Obituary News

Ray Barretto, Grammy wining Latin jazz percussionist, dead at 76

Source: All About Jazz
February 17, 2006

HACKENSACK, New Jersey (AP) - Ray Barretto, the Grammy-winning Latin jazz percussionist who had recently undergone heart surgery, died Friday, hospital officials and friends said. He was 76.

George Rivera, a friend who has been serving as a family spokesman, said Barretto died with his wife and two sons by his bedside at the Hackensack University Medical Center. Barretto had undergone heart bypass surgery in January and was operated on again two weeks later after an artery burst.

“He survived ...

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Conguero and Bandleader Ray Barretto Dead at 76

Source: All About Jazz
February 17, 2006

New York, NY - February 17, 2006 - Family spokesperson George Rivera announced this morning that Ray Barretto died at the Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J. at 5 a.m. Annette Rivera (Brandy) who had been a constant by his side since he was taken to the hospital late last month was taken home to rest. We will get more information from the family later.

For nearly 40 years, conguero and bandleader Ray Barretto has been one of the ...

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Reverend Charlie Jackson, Rest in Peace

Source: All About Jazz
February 17, 2006

It is with great sadness that we here at CaseQuarter Records must convey the news that Bishop Charlie Jackson of Baker, Louisiana has passed away. Bishop Jackson, known to many blues, gospel and music lovers in the wider world as the Reverend Charlie Jackson, died in his sleep at a local Baker, Louisiana nursing home early Monday morning Febuary 13th. Reverend Jackson had been confined to the 24 hour care facility since the spring of 2005 after suffering the latest ...

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African singer Jockey Shabalala dies at 62

Source: All About Jazz
February 16, 2006

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- Jockey Shabalala, a member of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, South Africa's most famous a cappella ensemble, has died, the group's record company said Tuesday. He was 62.

Shabalala, whose brother Joseph founded and still leads the ensemble, died Saturday of natural causes surrounded by family at his home in Ladysmith, said Mike Wilpizeski, a spokesman for the U.S.-based Heads Up International record label. Shabalala had suffered from various ailments.

Shabalala joined Ladysmith Black Mambazo in the 1960s ...

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Former Soft Machine Saxophone Player Elton Dean Dies

Source: All About Jazz
February 8, 2006

British jazz saxophonist Elton Dean died on the evening of February 7th, 2006, in a London hospital. For the last year in particular he had been suffering from heart and liver related health problems. He was 60.

Dean first gained acclaim as a member of the Keith Tippett Group, led by the English pianist and featuring the horn section of Dean, Marc Charig and Nick Evans, in 1969. Later that year, Dean, Charig and Evans were hired by Soft Machine ...

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Jazz pianist Edwin Raymond McKinley Dies

Source: All About Jazz
February 5, 2006

Jazz pianist Edwin Raymond McKinley died on Wednesday, January 25th, 2006 from heart problems.

Funeral services were held at St. Catherine of Sienna Church -- 118-22 Riverton Street in St. Albans, New York on Saturday, February 4th, 2006. Body viewing at 9:30 A.M. and Mass and service was held at 11:00 A.M.

Many jazz luminaries came by to pay respects. Some of the jazz artists were bassist David Jackson composer/pianist Stuart H. Tresser, drummers Revels Bay and Carl Allen trumpeters ...

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Drummer Sherman Ferguson Dies at 61

Source: All About Jazz
January 31, 2006

Sherman Ferguson, a jazz drummer and a member of the faculty in the UCLA Jazz Studies Program, died from complications of diabetes on Jan. 22 at his home in La Crescenta, Calif. He was 61. Ferguson joined the UCLA faculty as a lecturer in January 2001 and taught a jazz ensemble class and private drum lessons.

“Sherman Ferguson was an extraordinary talent and a major figure in the Los Angeles music scene," said Kenny Burrell, founder and director of the ...

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Dancer Fayard Nicholas dies at 91

Source: All About Jazz
January 26, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- Fayard Nicholas, the elder half of the show-stopping Nicholas Brothers tap-dancing duo that thrilled audiences during the 1930s and beyond with their elegance and daring athleticism, has died. He was 91.

Nicholas, who had been in failing health since suffering a stroke in November, died of pneumonia Tuesday at his home in the Toluca Lake area of Los Angeles, said Paula Broussard, a friend.

The self-taught Nicholas Brothers -- Fayard and younger brother Harold -- tap-danced their ...

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