Home > In Memoriam > In Memoriam – April 2010

In Memoriam – April 2010

The big news death in April obviously was that of Malcolm McLaren, but more shocking perhaps was the suicide of rock singer-songwriter and Grammy-nominated sound engineer Will Owsley at 44. It also was not a good month for jazz keyboardists and drummers.

On a different note, I’d appreciate some feedback as to whether to continue with this series. It takes up a lot of work, but generally there is little comment, and download numbers tend to be modest.* * *

Malcolm McLaren, 64, haberdasher, musician and punk svengali, on April 8.
Malcolm McLaren – Double Dutch (1983).mp3

Morris Pert, 62, composer, jazz percussionist and session drummer/pianist (for Kate Bush, Paul McCartney, Mike Oldfield, John Martyn, Peter Gabriel, Nick Heyward, Talk Talk a.o.), on April 27
Morris Pert – Anthem For The Cuthin.mp3
Nick Heyward – Atlantic Monday (1983).mp3

Susan Reed, 84, folk singer, on April 29.
Susan Reed – The Soldier And The Lady (1947).mp3

(Will) Owsley, 44, singer-songwriter, in an apparent suicide on March 30.
Owsley – Dirty Bird.mp3

Corrado ‘Connie’ Codarini, 80, singer with The Four Lads, on April 28.
The Four Lads – Moments To Remember (1955).mp3

Mike Zwerin, 79, jazz musician in Miles Davis “Birth Of Cool” band, on April 2.
Miles Davis – Move (1949).mp3

Vinnie Chaz, ca. 41, bassist with LA glam metal group Pretty Boy Floyd, on April 6.
Pretty Boy Floyd – Leather Boyz With Electric Toyz (1989).mp3

Peter Steele, 48, singer and bassist with heavy metal band Type O Negative, on April 14
Type O Negative – Cinnamon Girl (1997).mp3

Guru, 48, rapper with Gang Starr, on April 19
Gang Starr – You Know My Steez (1997).mp3

Kenneth McKellar, 82, Scottish singer, on April 9.
Kenneth McKellar – A Man Without Love (1966).mp3

Bo Hansson, 67, Swedish prog rock instrumentalist, on April 24.
Bo Hansson – The Horns Of Rohan/The Battle Of The Pelennor Fields (1972).mp3

Devon Clifford, 30, drummer of Canadian indie band You Say Party! We Say Die!, on April 18
You Say Party! We Say Die! – Cold Hands! Hot Bodies! (1997).mp3

Steve Reid, 66, American jazz drummer and session musician (James Brown, Dionne Warwick, Horace Silver, Motown a.o.), on April 13
Kieran Hebden & Steve Reid – People Be Happy (2007).mp3

Gabriel Ayanniye & Omo Olope, drummer and percussionist with King Sunny Adé”s African Beats, in a car accident on March 26.
Kelvin Henderson, 62, British country musician and radio presenter, on April 2.
Luigi Waites
, 82, American jazz drummer and vibraphonist, on April 6.
Graciela
(Pérez Grillo), 94, Cuban singer, on April 7.
Mississippi Slim
, 66, blues singer, on April 14.
George Melvin
, 63, keyboardist and session musician, on April 15
Mal Perry
, 70, English singer and early friend of John Lennon, on April 16.
Georgia Lee
, 89, Australian jazz and blues singer, on April 23.
Dorothy Provine
, 75, singer and actress, on April 25.

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  1. Michi
    May 5th, 2010 at 01:21 | #1

    Maybe people tend to get too sad to comment… I’d say keep it up, always an interesting read.

  2. Brian
    May 5th, 2010 at 01:38 | #2

    I’d keep it. It’s a nice tribute to a lot of intrumental (no pun intended) people in the music industry that would otherwise go unnoticed. Besides, I learn a lot from it. As I do from all of your posts

  3. Gideon
    May 5th, 2010 at 10:45 | #3

    I agree with the comments already made. Music magazines focus on the (at present) more well known artists but your posts are obviously not so inclined. I enjoy all your posts, thanks.

  4. May 5th, 2010 at 22:37 | #4

    You have to keep it up. The USA media is sadly lacking in reporting this mews unless they are American main stream stars. Europeans for instance generally don’t get a mention. This month was a good example, it was only when I was playing some Bo Hansson on the 30th that I found out he had passed because I happened to check my Last.FM feed and found out he had passed 6 days earlier. http://bearlyrambling.blogspot.com/2010/04/bo-hansson-rip.html
    So keep up the sad but good work. Thanks

  5. May 5th, 2010 at 22:41 | #5

    And I just noticed two more, I never knew that Kenneth McKeller or Dorothy Provine had gone. McKeller was an institution in Scotland, beloved and revered especially when you had a few beers in Edinburgh. Dorothy has a huge hit in the UK with “Don’t Bring Lulu”. Sad news.

  6. Don
    May 6th, 2010 at 05:45 | #6

    Please continue. An interesting read and informative part of your blog. These people made contributions that would go unnoticed without your effort. Please keep up the good work.

  7. W
    May 6th, 2010 at 22:06 | #7

    It is an interesting feature; most of these aren’t covered in the major media, as someone wrote above, (hell, I’ve not heard of half of them!) As for a lack of comments, I think your readers might be giving a silent nod of respect to those who’ve gone. W.

  8. Rhod
    May 7th, 2010 at 22:58 | #8

    All the above comments are so relevant, lets just enjoy what has been left behind

    Regards

    Rhod

  9. May 10th, 2010 at 00:23 | #9

    If you have the energy – I have the love – please keep on keeping on

  10. Phil
    May 10th, 2010 at 02:11 | #10

    I’ll chime in with the others here. Since a great deal of these folks are “fringe” as far as the mass media is concerned, they get little press coverage. For instance, until I read your post, I had no idea Bo Hansson had passed away. So I find your posting these items on a monthly basis informative.

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