Obituary News

Benny Powell, 1930-2010

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
June 30, 2010

Benny Powell, the veteran trombonist, died last Saturday in New York. Born in New Orleans, Powell was treasured by his colleagues as a superb musician and teacher and as a gentleman who observed old-South standards of courtesy and consideration.

Among the bands that Powell graced were those of Count Basie, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis, Bill Holman, Benny Goodman, Duke Pearson and Terry Gibbs. Here he is playing the blues in the company of a few of his admiring colleagues: ...

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Allyn Ferguson: Prolific Hollywood Composer Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
June 30, 2010

Allyn Ferguson, a prolific, Emmy-winning composer who co-wrote the themes for the popular TV series “Charlie's Angels" and “Barney Miller," has died. He was 85.

Ferguson, who also was known as an arranger and conductor, died of natural causes June 23 at his home in Westlake Village, said his daughter, Jill Ferguson.

Teamed with composer Jack Elliott in a television scoring partnership, Ferguson and Elliott wrote the themes for “Charlie's Angels" and “Barney Miller" in the 1970s as well as ...

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Corey Allen Actor Played Gang Leader in 'Rebel Without a Cause' Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
June 30, 2010

In 'Rebel,' Allen played Buzz Gunderson, who challenges James Dean to a 'chicken run.' In 1984, Allen won an Emmy for directing an episode of 'Hill Street Blues.'

Corey Allen, an actor-turned Emmy Award-winning director who earned a slice of film immortality in the 1950s playing the doomed high school gang leader who challenges James Dean to a “chicken run" in “Rebel Without a Cause," has died. He was 75. Allen died at his home in Hollywood on Sunday, two ...

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R.I.P. Benny Powell

Source: Inverted Garden by Eric Benson
June 29, 2010

Amid the bounty of great music in New York over the last two weeks, jazz has suffered three big losses: Bill Dixon (84-years-old, June 16), Fred Anderson (81-years-old, June 24), and now Benny Powell (80-years-old), whose death was announced on Saturday. I never heard Bill Dixon or Fred Anderson play, but I knew Powell's music well. His passing hits me with a more audible silence.

In August 2001, I saw Powell's friend and longtime employer Randy Weston perform at the ...

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Fred Anderson Funeral / Wake / Memorial / Going Home Services Info - Velvet Lounge Founder and Chicago "Free Jazz" Tenorist Will Be Missed

Source: JAZZzology by Richard Watters
June 28, 2010

A great Jazzman and founder of The Velvet Lounge jazz club located in Chicago, Illinois, Fred Anderson, passed away Thursday June 24th, 2010... according to his sons Eugene and Michael Anderson... Fred had suffered a massive heart attack on June 14th... checkout Howard Reich's Chicago Tribune article here on Fred Anderson and his legacy and impact on the world of Jazz. Also, refer to the latest article on Fred authored by The New York Times, here. The Kurt Gottshalk article ...

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Robert Byrd, Respected Voice of the Senate, Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
June 28, 2010

Robert C. Byrd, who used his record tenure as a United States senator to fight for the primacy of the legislative branch of government and to build a modern West Virginia with vast amounts of federal money, died early Monday. He was 92.

Senator Robert C. Byrd served in the Senate for 51 years.

His office said he died about 3 a.m. at Inova Hospital in Fairfax, Va. Senator Byrd, who lived in McLean, Va., had been admitted to the ...

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Francis Dreyfus: 1940 - 2010

Source: Michael Ricci
June 28, 2010

Music publisher and record producer Francis Dreyfus died Thursday, June 24, 2010, at the age of 70.

Through his labels Disques Motors and Dreyfus Records, Francis Dreyfus launched the careers of prominent artists, including Christophe and Jean Michel Jarre.

His love of jazz led to the creation of the Dreyfus Jazz label which brought together such major jazz figures as Michel Petrucciani, Richard Galliano, Bireli Lagrne, Aldo Romano, Marcus Miller, Ahmad Jamal, Roy Haynes, Philip Catherine, and Steve Grossman.

He ...

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Fred Anderson, 1929-2010

Source: Something Else!
June 27, 2010

By PicoFred Anderson, a forward thinking tenor saxophonist for more than six decades and a major force in Chicago's vital jazz scene, died Thursday following a heart attack. He was 81 years old. What I've found so remarkable about Anderson isn't so much that he lived so long, but that he lived so fully right up to the end of his life. At his age he was regularly playing gigs, like at his now-legendary Velvet Lounge, ...

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