2012 – Hundreds of mourners gathered at a Los Angeles-area church on Saturday to remember rhythm-and-blues singer Etta James, saying she overcame great personal and professional hurdles to sing “the times that she lived.”
During a two-hour service that featured performances by pop stars Stevie Wonder and Christina Aguilera, the Rev. Al Sharpton eulogized James as a woman who rose from a tough childhood and poured her pain into her music.
Aguilera performed a version of “At Last,” James’ show-stopping hit and best-known song.
James died at 73 at a Riverside, California, hospital on January 20 from complications of leukemia, prompting numerous tributes from artists and musicians who were influenced by her work, including Mariah Carey and Aretha Franklin.
“People need to understand that when they hear the music Etta James sang, she sang the times that she lived,” Sharpton told friends and family at Greater Bethany Church City of Refuge church in the Los Angeles suburb of Gardena.
“She put our pain and our dreams and our love and our need for one another in her vocal chords, but the difference between her and other artists is somehow you felt she meant what she was saying.”
James, who was born to a teenage single mother, won wide acclaim and three Grammys, but saw numerous ups-and-downs in her career and personal life…
Full article here:http://news.yahoo.com/blues-singer-etta-james-remembered-los-angeles-010206976.html
2011 – Iron Maiden’s Number Of The Beast narrator Barry Clayton passes away on This Day in Rock History!
From: NME.COM First For Music News
December 30, 2011 16:33
Iron Maiden’s Number Of The Beast narrator Barry Clayton passes away
Barry Clayton, the man behind the spoken word introduction to Iron Maiden’s classic 1982 album ‘The Number Of The Beast’ has passed away. The passage from ‘The Number Of The Beast’ contains a seven-line excerpt from the passages of 12:12 and 13:18 from the Book of Revelations, which Clayton read. The album is largely viewed as Iron Maiden’s breakthrough album.
Clayton, who was also the voiceover artist for a large number of movie trailers, passed away this week. He was 80 years old, reports The Islington Tribune.
Clayon also acted as the producer for the Black Londoners radio programme for the BBC – the first black daily radio programme. He worked on the prgramme from its first airing in 1974 until 1988 when he left to join Capital Radio.
He also arranged for a Christmas link-up with Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad for a Channel 4 special in 1981.
Iron Maiden, who are currently on a break after their extended world tour, have said that they plan to “make at least one more album” and have begun planning for the recording of the follow-up to 2010′s ‘The Final Frontier’, which was the 15th studio LP of the veteran band’s career.
2011 – Cory Smoot, the guitarist who portrayed the character of Flattus Maximus dies on This Day in Rock Music History! in the theatrical art-comedy-metal band Gwar, was found dead Thursday morning.
Find: More on Gwar
According to a post in CityPages.com, Smoot died of unknown causes sometime between the end of Wednesday night’s show at First Avenue in Minneapolis and when his bandmates attempted to wake him to cross the border into Canada Thursday morning.
Smoot has been a member of Gwar since 2002.
In a statement, Gwar’s Dave Brockie wrote: “It is with a sense of profound loss and tragedy that the members of GWAR must announce the passing of their long time guitarist and beloved friend Cory Smoot, also known to thousands of metal fans worldwide as Flattus Maximus. Cory was found deceased this morning as the band prepared for a border crossing. There is no word as to the cause of death and the members of GWAR are completely shocked and devastated that this has occurred. At this point there is no word on arrangements and the disposition of the remainder of GWAR’s current North American tour, nor are there any details regarding long term plans. At this point we are just dealing with the loss of our dear friend and brother, one of the most talented guitar players in metal today. We ask that our fans and the media be respectful of our request for privacy for those that have suffered this terrible loss. A full statement will be coming in the next day or so, in the meantime please give your thoughts and your prayers to Cory, his family, and all the people that love him.”
2011 – Two years since Michael jackson Passed and he tops earnings for Dead Rock Stars on This Day in Rock Music History. Elvis is up on the list as well. John Lennon was No. 5 with $12 mill. Ah… that Magical Mystery Tour.
It’s been two years since Michael Jackson passed away at the age of 50 but the King of Pop’s earning power shows no sign of waning. For the second year in a row, Jackson tops our annual list of the Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Over the past 12 months Jackson’s estate brought in $170 million from sales of his music and his stake in the Sony/ATV catalog. That’s a big drop from the $275 million Jackson earned in the previous 12 months but it’s still enough to make him the second highest-earning pop act over the past year, dead or alive, after U2.
The Cirque show “Viva Elvis” helped Elvis Presley rank second on our list with $55 million. Of course Presley’s iconic songs, like “Hound Dog ” and ”Heartbreak Hotel,” still sell well and fans flock to Graceland. But a long-running Vegas show where tickets sell for as much as $175 a pop definitely gooses earnings. John Lennon, who ties for fifth on our list with $12 million, and George Harrison, tied for 13th with $6 million, both also benefited from Cirque. The show “Love,” based on Beatles music, has been running at The Mirage in Las Vegas since 2006.
2011 -Dr. testifies against Dr. Conrad Murray’s treatment on This Day in Rock Music History!
A sleep doctor who said Dr. Conrad Murray’s treatment of Michael Jackson’s insomnia with the surgical anesthetic propofol was “inconceivable” is expected to resume his testimony Thursday in the trial concerning the singer’s death.
Nader Kamangar, a UCLA associate professor who evaluated Murray’s care as an expert reviewer for the California Medical Board, told jurors Wednesday that the physician had violated the most basic standards and ethics in medicine in his treatment of Jackson.
Kamangar is one of three medical experts expected to testify for prosecutors in the third week of Murray’s involuntary-manslaughter trial.
“It’s kind of beyond a departure of standard of care to something that we would never even fathom doing,” Kamangar said in his testimony.
Echoing experts who have testified before him, Kamangar said his opinions concerning Murray’s actions would remain unchanged even if it were found that Jackson had given himself the lethal dose that led to his death.
2011 – Steve Jobs, Apple Computers, Disney, Pixar, and iTunes died today on This Day in Rock! Jobs, most notably known for the iPhone in recent years, contributed to the computer and music world. iTunes being the most notable and influential music download service in the known universe. At one time apple battled over the name ‘Apple’ with the Beatles who own the same name, but in different industries… until iTunes.
Steve… you will be missed. We equate it to the passing of Walt Disney.
2011 – Michael Jackson: Dr. Murray gives evidence in hopes of clearing his name on This Day in Rock! The Defence argument: Scientific evidence will show that, on the morning Jackson died, he swallowed a sedative without his doctor’s knowledge, “enough to put six of you to sleep, and he did this when Dr. Murray was not around,” Chernoff said. Jackson then ingested a dose of propofol on his own, creating “a perfect storm that killed him instantly,” Chernoff said.
A lawyer hired by concert promoter AEG to draw up the contract with Michael Jackson’s personal physician testified Wednesday that Dr. Conrad Murray requested a cardiopulmonary resuscitation machine and money to hire a second doctor to help him care for Jackson.
Tuesday morning, dabbing his eyes at times. Mostly, though, the defendant remained stoic through the proceedings.
More at: http://www.cnn.com/2011/09/28/justice/california-conrad-murray-trial/
2011 – Journalist Dan Sicko dead on This Day in Rock! Dan was a journalist for Rolling Stone, Wired and Urb magazines. he was also an author of Techno Rebels. The Renegades of Electronic Funk helped promote the Chicago Techno scene of the 80′s. You will be missed, Dan.
2011 – lyricist Jerry Leiber dies at age 78 on This Day in Rock! He Co-wrote hits like “Hound Dog” and “Jailhouse Rock” and was a key player in the birth or Rock ‘n’ Roll. Composing over 200 tunes covered by Elvis, Buddy Holly, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, James Brown, BB King, The drifters and Peggy Lee, Elvis having recorded over 20 of the tunes himself.
2011 – Last Night, Stage Collapse at Indiana State, killing Five people and injuring dozens more on This Tragic Day in Rock! Singer Sara Bareilles had just left the stage when a sudden gust of wind toppled the entire stage structure. One concert goer said the stage “snapped like a toothpick,” as audience members rushed to the heaps of metal to try to free those trapped. Some created makeshift stretchers out of parts of their seats to take away the injured.
2011 – Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black” climbed back to the top of the British albums chart on This Day in
Rock! A week after her death, the album which was released in 2006 is at the top. Songs included: “You Know I’m No Good,” “Love Is a Losing Game” and “Rehab,” which contained the line: “They tried to make me go to rehab. I said ‘no, no, no’.”
Curious… it seems that record companies take advantage of dead artists like Amy and Jim Morrison. One has to wonder if death is part of the artist’s development… at any rate… they are pretty shameless.
2011 – Amy Winehouse, 27, found dead on This Day in Rock! Authorities found her at her north London home. Death is yet unknown, but Amy has battled drugs and alcohol addiction for many years, and is likely the cause.
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