LOS ANGELES TIMES: For better or worse, Earl Scruggs [pictured, above right] will be remembered by most Americans for his banjo picking alongside partner Lester Flatt in a dated 1960s cultural artifact: “The Beverly Hillbillies.” For better, because the style that the bluegrass legend, who died Wednesday at 88, showcases will forever live in the memories of generations. For worse, because the song threatens to define Flatt and Scruggs, as well as the whole of the uniquely American form of bluegrass music, alongside the zany, know-nothing Clampetts of Beverly Hills. That placement has helped define bluegrass to the culture at […]
RIP: Davy Jones, Monkee, Dead At 66
MSNBC: Singer Davy Jones of The Monkees has died of a heart attack at 66, the medical examiner’s office in Martin County, Fla., has confirmed to NBC News. Jones was most famous for his role in the pop group The Monkees, which was put together in 1965 for the TV show of the same name. Their hits included “Daydream Believer,” “Last Train to Clarksville,” “I’m a Believer,” and “Pleasant Valley Sunday.” The Monkees sold more than 50 million records. In 2008, Yahoo Music named Jones the top teen idol of all time. After “The Monkees” disbanded in 1971, Jones sang […]
RIP: Don Cornelius, Soul Train Engineer, Dead At 75
NEW YORK TIMES: Don Cornelius, the producer and television host who created the dance show “Soul Train,” was found shot dead in his Los Angeles home early Wednesday morning in what appears to be a suicide, the Los Angeles Police Department and the county coroner’s office said. He was 75 years old. A person called the police from Mr. Cornelius’s house on Mulholland Drive in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood just before 4 a.m. and reported shots had been fired, a police spokesman, Chris No, said. When officers arrived, they were let into the house and found Mr. Cornelius lying lifeless […]
RIP: Juan Epstein Is Dead
THE WRAP: Robert Hegyes, who played Juan Epstein on ’70s sitcom “Welcome Back, Kotter, died Thursday, the New Jersey Star-Ledger reports. Hegyes, who died of an apparent heart attack after suffering chest pains at his Metuchen, New Jersey home, was 60. Hegyes had not been in good health for the past two years, his brother Mark Hegyes told the paper. The actor had suffered a previous heart attack in recent years. Police responded to an emergency call from Hegyes’ home at approximately 9 a.m. He was transported to JFK Medical Center in Edison, New Jersey, but at that point he […]
RIP: Joe Paterno, Nittany Lion King, Dead At 85
ASSOCIATED PRESS: Joe Paterno, who racked up more wins than anyone else in major college football but was fired from Penn State amid a child sex abuse scandal has died. He was 85. His family released a statement Sunday morning to announce his death. Paterno’s son Scott announced Nov. 18 that his father was being treated for lung cancer, which was diagnosed in mid-November during a follow-up visit for a bronchial illness. The storied career of “JoePa” included 409 wins in 46 seasons and two national championships. But his reputation for success with honor was shattered when a former assistant […]
RIP: Etta James, Legendary R&B Hellcat, Dead At 73
NEW YORK TIMES: Etta James, whose powerful, versatile and emotionally direct voice could enliven the raunchiest blues as well as the subtlest love songs, most indelibly in her signature hit, “At Last,” died Friday morning in Riverside, Calif. She was 73. Ms. James was not easy to pigeonhole. She is most often referred to as a rhythm and blues singer, and that is how she made her name in the 1950s with records like “Good Rockin’ Daddy.” She is in both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Blues Hall of Fame. She was also comfortable, and convincing, […]
RIP: Christopher Hitchens — Master Rhetorician, Fearless Wit And Devout Humanist — Dead At 62
CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: When I described the tumor in my esophagus as a “blind, emotionless alien,” I suppose that even I couldn’t help awarding it some of the qualities of a living thing. This at least I know to be a mistake: an instance of the “pathetic fallacy” (angry cloud, proud mountain, presumptuous little Beaujolais) by which we ascribe animate qualities to inanimate phenomena. To exist, a cancer needs a living organism, but it cannot ever become a living organism. Its whole malice—there I go again—lies in the fact that the “best” it can do is to die with its host. […]
RIP: Ex-RAM Squad Rapper/Crack Dealer Tommy Hill Gunned Downed Outside Mount Airy Bar
INQUIRER: Philadelphia rap star Tommy Hill – a key member of the group RAM Squad – died Sunday morning, two days after being shot in an apparent robbery outside an East Mount Airy bar, police sources said. Hill, whose given name was John Wilson, had been living in Atlanta since serving two years in prison on federal drug charges and since the RAM Squad’s breakup. Hill launched his career in the late 1990s with the help of former mob boss Joseph “Skinny Joey” Merlino, and federal authorities later pressured him to cooperate with investigations into drug dealing and City Hall […]
RIP: Hubert Sumlin, Blues Traveler, Dead At 80
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: Hubert Sumlin, who made his name as the slash-and-burn guitarist for Chicago blues great Howlin’ Wolf before embarking on an illustrious solo career, died Sunday in a hospital in Wayne, N.J., reportedly of heart failure. The Chicago bluesman had turned 80 years old on Nov. 16. A week later, Rolling Stone magazine unveiled a list citing him as one of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. MORE NEW YORK TIMES: Born in 1931 in Greenwood, Miss., Mr. Sumlin, who took up the guitar at age 6, first met his own musical mentor, Howlin’ Wolf, at a roadhouse […]
RIP: Ken Russell, Fever-Dream Fabulist, Dead At 84
THE GUARDIAN: Ken Russell, the director behind the Oscar-winning Women in Love has died aged 84. Russell died on Sunday in his sleep, according to his friend, the arts writer Norman Lebrecht. Known for a flamboyant style that was developed during his early career in television, Russell’s films mixed high and low culture with unusual deftness and often courted controversy. The Devils … a religious drama that featured an infamous scene between Oliver Reed and Venessa Redgrave sexualising the crucifixion – was initially rejected by Warner Brothers. It will finally be released in its entirety in March next year, 42 […]
RIP: Goodnight Smokin’ Joe, Wherever You Are
ASSOCIATED PRESS: Joe Frazier, the former heavyweight champion who handed Muhammad Ali his first defeat yet had to live forever in his shadow, has died after a brief final fight with liver cancer. He was 67. The family issued a release confirming the boxer’s death on Monday night. Frazier, who took on Ali in three momentous fights in the 1970s — including the epic “Thrilla in Manilla” — had been under home hospice care after being diagnosed just weeks ago with the cancer that took his life, a family friend said. Until then, Frazier had been doing regular autograph appearances, […]
RIP: Steve Jobs, Wizard Of Oz, Dead At 56
“He was selling magic, everyone else was selling technology.” — John Scully, Former Apple CEO NEW YORK TIMES: Steven P. Jobs, the visionary co-founder and former chief executive of Apple, has died at 56. Apple said in a press release that it was “deeply saddened” to announced that Mr. Jobs had passed away on Wednesday. “Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives,” the company said. “The world is immeasurably better because of Steve. MORE RELATED: Steve Jobs has never been shy about his use of psychedelics, famously calling […]
RIP: Sylvia Robinson, Godmother Of Rap, Dead At 76
NEW YORK TIMES: Sylvia Robinson, the singer, songwriter and record producer who formed the Sugar Hill Gang and made the first commercially successful rap recording, died early Thursday morning at a hospital in New Jersey. She was 75. Ms. Robinson had a notable career as a rhythm and blues singer long before she and her husband, Joe Robinson, formed Sugar Hill Records in 1979 and served as the midwives for a musical genre that came to dominate pop music. She sang with Mickey Baker as part of the duo Mickey & Sylvia in the 1950s and had several hits, including […]