They gave us joy

Rocky Road

From Classic Rock to Progessive to hip hop to today's hot new tunes!

Lou Rawls, 72, Jan. 6. Velvet-voiced singer of such hits as "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing."
Wilson Pickett, 64, Jan. 19. Fiery soul music pioneer ("Mustang Sally").
James Yancey, 32, Feb. 10. Producer with Los Angeles hip-hop act Slum Village.
William Cowsill, 58, Feb. 17. Member of '60s family band the Cowsills.
Bruce Hart, 68, Feb. 21. Songwriter who provided the lyrics for the "Sesame Street" theme.
Cindy Walker, 88, March 23. Country Music Hall of Fame songwriter, her songs were performed by Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Dean Martin, Bob Wills, Roy Orbison and many others.
Ali Farka Toure, 67, March 7. West African guitarist and singer.
Buck Owens, 76, March 25. Flashy rhinestone cowboy who shaped country music with hits like "Act Naturally."
Nikki Sudden, 49, March 26. English punk musician, member of the band Swell Maps.
Gene Pitney, 66, April 5. Singer with a string of hits ("Town Without Pity").
June Pointer, 52, April 11. Youngest of the hit-making Pointer Sisters ("I'm So Excited").
Big Hawk, 36, May 1. Houston rapper and member of Screwed Up Click.
Grant McLennan, 48, May 6. Co-leader of critically acclaimed Australian rock band the Go-Betweens.
Lawrence (Ramrod) Shurtliff, 61, May 16. Roadie with the Grateful Dead.
Desmond Dekker, 64, May 25. Jamaican hit-maker who helped popularize ska music with the song "The Israelites."
Vince Welnick, 55, June 2. Founding member of '70s San Francisco rock band The Tubes and, later, keyboard player for the Grateful Dead.
Billy Preston, 59, June 6. Exuberant keyboardist and singer ("Nothing From Nothing"); played with the Beatles.
Claydes Charles Smith, 57, June 20. Founding member of disco pioneers Kool & the Gang.
Arif Mardin, 74, June 25. High-profile Atlantic Record executive who produced albums for Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield and Norah Jones.
Johnny Jenkins, 67, June 26. Guitar player with Otis Redding, influenced Jimi Hendrix.
Syd Barrett, 60, July 7. Co-founder of Pink Floyd.
Minan Williams, 58, July 9. Keyboardist with the Commodores.
Bill Miller, 92, July 11. Frank Sinatra's pianist.
Arthur Lee, 61, Aug. 3. Leader of '60s psychedelic folk-rock outfit Love.
Danny Flores, 77, Sept. 19. Under the name Chuck Rio, he wrote, recorded and performed the 1958 party tune "Tequila!"
Raymond "Boz" Burrell, 60, Sept. 21. Original bassist with '70s British rock band Bad Company.
Etta Baker, 93, Sept, 23. Blues guitarist; recorded with Taj Mahal.
Freddy Fender, 69, Oct. 14. Texas' "Bebop Kid" who sang the smash country ballad "Before the Next Teardrop Falls."
Gerald Levert, 40, Nov. 10. Fiery R&B singer of passionate love songs ("Casanova").
Ruth Brown, 78, Nov. 17. Grammy and Tony awards-winning singer ("Teardrops in My Eyes").
Dirk Dirksen, 69, Nov. 20. Godfather of San Francisco punk rock and the often abrasive ringmaster of the North Beach punk emporium Mabuhay Gardens.
Anita O'Day, 87, Nov. 23. One of the most respected jazz vocalists of the 1940s.
Georgia Gibbs, 87, Dec. 9. Hit-making 1950s singer ("Kiss of Fire," "Dance With Me, Henry").
Ahmet Ertegun, 83, Dec. 14. Founder of Atlantic Records and driving force behind careers of Ray Charles, the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin.
Tina Mayfield, 77, Dec. 14. Promoter of blues music and widow of Percy Mayfield.
James Brown, 73, Dec. 25. The Godfather of Soul.
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Topic - They gave us joy - LWR 08:30:53 12/29/06 (2)

A couple that you missed - dwill123 15:09:33 12/29/06 (0)

Rock musicians seem to die younger than jazz or blues players - dave c 11:29:34 12/29/06 (0)

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