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Obituary

Ray Bryant - R.I.P.

Source: Sound Insights by Doug Payne
June 4, 2011

While the news today has been full of the deaths of Jack “Dr. Death" Kevorkian, 83 (a curiously interesting musician in his own right), and actor James “Matt Dillon" Arness, 88, the great pianist Ray Bryant has also died. His sound—a mix of joyous jazz and grandstanding gospel—was like no other and is evident on many recordings by Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins, Benny Golson, Oliver Nelson, Aretha Franklin, Sonny Rollins, Yusef Lateef and others. Ray Bryant began recording ...

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Obituary

R.I.P. Gil Scott Heron "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" [video]

Source: HypeBot
May 31, 2011

Obituary

Weekend Wax Bits

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
May 30, 2011

Gil Scott-Heron (1949-2011), a spoken-word singer- songwriter whose socially conscious soul-jazz albums of the '70s neatly leveraged the feel and urgency of Sly Stone, Marvin Gaye and Richie Havens, died in New York on May 27. He was 62. Scott-Heron's albums from the '70s are essential for fans of jazz and soul. His most dynamic recordings include Pieces of Man (1971), which included Lady Day and John Coltrane, and Winter in America (1974), which featured his hit The Bottle. Often ...

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Obituary

Gil Scott-Heron. 1949-2011...

Source: Digital Music News
May 28, 2011

Poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron passed away late this (Friday) afternoon. He was a too-young 62, though that voice and soul remain as vibrant as ever. The passing was confirmed by Scott-Heron's publishing and label partners. Scott-Heron is probably best known for “The Revolution Will NotBe Televised," though he is also credited for influencing a range of musical genres, including hip-hop. This was a diverse and talented artist, one with an unmistakeable voice and impact. That influence stretches into the ...

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Obituary

Gil Scott-Heron (1949-2011): An Appreciation

Source: Something Else!
May 28, 2011

Musician and street poet Gil Scott-Heron, best known for “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," died today. Cause of death was not immediately known; he was 62. Scott-Heron started out at the dawn of the 1970s as a jazz-inclined R&B singer and spoken-word performer, a rapper years before the genre was formally invented. “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised"—which appeared on Scott-Heron's conversational debut recording, 1970's Small Talk at 125th and Lenox—was so influential that the saying ultimately moved into ...

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Obituary

Bill Donahoe, Founder of the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Band, Has Died

Source: Michael Ricci
May 25, 2011

E. William “Bill" Donahoe Known among his fellow Dixieland jazz fans as “the Fastest Washboard in the East," Bill Donahoe died May 22nd in Lady Lake, Florida. He was 83 years old. Introduced to the music of Bix Beiderbecke by his cousin, Mr. Donahoe became a passionate fan of the legendary cornetist. Beginning in 1965 and continuing through 1982, he and his wife Mary Cay nee Wadelton, hosted gatherings known as Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Stomps at their New Jersey home. ...

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Obituary

Bruce Ricker, Documentarian, RIP

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
May 17, 2011

Bruce Ricker, the producer-director of a series of documentaries about American musicians, has died. He succumbed to pneumonia on Friday, May 13, at a hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was 68. Ricker's most recent release was last year's Dave Brubeck: In His Own Sweet Way. Among his other films were the stories of Jim Hall, Tony Bennett, Johnny Mercer and Thelonious Monk. He also produced the 1997 TV special Eastwood After Hours: Live at Carnegie Hall. Born in Staten Island, ...

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Obituary

Snooky Young, 1919-2011

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
May 12, 2011

Reports emerged late last night that Snooky Young died on May 5 at the age of 92. Young was that rare combination, a great lead trumpeter who was also a soloist of exceptional imagination, taste and humor. He began as a professional musician when he was a teenager in Dayton, Ohio. At 20, he joined he joined the Jimmie Lunceford band and in the course of his career played key roles in virtually every big jazz band of importance except ...

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