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| Clockwise from upper-left: Charlie Daniels, Bill Withers, Charley Pride, Johnny Nash, Spencer Davis, Leslie West, Trini Lopez, Little Richard, Center: Helen Reddy |
[Note: Added Kenny Rogers on 3 January 2021. He is in the correct place on the list, March 20.]
Once again, I find myself preparing one of these, like I have in past years, to remember those we lost. We lost 37 in 2019, which isn’t bad. In past years, I have done between 35 and 45 memorials on the Hail and Farewell list each year. This year there is a shocking 79! Why is this? I can answer that in one word…
COVID-19.
In past years, I have done this as a single DJ show, playing
one song by each artist as we wish them a final “Hail and Farewell.” Occasionally, when the list has been larger,
I have had to borrow an hour from the slot before me. As I prepared this year’s list, I realized
that it was going to well exceed four hours!
I made some decisions and did not include a few of the more obscure
entries like I normally would. I have
managed to keep the combined set list to four hours and fifteen minutes. I will present “Hail and Farewell” this year
over two shows, each to go a few minutes over the two-hour norm. The programming notes are at the bottom of
the post.
In deciding who to include, I’ve followed the same formula
as the past few years. Again, these are
the ones that I know about and I may very well have missed someone. The second factor is that I must know about
them musically. I either know the
person, their song(s) or their band.
They are not listed here unless I am familiar with at least one of those
three things. At the end of the day, I
kind of hate to say this, but I stick to the ones that I have music for in my
library. After I had compiled the list
this year, I cut out a few of the more obscure ones to make it manageable.
Here are a few notables on the list (the complete list
follows)…
We lost two from the Left Banke this year. On January 14th, we lost Steve
Martin Caro, who was their lead singer.
He was only 16 when he first joined the band and only 17 when they
scored their first hit with Walk Away Renee. He was originally from Madrid Spain and born
“Carmelo Esteban Martin Caro.” He used
“Steve Martin” as a stage name until the comedian of the same name came on
scene in the 1970s. He then went by
“Steve Martin Caro.” We also lost his
bandmate, Tom Finn, on June 27th. Finn would go on to become a club DJ in the
‘70s, including at the famous Studio 54.
The Left Banke’s sound was so unique, that the industry created a new
genre just for them, “Baroque Rock.” I
wrote a blog post on the Left Bank back in 2011 and can be found here.
On February 7th, we lost Steve Weber of
the Fugs. The Fugs were another
band that the industry was forced to create a genre for, “Avant Rock,” because
they didn’t fit into any existing classification. They were definitely an underground band and
the Doors were once quoted as describing the Fugs as the "most vulgar
thing the human mind could possibly conceive.”
Weber was 76 years old.
On March 20th, we lost Kenny Rogers. [Added Jan. 3 after missing him in the original post.] He had his first hit with the psychedelic band, the First Edition, in 1968, "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In).” It reached No. 5 on the charts. He went on to an amazing solo career having both country and pop hits. His list of awards is huge and includes three Grammys. Rogers was 81.
We lost Julie Felix on March 22nd. She
was an American born to a Native American mother and a Mexican father. It was in the UK that she made a name for
herself and was the first solo folk performer to land a major UK record deal
when she signed with Decca Records.
While she recorded several albums, she was probably best known from
European television and, in 1965, was the first folk performer to sell-out the
Royal Albert Hall. The Times
hailed her as “Britain's First Lady of Folk.”
All of this and she remained unknown in her native United States.
Alan Merrill passed on March 29th from
COVID-19. He was a singer and guitarist
for a British band, the Arrows.
The Arrows were far more popular in the UK than in the States and even had
their own TV show. He was relatively
obscure except for one thing. He wrote,
sang, and recorded a song with the Arrows in 1975, I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll,
which became a rock anthem for Joan Jett eight years later.
The next day, March 30th, we lost Bill Withers. He had a big, number 1 hit with Lean on Me
in 1972. He passed as the pandemic was
picking up speed rapidly and we began to hear his song. The lyrics tell us that we all need to lean
on someone and if we work together, we can get through anything. The message couldn’t have been timelier, so
much so that a group got together, including Bryan Adams, Buffy Sainte-Marie,
Geddy Lee, Justin Beiber, Avril Lavigne and many more, to record a new version
of the song to raise money to fight the pandemic. Bill Withers parted this world leaving us a
timely and much-needed message of hope.
We could get through this if we worked together. He was 81 years old.
I debated about including Terry Doran, but he was
just such a big name on the British music scene in the 1960s, despite never
writing a song, playing an instrument, or recording a record. He was a luxury car dealer in London and
owned Brydor Cars with Brian Epstein, manager for the Beatles. They sold exotic sportscars to all the
British rock stars. In the Beatles song,
She’s Leaving Home, there is a line, “Waiting to keep the appointment
she made; greeting a man from the motor-trade,” which supposedly refers to
Doran. He became a close confidant of
each of the four Beatles and eventually became an executive for Apple Corp. and
Apple Records. It was there he got to
manage many musical acts of the day, including Mary Hopkins and Grapefruit. He was 80 years old when he succumbed to
COVID-19 on April 18th.
What can I say about Little Richard that hasn’t
already been said? Born, “Richard Wayne
Penniman” in 1932, he joined his first band in 1950, Buster Brown's
Orchestra, at the age of 17, already a seasoned performer. Little Richard would boast throughout his
life that he invented “Rock and Roll,” like he did it singlehandedly. Though maybe he does deserve some credit as
he was undoubtedly one of the earliest pioneers and did more than his share of
shaping the genre. In 2013, he performed
his last performance 66 years after his first, complete with his signature
pencil mustache, pompadour, and eyeliner.
God bless Little Richard; he was 87 years old.
Peter Green, the founder of Fleetwood Mac,
left this earth on July 25th.
Fleetwood Mac started out, not as a rock band, but as a blues band. Green formed the band in 1967 with former
fellow Bluesbreaker drummer, Mick Fleetwood. They wanted badly to get John McVie
(nicknamed “Mac”), bassist for the Bluesbreakers to join them. Green named his new band after his drummer
and hopefully soon to be bassist, in hopes it would persuade Mac to join. He did, but not until after Fleetwood Mac had
recorded its first album. Green also
wrote a song for Fleetwood Mac that would later become a big hit for Santana, Black
Magic Woman. Peter Green was 73.
We lost Johnny Nash on October 6th, just a
few weeks before the announcement of a COVID vaccine. He had a number 1 hit with I Can See
Clearly Now, in 1972, the same year Bill Wither (mentioned earlier) had
his. While Withers’ song told us we
could get through by helping one another, Nash’s song was one of hope being
just ahead, and it was. “Here is that
rainbow I've been praying for, it’s gonna be a bright (bright), Bright (bright)
sunshiny day… Look straight ahead,
there's nothing but blue skies…” His
song implored us to just hang on a little longer and we did. Nine weeks later, shots were going in arms
and it is gonna be a bright sunshiny day.
Johnny Nash was 80 years old.
On October 19th we lost the Professor, Spencer
Davis, at age 81. He was the frontman for the Spencer Davis Group and later became an executive for
A&R Records, having a long career in the music industry. He earned his moniker, the “Professor,”
because of his love of languages.
Besides his native English, he was fluent in German, Spanish, and
French.
Charley Pride passed away on December 12th
from COVID-19. He began as a
professional baseball player in the Negro Leagues but left in the late ‘50s to
pursue a music career. He broke the
color barrier in Country Music, a near-impossible feat at the time. When he was done, he had 52 Top Ten hits on
the Billboard Country Charts, became a member of the Grand Ole Opry, and was inducted
into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Charley was 86.
With less than 48 hours left in 2020, the Reaper struck
again, claiming Alto Reed at age 72, on December 30th. He was a saxophone player, playing for many
great names like Foghat, Grand Funk Railroad, Little Feat,
Dave Mason, Spencer Davis (mentioned above), the Ventures,
George Thorogood and Bob Seger, to just name a few. Probably, his most famous saxophone piece is
the solo in Old Time Rock and Roll for Bob Seger. His stage name, “Alto Reed,” is obviously the
combination of “Alto,” a kind of saxophone, and “Reed” the part of a sax that
produces the sound. His real name was, “Thomas
Neal Cartmell.”
Here is
the complete list of those we lost in 2020…
Marty Grebb, (died Jan. 1) keyboardist for the Buckinghams
(1945-2020)
Neil Peart, (died Jan. 7) drummer for Rush (1952-2020)
Steve Martin Caro, (died Jan. 14) lead singer for the
Left Banke (1948-2020)
Chris Darrow, (died Jan. 15) multi-instrumentalist for Kaleidoscope and the Nitty
Gritty Dirt Band (1944-2020)
Robert Parker, (died Jan. 19) singer/songwriter
(1930-2020)
Bob Shane, (died Jan. 26) vocals, guitar and banjo
for the Kingston Trio (1934-2020)
Steve Weber, (died Feb. 7) guitar and Vocals for the Fugs
(1943-2020)
Paul English, (died Feb. 11) drummer for Willie
Nelson (1932-2020)
Barbara Martin, (died Mar. 4) singer with the Supremes
(1943-2020)
Phil Phillips, (died Mar. 14) singer/songwriter
(1926-2020)
Kenny Rogers, (died Mar. 20) singer/songwriter (1938-2020)
Julie Felix, (died Mar. 22) singer/songwriter
(1938-2020)
Eric Weissberg, (died Mar. 22) singer/banjo player (1939-2020)
Neil Landon, (died Mar. 26)
singer/songwriter/guitarist for Fat Mattress (1941-2020)
Alan Merrill, (died Mar. 29) singer/songwriter for
the Arrows and Runner (1951-2020) COVID-19
Bill Withers, (died Mar. 30) singer/songwriter
(1938-2020)
Adam Schlesinger, (died Apr. 1) singer/songwriter for
Fountains of Wayne (1967-2020) COVID-19
Steve Farmer, (died Apr. 7) singer and guitarist for
the Amboy Dukes (1948-2020)
John Prine, (died Apr. 7) singer/songwriter
(1946-2020) COVID-19
Carl Dobkins Jr., (died Apr. 8) singer/songwriter
(1941-2020)
Tim Brooke-Taylor OBE, (died Apr. 12) comedian/singer
with the Goodies (1940-2020) COVID-19
Kenny Young, (died Apr. 14) songwriter (1941-2020)
Matthew Seligman, (died Apr. 17) bassist for numerous
acts including the Thompson Twins and Thomas Dolby (1955-2020)
COVID-19
Terry Doran, (died Apr.18) Manager/Publisher Mary
Hopkins and Grapefruit (1939-2020) COVID-19
Ian Whitcomb, (died Apr. 19) singer/songwriter
(1941-2020)
Derek Jones, (died Apr. 21) guitarist for Falling
in Reverse (1984-2020)
Florian Schneider, (died Apr. 21) songwriter,
multiple instruments for Kraftwerk (1947-2020)
Young Jessie, (died Apr. 27) singer/songwriter
(1936-2020)
Bobby Lewis, (died Apr. 28) singer (1925-2020)
Cady Groves, (died May 2) singer/songwriter
(1989-2020)
Dave Greenfield, (died May 3) keyboardist with the Stranglers
(1949-2020) COVID-19
Alfred "Uganda" Roberts, (died May 5)
percussionist for Professor Longhair (1943-2020)
Millie Small, (died May 5) singer/songwriter
(1947-2020)
Little Richard, (died May 9) singer/songwriter
(1932-2020)
Betty Wright, (died May 10) singer/songwriter
(1953-2020)
Moon Martin, (died May 11) singer, songwriter and
guitarist (1945-2020)
Phil May, (died May 15) lead singer for the Pretty
Things (1944-2020)
Lucky Peterson, (died May 17) guitarist, keyboardist
and singer (1964-2020)
Bucky Baxter, (died May 25) steel guitarist and
singer with Steve Earle (1955-2020)
Steve Priest, (died Jun. 4) bassist for Sweet
(1948-2020)
Bonnie Pointer, (died Jun. 8) singer for the Pointer
Sisters and solo (1950-2020)
Pete Carr, (died Jun.27) studio guitarist (1950-2020)
Tom Finn, (died Jun. 27) singer and guitarist for the
Left Banke (1948-2020)
Benny Mardones, (died Jun. 29) singer/songwriter (1946-2020)
Max Crook, (died Jul. 1) keyboardist for Del
Shannon (1936-2020)
Charlie Daniels, (died Jul. 6) singer/songwriter
(1936-2020)
Judy Dyble, (Died Jul. 12) lead singer for the Fairport
Convention (1949-2020)
Jamie Oldaker, (died Jul. 16) drummer for Eric
Clapton (1951-2020)
Emitt Rhodes, (died Jul. 19) singer/songwriter for
the Merry-Go-Round (1950-2020)
Peter Green, (Jul. 25) singer, songwriter and
guitarist for Fleetwood Mac (1946-2020)
Wayne Fontana, (died Aug. 6) frontman for Wayne
Fontana and the Mindbenders (1945-2020)
Trini Lopez, (died Aug. 11) singer/guitarist
(1937-2020) COVID-19
Pete Way, (died Aug. 14) bassist for UFO
(1951-2020)
Frankie Banali, (died Aug. 20) drummer for Quiet
Riot (1951-2020)
Ronald Bell, (died Sep. 9) saxophonist for Kool
& the Gang (1951-2020)
Edna Wright, (died Sep. 12) lead singer for Honey
Cone (1945-2020)
Lee Kerslake, (died Sep. 19) drummer for Uriah
Heep (1947-2020)
Tommy DeVito, (died Sep. 21) guitarist and vocalist
for the Four Seasons (1928-2020) COVID-19
Roy Head, (died Sep. 21) singer/songwriter
(1941-2020)
Jimmy Winston (died Sep. 26) keyboardist, guitarist
and vocalist for the Small Faces (1945-2020)
Mac Davis, (died Sep. 29) singer/songwriter
(1942-2020)
Rocco Prestia, (died Sep. 29) bassist for Tower of
Power (1951-2020)
Helen Reddy, (died Sep. 29) singer/songwriter
(1941-2020)
Johnny Nash, (died Oct. 6) singer/songwriter
(1940-2020)
Brian Locking, (died Oct.8) bassist for the Shadows
(1938-2020)
Gordon Haskell, (died Oct. 15) bassist for the Fleur
de Lys and King Crimson (1946-2020)
Spencer Davis, (died Oct. 19) Singer and guitarist
(1939-2020)
Tony Lewis, (died Oct. 19) lead singer and bassist
for the Outfield (1957-2020)
Billy Joe Shaver, (died Oct. 28) singer/songwriter
(1939-2020)
Ken Hensley, (died Nov. 4) singer/songwriter with Uriah
Heep (1945-2020)
Len Barry, (died Nov. 5) singer/songwriter
(1942-2020)
Jim Tucker, (died Nov. 12) guitarist for the Turtles
(1946-2020)
Tony Hooper, (died Nov. 18) singer, songwriter and
guitarist for the Strawbs (1939-2020)
Charley Pride, (died Dec. 12) singer and guitarist
(1934-2020) COVID-19
Pelle Alsing, (died Dec. 19) drummer for Roxette
(1960-2020)
Chad Stuart, (died Dec. 20) half of Chad &
Jeremy (1941-2020)
Leslie West. (died Dec. 22) singer, songwriter and
guitarist for Mountain (1945-2020)
Phyllis McGuire, (died Dec. 29) singer with the McGuire
Sisters (1931-2020)
Alto Reed, (died Dec. 30) saxophone player for Bob
Seger and many others (1948-2020)
Please join me on Sunday, January 3rd, from 7:00
to 9:10 PM as we pay tribute to those lost from January through May 2020.
There will be a
second show on Wednesday, January 6th, from 7:00 to 9:10 PM, as we
pay tribute to those lost from June through December 2020.
Please note: there is an extra ten minutes each night.
Join us both nights at a Woman’s Touch as we pay a final
tribute to those we lost in 2020, and wish them a fond, Hail and Farewell.
"If there's a
rock and roll heaven, well you know they've got a hell of a band."
The
Righteous Brothers, 1973
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| Chad Stuart (left) of Chad & Jeremy passed away December 19th |
