Obituary News

Artie Shaw: Legendary Clarinetist and Bandleader

Source: All About Jazz
January 1, 2005

Born: May 23, 1910 in New York, NY Died: December 30, 2004 in Thousand Oaks, CA

Clarinetist and bandleader Artie Shaw, who sold 100 million records before quitting the music business half a century ago, died on December 30, 2004, at his home in Thousand Oaks, California. He was 94 years old. Born Arthur Jacob Arshawsky to impoverished Jewish parents in New York City, Shaw grew up in New Haven, Connecticut. He bought his first saxophone at the ...

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Big band legend Artie Shaw dies at 94

Source: All About Jazz
December 30, 2004

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - Artie Shaw, the clarinetist and bandleader whose recording of “Begin the Beguine" epitomized the Big Band era, died Thursday at his home. He was 94.

Shaw had been in declining health for some time and apparently died of natural causes, his attorney and longtime friend Eddie Ezor said. Shaw's caregiver was with him when he died, Ezor said.

At his peak in the 1930s and '40s, Shaw pulled in a five-figure salary per week and ranked ...

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Blues icon Son Seals dies at 62

Source: All About Jazz
December 22, 2004

CHICAGO - Blues singer-guitarist Son Seals, one of the most distinctive voices to emerge in the genre during the 1970s, died Monday, Dec. 21, of complications from diabetes. He was 62.

Seals helped establish Chicago-based Alligator Records as the era's premier blues label with a run of albums featuring his tough songs, brooding vocals and spikey guitar work. He won three W.C. Handy Blues Awards, and received a Grammy Award nomination in 1980 for his work on the live compilation ...

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Gospel great Ethel Elliott dead at 76

Source: All About Jazz
December 8, 2004

CHAPEL HILL -- Ethel Elliott, half of The Branchettes gospel singing duo, has died at the age of 76, the N.C. Arts Council said Monday. Elliott suffered a stroke during an appearance Nov. 29 and died Wednesday at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill, council spokesman Joe Newberry said.

Elliott was born near Benson in rural Johnston County and grew up in a family and church that encouraged spiritual music.

The Branchettes were formed by chance in the mid-1960s. Elliott, Lena ...

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Bluesman Richard 'Big Boy' Henry dead at 83

Source: All About Jazz
December 8, 2004

BEAUFORT, N.C. -- Blues musician Richard 'Big Boy' Henry died Sunday after several years of declining health. He was 83.

“Mr. Henry was a master musician in the blues tradition from eastern North Carolina, which is one of the important parts of the roots of blues in our state," said Wayne Martin, folklife director of the North Carolina Arts Council. “He was a very generous person who shared his music with many different audiences throughout our state and around the ...

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Jazz journalist, broadcaster David Grierson dead at 49

Source: All About Jazz
November 22, 2004

VICTORIA, British Columbia -- David Grierson, a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation radio and television host, jazz writer and book author, is dead at age 49.

Grierson, author of “The Expo Celebration," a Canadian best-seller featuring the work of Canadian photographers on the world's fair in Vancouver in 1986, died Saturday of a heart attack, professional colleagues said.

“He combined a vigorous intelligence with wit, with curiosity, with charm and with an ability to engage not one bit intimidating," said Jane Heffelfinger, ...

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Pete Jolly, 72, Keyboardist in Jazz and TV, Is Dead

Source: All About Jazz
November 16, 2004

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Pete Jolly, a keyboardist who was a regular on the Southern California jazz scene for 40 years and whose playing was heard on some of television's most popular theme songs, died on Saturday in Pasadena. He was 72.

The cause was complications of bone marrow cancer and irregular heartbeat, The Los Angeles Times reported.

Mr. Jolly, whose composition “Little Bird" was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1963, formed the Pete Jolly Trio in 1964 with ...

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Saxophone great Robin Kenyatta dead at 62

Source: All About Jazz
November 15, 2004

NEW YORK (AP)- Robin Kenyatta, a jazz saxophonist known for his free style of jazz and bop, died in his sleep Oct. 26 in Lausanne, Switzerland, said his daughter Ayo Kenyatta Haynes. He was 62 and a resident of Manhattan.

Kenyatta collaborated with musicians like saxophonists Archie Shepp, Sonny Stitt, trumpeter Bill Dixon, and trombonist Roswell Rudd. Although known as an alto saxophonist, he also played tenor saxophone and flute.

Born Robert Prince Haynes in 1942 in Moncks Corner, S.C., ...

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