The Music Lives On

I am a huge music fan and nothing gets to me more than when we lose a talented artist before they had a chance to express themselves completely. I know this is just a short list and that my personal tastes do not reflect everyone else’s but hell… this is my wife’s blog and this is the music that I have been most influenced by. 1. Jimi Hendrix, 27 - He was only discovered back here in North America after being lured to the UK to develop his sound. In four short years and three studio albums he changed the way the world would view the guitar through his experimentation and wild performances. It has been suspected that Jimi was going to explore Jazz or the Blues but it was all cut short by drug use. D- 1970 2. Janis Joplin, 27 - She is arguably the greatest female rock singer of the 1960's. It’s possible that she did as much for women in the ‘60s as she did for music. After a brief solo career she died from heroin use before her greatest work was ever released. D-1970 3. Marc Bolan, 30 - (T.Rex) The ‘70s glam rocker was killed in his girlfriend’s car when she hit a tree on a country road. She had to flee England for fear of her life as his fans stripped their flat for souvenirs. His songs have been covered countless times. D- 1977 4. Keith Moon, 31 - (The Who) Known for his crazy antics and frenzied drumming, he was the driving force behind The Who. Keith represented the youthful, zany side of rock & roll, as well as its self-destructive side, better than anyone else on the planet. I can’t think of anyone else who could have possibly run himself over with his own car. (and live!) Yet it was this excessiveness that would lead to his drug/alcohol induced death. D- 1978 5. John Bonham, 33 - (Led Zeppelin) It is possible that John is the most sampled and one of the most influential drummers in Rock history. It’s rumored that he downed three dozen vodka shots before dying in his sleep a couple of hours later. Jimmy, Robert and John Paul called it quits soon after knowing that they could never replace his talent. D-1980 6. John Lennon, 40 - (The Beatles) He was senselessly gunned down by MDC outside his New York apartment. Questions were raised if this was a political assassination. The three shots were a “tight group shot” as MDC dropped to one knee and fired. Lennon was one of the few who could rally together a significant number of people against Reagan. The CIA still has “Classified” files on him. His music will forever stand the test of time. D-1980 7. Hillel Slovak, 26 - (Red Hot Chili Peppers) The funk inspired musician was the original guitarist for the band before they broke wide open with Mother’s Milk. He was a high energy performer and painter. One of the original Socks on Cocks! The band was famous for being naked on stage. Hillel died of a heroin overdose. His death was part of the reason Jack Irons (drums) left the band. “My Lovely Man” on Blood Sugar Sex Magic was written as a tribute. D- 1988 8. Andrew Wood, 24 - (Mother Love Bone) A flamboyant and charismatic singer, he teamed up with former members of Green River. (Guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament) The band would go on to play an important part in the music scene that would spawn the Grunge sound. He was a known heroin addict. Towards the end he was in and out of rehab. He was found after taking a lethal dose and died days later. Mother Love Bone broke up soon after but key elements of the band would later resurface as Pearl Jam. D- 1990 9. Kurt Cobain, 27 - (Nirvana) Everyone is well aware of the apparent suicide that rocked the music world back in the 90’s. What everyone might not know was the demise of Nirvana or the impending divorce from Courtney Love. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" climbed the American Top Ten and Nevermind bumped Michael Jackson off the top of the album charts. The first Guitar oriented band to break Number One in years. His sound would inspire countless acts to follow. His legacy stands as one of the most influential in Rock & Roll history. D- 1994 10. Shannon Hoon, 28 - (Blind Melon) The band was often overseen by the little Dancing Bee Girl in their "No Rain" video. His death would be overshadowed by Kurt Cobain’s death the year before. After only two studio albums the band dissolved after Shannon was found dead on their tour bus from a heroin overdose. It truly appeared as though he had plenty of great music still to create and explore. D- 1995 11. Mark Sandman, 47 - (Morphine) He is a man who died doing what he loved. While performing on stage he collapsed due to a heart attack. Mark played a detuned, two string, home made bass. The band specialized in their own version of stripped-down jazz-lounge rock. D- 1999 12. Layne Staley, 35 - (Alice In Chains) The harmonies between Layne and Jerry Cantrell made the band the huge influence it was. They twisted their sound to fit the trend of the 90’s with great success. Its ironic that Layne would write the hit "Would?" as a way to honor Andrew Wood only to be found dead in his own apartment from a drug overdose years later. D- 2002 13. Elliott Smith, 34 - I champion Elliott’s talents simply on the one fact that he gave Celine Dion a run for her money at the Oscars in 1998. His song "Miss Misery" (Good Will Hunting) was nominated in the Best Original Song category. He didn’t win but I'm sure Celine was wearing her Depends on stage while all the nominees performed their songs. He was a gifted songwriter exploring his own twist of folk/punk. He died alone with a knife in his hand. D- 2003 Links to other Thursday Thirteens:

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