Mary Ford (Born Iris Summers)
July 7, 1924 – September 30, 1977
Mary Ford was the wife and musical partner of Les Paul. She sang and played guitar when performing and recording with her famous husband. They were extremely popular in the early ’50s, scoring sixteen top-10 hits and selling over six million records in 1951 alone. Ford married Paul in 1949 and the two almost immediately launched a radio show on NBC. The signed to Capitol records at around the same time and began releasing a string of hits. Their popularity began to wane in the late ’50s, and the two divorced, thus ending their proffessional relationship in 1964. Ford spent the latter years of her life performing occasionally with her sisters and brother. She died of complications from diabetes on September 30, 1977. She was 53 years old.
Greg Ladanyi was an engineer and producer who worked with some of the biggest acts of the ’70s and ’80s. His talents can be heard on landmark albums by the likes of Fleetwood Mac, Don Henley, Jackson Browne, the Church, the Cruzados, David Lindley, and Toto. In 1983, he won a Grammy for Best Engineered Album for Toto IV. In recent years he was working with Greek singer and actress, Anna Vissi. On Friday, September 25, 2009, Ladanyi was injured in an accident while on stage with Vissi. He suffered head injuries that lead to his death on September 29, 2009. He was 57 years old.
Walter Lee
September 29, 1942 – September 28, 2008
Walter Lee, began his career in music as lead guitarist for the Boston-area rock ‘n roll combo, the Uniques, a band who had some local success after releasing two singles. He was eventually hired by Capitol Records and moved to Detroit where he is credited for bringing Bob Seger to the label. After a handful albums failed to get Seger noticed outside of the Midwest, Capitol was ready to drop him until Lee persuaded the higher-ups to put out an album that captured Seger in his element, live on stage. That album was Live Bullet, and it launched Seger into the stratosphere. The 80’s found Lee running Capitol’s radio promotion department in Hollywood. His leadership as Vice President and GM at the label contributed to such successes as Duran Duran,the Motels, Missing Persons, Iron Maiden, Steve Miller and many more. After leaving Capitol, Lee lead the promotion team at Morgan Creek Records. In recent years, he was a partner at Pro Sports Music, a firm that promoted music through sporting events. Walter Lee died of colon cancer on September 28, 2008.
Rory Storm (born Alan Caldwell)
September 21, 1939 – September 28, 1972
There was a time when Rory Storm & the Hurricanes were more popular than the Beatles. Also from Liverpool at the time, Storm and his band offered up a rollicking show mostly covering the popular American early rock ‘n roll and rockabilly, much like the Beatles were doing at the time. In fact, Storm’s drummer at the time, was Ringo Starr who left him to replace Pete Best in the Beatles. Although the band were a great live act, generally opening for popular American rockers that came through town, they never were able to parlay that into a recording career. They made just two singles during their run. Storm broke up the band in 1967 after original member Ty O’Brien died of complications from appendicitis surgery. He had collapsed on stage, from the appendicitis. Storm went on to become a local disc jockey and ski instructor. In September of 1972, Storm was living back to take care of his mother after his father died. Battling a chest infection, he took sleeping pills to get a good night’s sleep. The next morning, both he and his mother were found dead. It is believed that Storm died of an accidental overdose since there was also alcohol in his system. It was suggested that Storm’s mother, who also had sleeping pills in her system, may have committed suicide after discovering her son dead. Rory Storm was 33 when he died.
Miles Davis was trumpeter who was one of jazz’s must influential musicians of all times. Over the course of his career, he helped launch the careers of some of biggest names in jazz by hiring them for his bands. That list includes John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. In 19444, Davis moved to New York City right after graduating from high school. He became an integral part of the be-bop scene there. He also helped pave the way for other forms of jazz as well, including hard bop, fusion, cool jazz, and free jazz. In 1959, Davis released A Kind Of Blue, which would go on to be his biggest selling album and a key release of all jazz. Over the course of his career, Davis was awarded nine Grammys for now classic albums like Bitches Brew, Aura and Sketches of Spain. Davis suffered from cocaine addiction for many years, and was finally able to kick it in the early ’80s. That decade proved to be a nice renaissance period for him thanks in part to his associating with more contemporary pop artists like Public Image Ltd., Scritti Politti, and Artists United Against Apartheid. Miles Davis passed away on September 28, 1991 at the age of 65. Causes of death was pneumonia, stroke and respritory failure.
Beau Velasco was the founding drummer for up-and-coming electro-punk band, The Death Set. Formed in Australia in 2005, the band quickly moved to New York City and then settled in Baltimore where they began to build a following for their aggressive genre-bending music. In 2008, they signed to hip indie label, Counter Records, who released their debut album, Worldwide to positive reviews. Beau Valesco died on September 27, 2009. Cause of death has not been released.
Cliff Burton
February 10, 1962 – September 27, 1986
Cliff 'em All
Cliff Burton was the bassist for thrash metal band, Mettalica from 1982 to 1986. Burton was still in high school when he formed his first band, EZ-Street. But it was in 1982 that he would be asked to join the band that would eventually become one of the most successful hard rock bands in history. Burton was playing for a band called Trauma and their tour brought them to the famed Whiskey club on the Sunset Strip. In the audience were Metallica’s James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich who were so impressed they asked Burton to join the band and moved to the Bay Area because he didn’t want to relocate to Los Angeles. Burton played on the band’s first three albums, Kell ‘em All, Ride the Lightning, and their major label debut, Master of Puppets, which is considered by many to be the album that brought thrash metal into the mainstream. While touring Europe to promote Master of Puppets, the band’s driver lost control of their tour bus, causing it to roll, and thus tossing the sleeping Burton out of a window. The bus landed on Burton who was crushed to death at the age of 24.
Paul Burlison
February 4, 1929 – September 27, 2003
Paul Burlison was a founding member of The Rock and Roll Trio, a rockabilly band who would heavily influence rock ‘n roll bands for generations to come. He formed the band with brothers, Dorsey Burnette and Johnny Burnette in the early ’50s, and by 1956, they were in New York City recording for the Coral label. And although their records were never quite hits, they became popular and thus influential due to many television appearances during their short run. They appeared on American Bandstand, Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour, The Tonight Show and Kraft Music Hall, but despite the remarkable promotional blitz, it never resulted in many record sales. The band called it quits in 1957 and Burlison all but retired from the music business, only to make a comeback during the rockabilly revival of the ’80s. It wasn’t until 1997 that Burlison made his first solo album, Train Kept A-Rollin’. Guests on the album included Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Cesar Rojas, David Hidalgo, Mavis Staples, and the second generation of Burnettes, RockyBurnette and Billy Burnette. Paul Burlison died of cancer at the age of 74.
George “Wydell” Jones
October 5, 1936 – September 27, 2008
George “Wydell” Jones was not only the lead vocalist of doo wop singing group, the Edsels, he wrote their most famous song, “Rama Lama Ding Dong.” The song, even though recorded in 1957, became a hit for the group in 1961, reaching #21 on the Billboard singles charts. The popularity of the song landed the Edsels on American Bandstand that same year. George “Wydell” Jones passed away in his home a week before his 72nd birthday.
Dimwit was the drummer for Vancouver hardcore punk band, D.O.A. in the late ’70s and early ’80s. They are often refered to as the founders of hardcore. In 1989, he helped form the Four Horsemen, a band that had more in common with the Cult and Zodiac Mindwarp than Black Flag or the Exploited. The Four Horsemen landed a deal with Rick Rubin’s Def American who released their Rubin produced Nobody Said It Was Easy in 1991. Although the band were poised for greatness, grunge soon hit and the band was left in its wake. Dimwit died of a heroin overdose on September 27, 1994.
Alison Steele (Born Ceil Loman)
January 26, 1937 – September 27, 1995
Alison Steele was a popular disc jockey at New York’s WNEW, one of the country’s first FM stations to switch to a progressive album-track oriented format during the ’60s. For many years, Steele hosted the night shift, becoming known as “The Nightbird” to her many fans, most of whom were young male adults attracted to her sexy smoky voice. Jimi Hendrix’s “Night Bird Flying” was inspired by Steele. In later years Steele worked as a correspondent for CNN and did numourous voice-overs for television and radio. Alison Steele died of stomach cancer at the age of 58.
Jimmy McCulloch was a rock guitarist who played with Thunderclap Newman, Stone the Crows, and most famously, Paul McCartney’s band Wings from 1974 to 1977. His most celebrated contribution to Wings was his lead guitar work on “Junior’s Farm.” Jimmy McColluch died of a heroin overdose at the age of 26.
Amy Farris was an Austin fiddler who in recent years was living in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, the much-respected musician and singer had collaborated with a who’s-who of Austin and Los Angeles musicial fixtures. That list includes Brian Wilson, Peter Case, Alejandro Escovedo, Exene Cervenka and Kelly Willis. As a session player in Los Angeles, she played on musical tracks on such television shows as Mad Men and CSI: Miami. She was also part of Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women, both the album and the current tour. According to the Yep Roc Records website, Farris died of an undisclosed illness, while other online sources indicate she may have committed suicide. Official cause has yet to be released. She was 40 years old.
Byran Morrison was a music publisher and manager who guided the careers of the Pretty Things and Pink Floyd during their early years. As a music publisher, he owned the valuable catalogs of Wham, T. Rex, the Bee Gees and the Jam. In 2006, Morrison was involved in an accident, leaving him in a coma ever since. On September 26, 2008, Bryan Morrison died due to an apparent infection at the age of 65.
Bessie Smith
July 9, 1892 or April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937
Bessie Smith was an influential blues and jazz singer who made an indelible mark on popular music during the ’30s and ’40s. Raised in poverty, Smith and her brother took to the streets of Chattanooga to sing for any change they could get for the family. Her break into show business came in 1912 when she successfully auditioned for a traveling vaudeville group. She settled for being a dancer however, since the group already had a female lead in Ma Rainey. Smith eventually moved over to live theater, making it all the way to Broadway on more than one occasion. She also appeared in the 1929 film version of St. Louis Blues. Known at the time as more of a blues singer, Smith moved over to swing in the early ’30s, thanks to legendary talent scout John Hammond, who brought her in to record for Okeh Records. Bessie Smith was killed following a horrific car accident. She had been the passenger in a car whose driver had likely fallen asleep at the wheel, causing the accident. Smith was 43 years old at the time of her death.
Alfred McMoore was an Akron, Ohio based non-traditional, or “outsider” artist whose pieces have been displayed in galleries from Ohio to New York City to France. A community fixture around Akron, McMoore could usually be found riding around town on a bus or bicycle, or at a one of thousands of funerals he had attended for people he didn’t even know. He also enjoyed leaving random (yet non-threatening or unoffensive) telephone messages on people’s answering machines. Many such messages were left for Jim Carney, local journalist and father of the Black Keys’ Pat Carney. In these messages, McMoore would sometimes say, “This is Alfred McMoore. Your black key is taking so long.” McMoore and that phrase would eventually inspire Pat Carney and bandmate, Dan Auerbach to call their band, the Black Keys. Alfred McMoore passed away at the age of 59. Cause of death is not known, though likely related to apparent health issues he suffered over the years.
John Bonham is best remembered as the powerful drummer for legendary British rock band Led Zeppelin. He was arguably the greatest rock drummer ever known. In 1968, Bonham was asked to join the new band guitarist, Jimmy Page was forming after the break-up of the Yardbirds. He had been recommended by singer, Robert Plant who had worked with Bonham some years earlier in a blues band called Crawling King Snakes. The Led Zeppelin line-up was rounded out with bassist, John Paul Jones. Over the next several years, Led Zeppelin grew in immense popularity due to their genre defining albums and explosive live shows. Bonham’s drumming was as important to the mix as anything else in the band. And his drum solos became a thing of legend, perhaps even introducing the concept to other young bands. One Bonham signature song in particular, “Moby Dick,” sometimes included solos as long as 30 minutes. With Led Zeppelin, Bonham played on some of rock music’s greatest songs. That list includes “Whole Lotta Love,” “Kashmir,” “Immigrant Song,” and of course, “Stairway To Heaven.” On September 24, 1980, Bonham was drinking heavily both prior to, and during band rehearsals. After calling it quits later that night, the band went to Page’s Windsor, England home to sleep. Sometime after midnight, the sleeping Bonham was placed in a bed for the night. He was found dead by Jones and a friend later that afternoon. John Bonham was dead at the age of 32. Cause of death was ruled pulmonary edema, having suffocated from breathing in his own vomit while passed out.
Patrick Bourque
September 27, 1977 – September 25, 2007
Patrick Bourque was best known as the one-time bassist for Canadian country band, Emerson Drive. Finding moderate success as 12 Guage in and around Alberta, the band soon changed its name to Emerson Drive and moved to Nashville where they landed a deal with DreamWorks. The band released a series of country hits and added Bourque to the band in 2002. Within a couple of years they were opening for the likes of Shania Twain. But in August of 2007, Bourque left the band for an undisclosed reason. Just one month later, he was found dead in his Montreal home. Reports have indicated that he committed suicide.
Gary Primich was an Austin-based blues harmonica wiz who stood out in a city full of some of the best musicians in the country. He moved to Austin during the ’80s and formed the Mannish Boys with Jimmy Carl Black, a former drummer for Frank Zappa. Primich recorded eight solo albums over his career, one of which, Mr. Freeze, was called one of the twenty best blues albums of the 1990s by Chicago paper, New City. Gary Primich died at the age of 49 on September 23, 2007. Cause of death is not known.
Robbie McIntosh was a founding member of and drummer for the Average White Band, possibly the most famous Scottish mostly-White funk band in history. Their 1973 album AWB was a massive hit and included “Pick Up The Pieces,” one of the signature songs of the era. Sadly, McIntosh died of a heroin overdose not long after its release. He was just 24.
Mary Ford was the wife and musical partner of Les Paul. She sang and played guitar when performing and recording with her famous husband. They were extremely popular in the early ’50s, scoring sixteen top-10 hits and selling over six million records in 1951 alone. Ford married Paul in 1949 and the two almost immediately launched a radio show on NBC. The signed to Capitol records at around the same time and began releasing a string of hits. Their popularity began to wane in the late ’50s, and the two divorced, thus ending their proffessional relationship in 1964. Ford spent the latter years of her life performing occasionally with her sisters and brother. She died of complications from diabetes on September 30, 1977. She was 53 years old.
Greg Ladanyi was an engineer and producer who worked with some of the biggest acts of the ’70s and ’80s. His talents can be heard on landmark albums by the likes of Fleetwood Mac, Don Henley, Jackson Browne, the Church, the Cruzados, David Lindley, and Toto. In 1983, he won a Grammy for Best Engineered Album for Toto IV. In recent years he was working with Greek singer and actress, Anna Vissi. On Friday, September 25, 2009, Ladanyi was injured in an accident while on stage with Vissi. He suffered head injuries that lead to his death on September 29, 2009. He was 57 years old.
There was a time when Rory Storm & the Hurricanes were more popular than the Beatles. Also from Liverpool at the time, Storm and his band offered up a rollicking show mostly covering the popular American early rock ‘n roll and rockabilly, much like the Beatles were doing at the time. In fact, Storm’s drummer at the time, was Ringo Starr who left him to replace Pete Best in the Beatles. Although the band were a great live act, generally opening for popular American rockers that came through town, they never were able to parlay that into a recording career. They made just two singles during their run. Storm broke up the band in 1967 after original member Ty O’Brien died of complications from appendicitis surgery. He had collapsed on stage, from the appendicitis. Storm went on to become a local disc jockey and ski instructor. In September of 1972, Storm was living back to take care of his mother after his father died. Battling a chest infection, he took sleeping pills to get a good night’s sleep. The next morning, both he and his mother were found dead. It is believed that Storm died of an accidental overdose since there was also alcohol in his system. It was suggested that Storm’s mother, who also had sleeping pills in her system, may have committed suicide after discovering her son dead. Rory Storm was 33 when he died.
Miles Davis was trumpeter who was one of jazz’s must influential musicians of all times. Over the course of his career, he helped launch the careers of some of biggest names in jazz by hiring them for his bands. That list includes 
Beau Velasco was the founding drummer for up-and-coming electro-punk band, The Death Set. Formed in Australia in 2005, the band quickly moved to New York City and then settled in Baltimore where they began to build a following for their aggressive genre-bending music. In 2008, they signed to hip indie label, Counter Records, who released their debut album, Worldwide to positive reviews. Beau Valesco died on September 27, 2009. Cause of death has not been released.
Paul Burlison was a founding member of The Rock and Roll Trio, a rockabilly band who would heavily influence rock ‘n roll bands for generations to come. He formed the band with brothers, 
George “Wydell” Jones was not only the lead vocalist of doo wop singing group, the Edsels, he wrote their most famous song, “Rama Lama Ding Dong.” The song, even though recorded in 1957, became a hit for the group in 1961, reaching #21 on the Billboard singles charts. The popularity of the song landed the Edsels on American Bandstand that same year. George “Wydell” Jones passed away in his home a week before his 72nd birthday.
Alison Steele was a popular disc jockey at New York’s WNEW, one of the country’s first FM stations to switch to a progressive album-track oriented format during the ’60s. For many years, Steele hosted the night shift, becoming known as “The Nightbird” to her many fans, most of whom were young male adults attracted to her sexy smoky voice. 
Amy Farris was an Austin fiddler who in recent years was living in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, the much-respected musician and singer had collaborated with a who’s-who of Austin and Los Angeles musicial fixtures. That list includes Brian Wilson, Peter Case, Alejandro Escovedo, Exene Cervenka and Kelly Willis. As a session player in Los Angeles, she played on musical tracks on such television shows as Mad Men and CSI: Miami. She was also part of Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women, both the album and the current tour. According to the 
Alfred McMoore was an Akron, Ohio based non-traditional, or “outsider” artist whose pieces have been displayed in galleries from Ohio to New York City to France. A community fixture around Akron, McMoore could usually be found riding around town on a bus or bicycle, or at a one of thousands of funerals he had attended for people he didn’t even know. He also enjoyed leaving random (yet non-threatening or unoffensive) telephone messages on people’s answering machines. Many such messages were left for Jim Carney, local journalist and father of the Black Keys’ Pat Carney. In these messages, McMoore would sometimes say, “This is Alfred McMoore. Your black key is taking so long.” McMoore and that phrase would eventually inspire Pat Carney and bandmate, Dan Auerbach to call their band, the Black Keys. Alfred McMoore passed away at the age of 59. Cause of death is not known, though likely related to apparent health issues he suffered over the years.
