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Obituary

James Blood Ulmer: February 8, 1940 - June 3, 2026

Source: Lydia Liebman Promotions
June 8, 2026

With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist, singer, composer, and beloved family member. James died peacefully on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, at the age of 86. Born on February 8, 1940, the eldest of eight children, Blood grew up in rural, deeply segregated St. Matthews, South Carolina. His father, a Baptist preacher, gave him his first guitar when he was four years old. Raised on church music, James’s first ...

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Obituary

Composer, arranger, and educator Bob Zieff dies at 98

Source: All About Jazz
March 28, 2026

Robert L. Zieff, jazz composer, arranger, and educator died peacefully in Stuart, Florida, on March 26th in 2026 at the age of 98. He is survived by his wife, Ella Marie Forsyth, a fellow musician. Over a career spanning more than sixty five years, he made significant contributions to jazz as both a creative artist and scholar. Bob was born June 4, 1927, in Lynn, Massachusetts. After serving in the US Army during World War II he earned a Bachelor ...

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Obituary

Ralph Towner, 1940-2026

Source: DL Media
January 20, 2026

Ralph Towner, guitarist of unique sensibility, writer of highly original compositions, and an ECM artist for more than fifty years, has died, aged 85. Towner, who once described himself as an improvising “raconteur of the abstract” was born into a musical family in the small town of Chehalis, Washington. He started playing music at the age of 6, developing into a young multi-instrumentalist adept at trumpet, French horn and piano. He was 22 before he took up the classical guitar, ...

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Obituary

Scott H. Thompson, Founder of Scott Thompson Public Relations Passes at 71

Source: All About Jazz
November 6, 2025

Scott H. Thompson, Jazz Journalist and Public Relations expert, died peacefully at his home in Palm Beach, Florida on October 24, 2025. He was 71. Born in New York City in 1954, Scott’s love of music ignited in 1968 at age 14 when he attended a Jimi Hendrix concert in Kansas City. Scott discovered Wes Montgomery and many Jazz, Blues, and Rock legends. Music became a constant in the Thompson household. Scott graduated from Twin Lakes High School in West ...

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Obituary

Sheila Jordan (1928-2025)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
August 13, 2025

Sheila Jordan, a jazz and scat vocalist whose passion for bebop and the friendship of Charlie Parker lasted for much of her professional life, transforming her into a heroic figure and mentor to a generation of younger singers, died on Aug. 11. She was 96. [Photo above of Sheila Jordan at a 52nd St. club in 1953, courtesy of Sheila Jordan] Back in 2012, I interviewed Sheila in three parts. In tribute to her and her legacy, here are all ...

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Obituary

Eddie Palmieri (1936-2025)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
August 11, 2025

Eddie Palmieri, a pianist, composer and leader who pioneered a smoldering Latin-jazz sound fronted by trombones and incorporated the jazz jam session into his approach, helping him widen his music and win eight Grammy Awards, died on August 6. He was 88. Eddie was the younger brother of Charlie Palmieri, a Latin pianist with enormous rhythmic power. Eddie bypassed the boogaloo in the 1960s, preferring instead to lay the instrumental groundwork for what would become salsa in the early 1970s. ...

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Obituary

Cleo Laine (1927-2025)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
August 4, 2025

Cleo Laine, Britain's finest and most-celebrated jazz-pop singer who, with tenor saxophonist Johnny Dankworth, began recording together in 1951 but became much better known in the U.K. than in the U.S., died on July 24. She was 97. Dankworth and Laine married in 1958, and over the course of her career, she was showered with British awards and royal titles. In the U.S., she won a Grammy in 1986 for her Cleo at Carnegie album and was awarded the Grammy ...

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Obituary

Chuck Mangione (1940-2025)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
July 28, 2025

Chuck Mangione, a trumpeter, flugelhornist and keyboardist who, along with George Benson, and a few other jazz musicians, successfully crossed over to pop in the late 1970s and pioneered what became known as smooth jazz, died on July 22, He was 84. Mangione, along with his brother, Gap, was born in Rochester, N.Y., a region with a significant Italian population that produced a sizable number of jazz greats. The Mangiones began their recording careers in a group they formed in ...

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