. His story is a sad one. I don't even want to talk about it. Here is a quote from Robbin, it comforts me, "When I die, nobody cry at my funeral, in fact let's all have a party; I've lived the life of ten men. I lived all my dreams and more". Sorry, Robbin, I didn't go to the funeral but I cried.

Ratt - Round and Round
via FoxyTunes



John Entwistle, (John Alec Entwistle), 10/9/44 – 6/27/02. John was born in London, England and is best known for being The Who’s bassist. He also worked with several other bands over the years including Ringo Starr, Govt. Mule and The Faces. John died of a cocaine induced heart attack. He was 58.

John was a great bass player and a-typical for that role in a band, he didn't like to stand in the background and go unnoticed, who can forget his skeleton outfit? It was sad when The Who replaced Keith but the band was still young and wanted to continue. I was a bit disappointed at how easily and quickly they replaced John. Once again drugs ruled the day and cause the death of a talented music. He lived a lot longer than many of his colleagues.

The Who - The Song Is Over
via FoxyTunes



Michael "Mikey" Hauser, 1/6/62 - 8/10/2. Mikey was born in Boone, North Carolina and was a founding member and guitarist for Widespread Panic. He was considered to be a "silent genius" and wrote many of the songs biggest hits. Mikey was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the spring of 2002 and died only months later. He was 40.

I learned several interesting facts about Mikey just now: Panic" was his nickname for years because of panic attacks - and that's how the band chose their name. "Mike taught himself to play the guitar while sitting on the arm of a couch. At the first Widespread Panic show, he played an acoustic guitar while sitting on a small metal chair with his right foot on the volume pedal. Many consider him a master of the volume pedal for his skilled incorporation of its use in conjunction with the other members of Panic." He sounds like a special person, sad that he died so young. RIP, Mikey.




Joe Strummer, (John Graham Mellor), 8/21/52 -12/22/02. Born in Ankara, Turkey Joe was a co-founder, lead singer and guitarist for The Clash. He was loved by many and also dedicated a lot of time to environmental causes. He died of a congenital heart defect. Joe was 50.

"He was loved by many". I am tempted to leave it at that because it says so much. I remember watching this tribute to him and bawling my eyes out. You can see it in their faces, especailly in Bruce's eyes. It hurts to lose the really great ones...the ones that were passionate, courageous and never compromised.

The Clash - Rock The Casbah
via FoxyTunes