Last year I planned to scale back the amount of monthly write-ups of departed musicians, a time-saving plan that failed decisively. This year, I’ll try again to pull through this new year’s resolution. There were a few others people this month about whom I normally would have written, but I was strict with myself. Let’s see how it goes.
Outside music there was the death at 99 of Hessy Levinsons. In 1935 a Nazi propaganda contest selected a photo of a blue-eyed, fair-haired infant as the “perfect Aryan baby” — unaware that the child was, in fact, Jewish. The photographer had secretly submitted the photo to expose the Nazi’s racial ideology. The family, with the “perfect Aryan baby”, later fled Germany to survive the Holocaust.
By the way, if you missed the announcement, all previous In Memoriams going back to January 2017 are back up, and the linking-errors I have been made aware of have been fixed (special thanks to eagle-eyed reader Herminio)
The Master Drummer
Drummer Sly Dunbar, who died this month at the age of 73, and bass player Robbie Shakespeare, whom we lost in 2021, were a formidable rhythm section, exceptional producers, and a fine recording act as Sly & Robbie.
From 1979 to 1987 they were part of the seminal reggae band Black Uhuru, during its peak years, played on five albums each Peter Tosh and Jimmy Cliff, and 14 by Dennis Brown. They played on reggae classics like Junior Murvin’s 1976 hit Police And Thieves, and Lee Perry’s Night Doctor.
Recording as Sly & Robbie, they had one of the finest hits of 1987 with the great Boops. (That and the Murvin track mentioned above featured in In Memoriam – December 2021.
Dunbar was also a pioneer in the use of drum machines and electronic rhythms in reggae, helping to usher in the digital dancehall era of the 1980s.
Sly and Robbie made their mark as producers, too. They worked with artists like Grace Jones (including Pull Up To The Bumper), Gwen Guthrie, Joe Cocker, Ian Dury, Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger, Jackson Browne, Cyndi Lauper, Yoko Ono, Serge Gainsbourg, No Doubt, and Simply Red, among others.
They also produced and played with reggae greats such as Peter Tosh, Gregory Isaacs, Bunny Wailer, Sugar Minott, Jimmy Cliff, Ini Kamoze, Yellowman, The Mighty Diamonds, Chaka Demus & Pliers (whose hit Tease Me they wrote and produced), Shabba Ranks, and Beenie Man. Many of them appeared on Dunbar and Shakespeare’s Taxi Records label, which they had founded in 1980.
The Grateful Dead
Born in 1947 and adopted as an infant, Bob Weir met the older Jerry Garcia in 1963 as a teenager in Palo Alto, California. Their partnership became the core of the Grateful Dead, which redefined what a rock group could be: part folk ensemble, part blues-rock band, part psychedelic experiment, and part jam band; sometimes only one of these and other times the whole menu at once.
As a rhythm guitarist, Weir drew from jazz as well as folk fingerpicking, which allowed the band to innovate, especially on stage as their performances grew longer and more experimental. Weir was also one of the band’s primary lead vocalists, particularly in their later years.
As a songwriter, Weir often collaborated with lyricists John Perry Barlow (his childhood friend) and Robert Hunter. After Garcia’s death in 1995, Weir continued the Grateful Dead legacy, and was pivotal in several post-Dead projects, including RatDog, Furthur, Dead & Company, and Wolf Bros.
After Phil Lesh in October 2024 and Donna Jean Godchaux in November 2025, Weir is the third Grateful Deed member to die within the past 15 months. Both Lesh and Godchaux appeared on his featured solo track. Of the Dead, only Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart and Tom Constanten are still alive.
The Cookie
With the death of Margaret Ross, all members of soul-pop group The Cookies are gone. Ross had joined the second iteration of the group, which in the 1950s had backed Ray Charles.
With The Cookies, Ross had crossover hits in 1962/63 with Don’t Say Nothin’ Bad (About My Baby), which reached #7 on the Billboard Top 100; Chains, which The Beatles covered on their debut album (it featured on The Originals: Beatles edition); and Girls Grow Up Faster Than Boys.
The Cookies also recorded the first version of the later Drifters hit On Broadway, but The Crystals’ version was the one that was released. The Cookies’ recording is a bonus track on The Originals: Soul Vol. 1.
More than that, they were prolific session singers, especially on Brill Building numbers such as The Loco-Motion by Little Eva, Blame It On The Bossa Nova by Eydie Gorme, and Neil Sedaka’s hits Breaking Up is Hard To Do, Next Door To An Angel, and Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen.
After lead singer Earl-Jean McCrea left the group on 1965, Ross assumed most lead vocal duties as The Cookies carried on, under their own as well as a string of other names.
The Wiz
As a 16-year-old, Bryan Loren — aka Bryan “The Wiz” Hudson — unofficially joined the Fat Larry’s Band on the synth, and promptly contributed to a global hit, Zoom, a mid-tempo ballad on which his synth sparkles, and the dance classic Act Like You Know It (which featured on Party Like It’s 1982). By then, he had already played with Nona Hendryx, Tavares and Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes.
Bryan was too young to tour with Fat Larry’s Band, so he joined the soul band Cashmere, showing skills not only on the keys but also as a vocalist and songwriter. The prodigy soon got a contract as a solo singer, and in 1984 released his eponymous debut album, which he wrote, produced, and played all instruments. It produced a couple of hits mid-chart R&B hits in Lollipop Luv and Do You Really Love Me.
Loren wouldn’t record another album for eight years, and moved behind the scenes, as a producer, songwriter and session player. His production clients in the 1980s and ’90s included (in roughly chronological order) Meli’sa Morgan, Con Funk Shun, Vesta Williams, Sting, Barry White, Shanice, The Brothers Johnson, Najee, Michael Jackson and Chanté Moore, among others. On many of his productions he also contributed instrumental work.
One hit on which he just played, on the Moog bass, was Michael Jackson’s hit Black Or White (he also played on other tracks on the Dangerous album). And with Jackson he created his biggest hit: The Simpsons cash-in Do The Barman, a New Jack Novelty number which Loren and Jackson co-wrote and co-produced (Jackson was uncredited). Of course, Loren also played most instruments on it and, with Jackson, provided backing vocals. The song was a global hit in 1991.
As always, this post is reproduced in illustrated PDF format in the package, which also includes my personal playlist of the featured tracks. PW in comments.
Hayden Thompson, 87, rockabilly singer, on Dec. 31
Hayden Thompson – Love My Baby (1957)
Andrew Ure, 41, singer of Scottish band The Ray Summers, on Dec. 31
Johnny Legend, 77, rockabilly musician, film producer, on Jan. 2
Johnny Legend & His Skullcaps – Rockabilly Rumble (1980)
Tony Carr, 98, Maltese session drummer and percussionist, on Jan. 2
Hot Chocolate – You Sexy Thing (1975, on percussion)
Tom Timberlake, 75, member of bluegrass group Kevin Prater Band, on Jan. 2
Michael Kemner, 72, bassist of German new wave band Fehlfarben, on Jan. 3
Fehlfarben – Ein Jahr (Es geht voran) (1980, also as co-writer)
Calbo, 52, French-Congolese rapper with hip hop duo Ärsenik, on Jan. 4
Zeethewizard, rapper, after shooting on Jan. 5
Andrew Bodnar, 71, bassist of UK rick band The Rumour, songwriter, on Jan. 5
Elvis Costello – Watching The Detectives (1977, on bass)
Nick Lowe – I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass (1978, on bass and as co-writer)
Mike Embro, 63, drummer of Canadian metal band Razor, announced Jan. 5
Jim McBride, 78, country songwriter, on Jan. 6
Alan Jackson – (Who Says) You Can’t Have It All (1993, as co-writer)
Richard Kersten, 76, British-German musician (Beatles Revival Band) on Jan. 6
Guy Moon, 63, movie & TV composer, traffic collision on Jan. 7
Rebecca Kilgore, 76, jazz singer, on Jan. 7
Rebecca Kilgore – No Love, No Nothing (1996)
Matthew Taylor, c.57, bassist of indie rock band Bellini, artist, on Jan. 8
Dave Hitchcock, 76, English prog-rock producer, on Jan. 8
Camel – Freefall (1974, as producer)
Terry Sullivan, 87, drummer of British prog-rock band Renaissance, on Jan. 9
Renaissance – Carpet Of The Sun (1973)
Renaissance – The Vultures Fly High (1975, produced by Dave Hitchcock)
Álvaro Peña-Rojas, 82, Chilean punk singer and songwriter, on Jan. 8
Dieudonné Larose, 80, Haitian singer, on Jan. 8
Bob Weir, 78, guitarist, singer, songwriter with the Grateful Dead, on Jan. 10
Grateful Dead – Sugar Magnolia (1970, on lead vocals and as co-writer)
Bob Weir – Cassidy (1972, also as co-writer)
Bob Weir – Bombs Away (1978, also as co-writer)
Grateful Dead – Throwing Stones (1987, on lead vocals and as co-writer)
Yeison Jiménez, 34, Colombian pop singer, plane crash on Jan. 10
Bill Ramal, 88, rock & roll saxophonist, songwriter, producer, announced Jan. 12
The Ravels – Gonna Have Some Fun (1963, as member on sax, co-writer, arranger, producer)
Pammy Lassiter, 79, bluegrass musician, on Jan. 12
John Forté, 50, rapper (Refugee Camp All-Stars) and producer, on Jan. 12
Fugees feat. John Forté and Omega – Family Business (1996, also as co-writer, co-producer)
John Forté – Ninety Nine (Flash The Message) (1998, also as co-writer)
Sheila Bernette, 94, English singer and actress, on Jan. 12
Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin, 26, guitarist of UK experimental rock group Black Midi, on Jan. 12
Black Midi – Speedway (2019)
Kenny Morris, 68, first drummer of Siouxsie And The Banshees, on Jan. 15
Siouxsie And The Banshees – Hong Kong Garden (1978)
Tony Dallara, 89, Italian singer, on Jan. 16
Tony Dallara – Come Prima (1957)
Marikena Monti, 82, Argentine actress and singer, on Jan. 17
Tucker Zimmerman, 84, folk-rock singer-songwriter and author, in a fire on Jan. 17
Tucker Zimmerman – Bird Lives (1969)
Gary Burke, 77, rock and jazz drummer (Joe Jackson), on Jan. 17
Joe Jackson – Slow Song (live) (1988, on drums)
Ralph Towner, 85, jazz musician and composer, on Jan. 18
Ralph Towner & Gary Burton – Icarus (1975, also as composer)
Anders Möller, 63, Swedish rock singer and guitarist, on Jan. 18
Stephen ‘Cat’ Coore, 69, guitarist and cellist of Third World, on Jan. 18
Third World – 1865 (96 Degrees In The Shade) (1977)
Third World – Ride On (1982)
Billy Parker, 88, country singer and radio DJ, on Jan. 19
Rob Hirst, 70, drummer of Midnight Oil and songwriter, on Jan. 20
Midnight Oil – Beds Are Burning (1987, also as co-writer)
Midnight Oil – Forgotten Years (1990, also as co-writer)
Zimi Shabanay, 37, bassist of metal band Schoenberg Automaton, announced Jan. 21
Angelika Mann, 76, German singer and actress, on Jan. 21
Christoph Stiefel, 67, Swiss jazz musician, composer, bandleader, on Jan. 21
Francis Buchholz, 71, bassist of German hard rock band Scorpions (1973-92), on Jan. 22
Scorpions – Rock You Like A Hurricane (1984)
Scorpions – Wind Of Change (1990)
Guy Hovis, 84, TV show crooner, on Jan. 22
Stefania Stella, Italian actress and singer, on Jan. 22
Kristinn Svavarsson, 78, saxophonist of Icelandic jazz fusion band Mezzoforte, on Jan. 23
Mezzoforte – Gazing At The Clouds (1983, also as composer)
Margaret Ross, 83, singer with The Cookies, on Jan. 23
Neil Sedaka – Breaking Up Is Hard To Do (1962, on backing vocals)
The Cookies – Will Power (1963)
The Cookies – Wounded (1967)
Yuri Rymanov, 69, guitarist of Russian rock band Lyube, on Jan. 24
Gabe Lopez, 31, pop singer, songwriter and producer, on Jan. 25
Gabe Lopez feat. Belinda Carlisle – California Blues (2015)
Jean Cussac, 103, French baritone with UK vocal group The Swingle Singers, on Jan. 25
Marie Rouanet, 89, French singer-poet and writer, on Jan. 25
Sly Dunbar, 73, Jamaican drummer (Sly & Robbie), producer, and songwriter, on Jan. 26
Mighty Diamonds – Right Time (1975, on drums)
Peter Tosh feat. Gwen Guthrie – Nothing But Love (1981, on drums)
Bob Dylan – Sweetheart Like You (1983, on drums)
Sly & Robbie – Fire (1986)
Riccardo Bray, funk guitarist (Zapp), announced Jan. 26
Hardy Hepp, 81, Swiss rock singer, songwriter, musician, on Jan. 26
Krokodil – Get Your Personality Together (1970, as member on vocals)
Richie Beirach, 78, jazz pianist and composer, on Jan. 26
Richie Beirach Trio – Flamenco Sketches (2001)
Ian McDougall, 87, Canadian jazz trombonist, on Jan. 26
Danny ‘Crybaby’ Coughlan, 55, British singer-songwriter and guitarist, on Jan. 26
Crybaby – When The Lights Go Out (2012)
Mingo Lewis, 72, percussionist, drummer and songwriter, announced Jan. 28
Billy Joel – Say Goodbye To Hollywood (1976, on percussions)
Al Di Meola – Flight Over Rio (1977, as writer and on percussion, synth and organ)
Bryan Loren (‘The Wiz’ Hudson), 59, soul singer, songwriter, producer, on Jan. 28
Fat Larry’s Band – Zoom (1982, as Bryan “The Wiz” Hudson on synthesizer)
Bryan Loren – Do You Really Love Me (1984, also as writer, producer, all instruments)
The Simpsons – Do The Bartman (1990, as co-writer and co-producer)
Nilton César, 86, Brazilian singer, on Jan. 28
Parthenon Huxley, 70, musician, singer, songwriter and producer, on Jan. 30
Parthenon Huxley – Chance To Be Loved (1988)
Billy Bass Nelson, 75, original bassist of Funkadelic, on Jan. 31
Funkadelic – I Wanna Know If It’s Good To You (1970, also as co-writer)
Funkadelic – Hit It And Quit It (1971, also as co-writer)
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