In Memoriam: February 2023 – March 2024

February 2023

AKA (Kiernan Forbes)
28 Jan 1988 – 10 Feb 2023
South African rapper, producer, and entrepreneur. One of the biggest-selling South African hip-hop artists, AKA broke through with his single Victory Lap, which was taken from his debut studio album, Altar Ego.

Roger Bobo
8 Jun 1938 – 12 Feb 2023
US musician known as one of the world’s greatest ever tuba players, who also conducted extensively with orchestras around the world, and who in later years passed on his talent through teaching, including a spell with the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.

David Jolicoeur (Aka Trugoy the Dove, Plug 2 and Dave)
21 Sep 1968 – 12 Feb 2023
Grammy Award winning American rapper, songwriter and producer most known as a founding  member of the influential New York hip hop group De La Soul. The trio had an immediate impact on launch, with their 1989 debut LP 3 Feet High And Rising critically acclaimed and going on to achieve Platinum status in the US and UK, and its lead single Me, Myself & I, a global hit.

Alain Goraguer
20 Aug 1931 – 13 Feb 2023
French musician who excelled in jazz piano and also composed and arranged, including for other artists most notably Serge Gainsbourg and singer Nana Mouskouri. He composed for film, with La Planète Sauvage and La Vie De Bohème among his credits, while Eurovision fans will remember him as one of the team responsible for Luxembourg’s 1965 winning entry Poupeé De Cire, Poupeé De Son, which he conducted.

Huey "Piano" Smith
26 Jan 1934 – 13 Feb 2023
US R&B piano player, regarded as an influence on the early emergence of rock ‘n’ roll.  His unique style fused boogie-woogie with jazz and R&B, evident on his signature tune, Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie-Woogie Flu.

Guido Basso CM
27 Sep 1937 – 13 Feb 2023
Canadian jazz musician of Italian heritage, who started out under the name Stubby Basso in the 1950s and was discovered by Vic Damone before becoming a key member of Rob McConnell’s Boss Brass Big Band. Excelling in trumpet, among other instruments, he also composed, arranged and conducted. 

Spencer Wiggins
8 Jan 1942 – 13 Feb 2023
US soul – in particular deep soul,  R&B and gospel vocalist.  He was mainly a solo performer but did also form a gospel group with family members, followed by the R&B act, the Four Stars.

Tim Aymar 
4 Sep 1963 – 13 Feb 2023
US rock vocalist best known as the singer with metal band Pharoah.  He worked with other acts including Control Denied, 313, Triple X, and Psycho Scream.

Friedrich Cerha
17 Feb 1926 – 14 Feb 2023
Austrian composer and conductor of contemporary classical music.  Hi works include the opera Baal, but he is perhaps most known for completing and then premiering the unfinished third act of the opera Lulu by Alban Berg in 1979.

Peter Renkens
20 Jul 1967 – 14 Feb 2023
Belgian singer who founded and fronted the band Confetti, who were known for their dance routines and costumes and new beat sound, and enjoyed home and international success with the hit The Sound Of C in the Eighties. 

Akira Tsuneoka 
1971 – 14 Feb 2023
Japanese drummer best known as a member of the rock group Hi-Standard.  The band sold more than one million copies of their self released, self-titled album and enjoyed a huge social following in their homeland.

Raquel Welch ( neé Tejad)
5 Sep 1940 – 15 Feb 2023
American actress with part-Hispanic heritage, who was a major Hollywood film star from the 1960s onwards.  She had some success releasing music also, notably I’m Ready To Groove, which featured on the soundtrack to the 1965 film of the same title that she starred in – A Swingin’ Summer – and also the 1989 single This Girl’s Back In Town. Welch appeared in a Las Vegas night club act; starred in the Broadway musical Victor/Victoria; and was referenced in numerous songs by other artists, including Al Jarreau’s Love Is Real.

Marilú (Marina Herrera Aragón)
18 Jul 1927 – 16 Feb 2023
Mexican singer much-loved in her homeland, who also acted and sang in film and was considered one of the last great stars of the golden era of Mexican cinema.

Chuck Jackson
22 Jul 1937 – 16 Feb 2023
US R&B vocalist who worked with the celebrated Bacharach and David songwriting team in their early years, and who enjoyed a measure of success as a solo artist, including with such hits as I Don’t Want To Cry, Any Day Now and All Over the World.

Tony Marshall 
3 Feb 1938 – 16 Feb 2023
German singer who excelled in the tradition of Schlager and opera, and who became popular in his homeland with the early Seventies hit Schöne Maid.

Alberto Radius 
1 Jun 1942 – 16 Feb 2023
Versatile Italian musician, who played guitar, sang, composed and produced.  While he enjoyed some solo success in his home country, he was most known as a member of the group Formula 3, playing with such Italian greats as Lucio Battisti.

Michael “Majk Moti” Kupper
29 Aug 1957 –16 Feb 2023
German rock guitarist most known as the bassist with metal band Running Wild. 

Gerald Fried
13 Feb 1928 – 17 Feb 2023
US composer, conductor and musician, who wrote largely for film and TV and had notable success in the Sixties and Seventies on cult shows such as Mission Impossible, Star Trek and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. as well as Roots, for which he won an Emmy.  He was also Oscar-nominated for Best Original Score to the documentary, Birds Do It, Bees Do It.

Vijay Kichlu
16 Sep 1930 – 17 Feb 2023
Singer in the Indian classical style, who worked with many artists and founded the ITC Music Academy and also the Sangeet Research Academy to support emerging talent in Indian traditional music. 

Jerry Dodgion
29 Aug 1932 – 17 Feb 2023
US jazz musician, who excelled in saxophone and flute.  He performed with notable bands of the Fifties and Sixties, such as Benny Goodman’s band, and worked with many artists including Herbie Hancock and Count Basie, among others.

Pansequito (José Cortés Jiménez)
8 Jan 1945 – 17 Feb 2023
Acclaimed Spanish vocalist who was much admired for his flamenco repertoire. As part of the Antonio Gades company he toured extensively across Europe and developed a wide following.

Hans Poulsen 
7 Mar 1945 – 17 Feb 2023
Australian musician of Danish heritage who found fame in the Sixties and Seventies as a singer and then as a  songwriter, including with hits as Boom Sha La La Lo and Jamie/Rose Coloured Glasses for John Farnham.

Otis Barthoulameu 
1 Jul 1952 – 17 Feb 2023
US rock musician and producer who played with various groups including Fluf and Olivelawn, but is perhaps best known for working on early Blink 182 hits.

Michael "Majk Moti" Kupper
1958 – 17 Feb 2023
German musician with the Seventies/Eighties Hamburg metal band Running Wild, and he contributed to their multiple studio and live albums and other releases.

Kyle Jacobs 
26 Jun 1973 – 17 Feb 2023
US country singer-songwriter and musician, who worked with other top writer and artists in the genre and who contributed to some notable hits, including More Than A Memory by Garth Brooks, which was the first song to debut at No.1 on the Billboard Country Singles Chart.

Davis Causey
1949 – 19 Feb 2023
American musician who played guitar in various bands including Sea Level and Jesters.

Victor Brox 
5 May 1941 – 20 Feb 2023
British blues musician and songwriter, who was much admired by his contemporaries and wrote for bands such as Black Sabbath.  He is also known for playing on the original soundtrack recording of Jesus Christ Superstar, and worked with many greats ranging from Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix to John Mayall and Charlie Mingus.

Bruce Barthol 
11 Nov 1947 – 20 Feb, 2023
US musician who played bass with various bands during the Sixties and Seventies including Country Joe And The Fish and Energy Crisis before becoming the musical director of the Tony-Award winning act the San Francisco Mime Troupe.

Lyubomir Futorsky 
1973 – 20 Feb 2023
Ukrainian vocalist who sang for the band Dead Rooster.

Ron Altbach 
24 Dec 1946 – 21 Feb 2023
US musician and songwriter who co-founded the Franco-American rock group King Harvest, but is also known for his work as s session keyboardist and song-writer with the Beach Boys and then Mike Love’s Celebration and the band Clean, Athletic & Talented (C.A.T.). 

Jesse Gress
9 Jan 1956 – 21 Feb 2023
Regarded US rock guitarist who was also a music journalist, transcriber, author and educator, but is most remembered for his work recording and touring with rock great Todd Rundgren.  This included being music director in 2008 of the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band tribute, It Was 40 Years Ago Today, which included Todd Rundgren, Chris Cross and other figures from US rock.

Germano Mathias 
2 Jun 1934 – 22 Feb 2023
Brazilian samba singer and performer, who was popular in the Fifties and Sixties and who achieved great success in his homeland following his hit Minha Nega na Janela.

Jean Sands
1932 – 23 Feb 2023
American oboist and musician who, with her late husband Victor, was in the duo the Tri-Cities.

Karl “Slim” Borgudd
25 Nov 1946 – 23 Feb 2023
Swede who successfully pursued alternate careers both as a jazz-rock drummer and musician, including at one point with Bjorn Ulvaeus’ group the Hootenanny Singers and then ABBA, and then as a Formula 1 motor racing driver.

Junnosuke Kuroda 
1989 – 23 Feb 2023
Japanese musician with indie rock outfit Sumika, who are known for their art-house style and live collaborations with other creatives as well as compositions for anime soundtracks.

Sir David Lumsden 
19 Mar 1928 – 25 Feb 2023
English musician and choirmaster, known also for his organ and harpsichord play and in later years as an 
academic. Between 1976 and 1982 he was Principal of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and then through much of the  Eighties and early Nineties of the Royal Academy of Music in London.

François Hadji-Lazaro 
22 Jun 1956 – 25 Feb 2023
French actor who was also a well known figure in the French music industry – as a musician, band member, including with the groups Les Garcons Bouchers and Pigalle, a producer, and record label owner.

Hans-Joachim Behrendt
1955 – 27 Feb 2023
German musician who was a member of the successful post punk German rock band Ideal, best known for their songs Blaue Augen, Berlin, and Monotonie.

Ismaïla Touré
1950 – 27 Feb 2023
Senegalese singer and co-founder of the pioneering group Touré Kunda, which, fusing elements of rock, jazz and reggae, championed the popularity of African-influenced world music in France and Europe from the late 1970s.  A key highlight included performing for President Mandela in 1992.

Yvonne Constant
1930 – 28 Feb 2023
French artist who was an actress, singer and a ballet dancer and was based in the US for a large part of her career.  In a long and varied career, she appeared in Broadway musical productions, including Follies and the Tony- winning La Plume De Ma Tante, and was also a regular on the Johnny Carson Show.

Zev Kweller
2007 – 28 Feb 2023
American musician and son of singer-songwriter Ben Kweller, who was only just starting out on his musical journey and had been due to perform at SXSW 2023 before his young life was cut tragically short by an accident.

Juliana Koranteng
1959 – Feb 2023
Respected British music and media editor and writer of Ghanaian heritage.  Juliana was the founder and editor of JayKay Media Consultancy, and editor and chief creative director of MediaTainment Finance and TechMutiny.  She was also a contributing editor and reporter for Midem, MipTV, Mipcom and Lions Daily News. She was also an adviser to European Independent music organization IMPALA. 

March 2023

Walter Fawkes aka Trog 
21 Jun 1924 – 1 Mar 2023
British-born Canadian known as both a jazz musician, specialising in clarinet and performing in the Fifties jazz scene onwards with artists such as Humphrey Lyttelton, and also as satirical cartoonist writing under the name Trog. 

Leon Hughes Sr. 
6 May 1930 – 1 Mar 2023
US vocalist and the last surviving original member of the R&B/rock’n’roll and doo-wop vocal group, The Coasters, whose many hits included Searchin’, Poison Ivy, and Yakety Yak.  In 1987 they were the first group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Irma Serrano
9 Dec 1933 – 1 Mar 2023
Mexican singer celebrated for her distinctive voice, who also turned her hand to acting and, in later years, politics, earning the nickname La Tigresa. 

Neela Ramgopal
1937 – 1 Mar 2023
Noted Indian vocalist and guru and exponent of the carnatic style of music associated with South India.  

Ida McBeth
1953 – 1 Mar 2023
US singer and song-stylist with African-American heritage whose vocal talents encompassed jazz and blues, show tunes, funk, R&B, gospel and well known standards.  She was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Jazz Museum, among other accolades.

Ronald McFadden
1957 – 1 Mar 2023
US Kansas City jazz entertainer known for his singing, dancing and saxophone play among other talents.  Alongside his brother Lonnie, he was one part of the celebrated McFadden Brothers pairing.

Wayne Shorter 
25 Aug 1933 – 2 Mar 2023
Renowned US jazz musician, saxophonist and composer who recorded on the iconic Blue Note label, among others, and is considered one of the true jazz greats.  His work, including with such other greats as Art Blakey and Miles Davis and then with his groups Jazz Fusion and Weather Report as well as with artists ranging from Joni Mitchell to Herbie Hancock and Carlos Santana, ranks among the most acclaimed in the genre – resulting in 12 Grammys and the 2017 Polar Music Prize, among many other awards.

Larry “Bucket Man” Hunt 
1959 – 2 Mar 2023
American musician who came to prominence appearing in the 2006 Will Smith film, The Pursuit of Happyness, becoming the actor’s friend, and later on America’s Got Talent.

Stephen Mackey
10 Nov 1966 – 2 Mar 2023
British artist who was equally successful as musician as he was a record producer. He wrote also.  He was most known as the bass guitarist for iconic Brit pop group Pulp, whom he joined in 1989, featuring on various albums including the band’s 1996 Mercury Prize winning, No.1 album A Different Class.  Mackey also made his mark producing records for artists ranging from Arcade Fire, Florence + The Machine and M.I.A.. 

Sueli Costa 
25 Jul 1943 – 3 Mar 2023
Brazilian singer, songwriter and composer, who also played keyboard and other instruments.  She broke through in her home country’s music scene in the 1970s with a number of hits including Dentro de Mim Mora um Anjo and Coração Ateu, and went on to become a much loved performer for over five decades.

David Lindley
21 Mar 1944 – 3 Mar 2023
Hugely talented American musician, instrumentalist, musical director and sometimes composer, who worked with a great many artists in rock, soul and country in the latter part of the twentieth century. Also a composter for film, in the 1960s he was a co-founder of the influential psychedelic folk group Kaleidoscope.

Anthony "The Mighty Ha" Holmes
1967 – 3 Mar 2023
American rapper who performed with the hip hop group Cru.  The band had been signed to Def Jam Recordings in the Nineties, and released their first album Da Dirty 30, featuring the tracks Just Another Case and Bubblin’.

James "Owl" Walsh
1949 – 4 Mar 2023
American vocalist, songwriter and musician, specialising in keyboard, who was a founding member and performer in the US prog rock band Gypsy, that came to prominence in the late Sixties. The band enjoyed a number of Billboard Hot 100 singles including Gypsy Queen Part 1, and Cuz, It's You Girl.

SPOT (Glen Lockett)
1 Jul 1951 –  4 Mar 2023
US record producer and studio engineer of part African-American heritage, who worked in-house for the American punk label SST Records, contributing to much of the recording output of bands such as Black Flag, Husker Du, Meat Puppets, Minutemen, and Saint Vitus. 

Michael Rhodes
16 Sep 1953 – 4 Mar 2023
US rock and country musician known for his bass play in support of many other artists in the studio and on tour, ranging from Dolly Parton and Faith Hill to Steve Winwood and Joe Bonamassa.  He was also a member of the band the Notorious Cherry Bombs and in 2019 was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame.

Robert Haimer aka Artie Barnes
2 Mar 1954 – 4 Mar 2023
US musician, singer and songwriter who co-founded and performed in the stage act Barnes and Barnes alongside Bill Mumy, who were responsible for the 1978 cult song Fish Heads and also worked with the band America.

Sharifa Fadel (Tawfika Mahmud Ahmed Nada)
27 Sep 1938 – 5 Mar 2023
Egyptian singer and actress who reached a peak of popularity between the 1950s and 1980s, including with such hits in her home country as Tamm El-Badr Badry and Haret El-Sakayeen.  She appeared in 20 films and  worked on stage and in radio.

Gary Rossington
4 Dec 1951 – 5 Mar 2023
US rock guitarist who wrote also, and is most known as a founder and the last living member of the group Lynyrd Skynyrd, for whom he played lead and rhythm guitar. Rossington also co-founded with Allen Collins the Rossington Collins Band.

Caroline Buckman
5 Jun 1974 – 5 Mar 2023
American viola player and a prolific studio musician in a twenty year career that saw her contribute to the recordings of numerous artists including Michael Bublé, Mariah Carey and Robbie Williams, and latterly the Beatles 2023 release Now and Then.  She also worked extensively on film soundtracks, ranging from Mission : Impossible - Ghost Protocol to The Incredibles.

Eric Livingston
1985 – 6 Mar 2023
US musician and social justice campaigner with Lebanese heritage, who was a member of the metal band Mamaleek – performing on drums, keyboards, sax across multiple albums, while also contributing to the band’s album artwork.

Marcel Amont (Marcel Miramon) 
1 Apr 1929 – 8 Mar 2023
French MOR style vocalist, hugely popular in his home country and particularly prolific in the Sixties and Seventies.  In a five decade career he recorded well over 1,000 songs in a range of languages and sold a staggering 300 million albums worldwide. Hit songs included Blue, bland, blond and the No.1 Un Mexicain.

Topol (Chaim Topol)
9 Sep 1935 – 8 Mar 2023
Israeli actor and entertainer who made notable appearances in films such as Flash Gordon and the Bond film – For Your Eyes Only, but is synonymous with the part of Tevye in the musical Fiddler on the Roof, playing the lead role thousands of times on stage and in the 1971 film adaptation, which won him Academy Award and Tony nominations. 

Josua Madsen
1978 – 8 Mar 2023
Danish percussionist who drummed with the rock band Artillery, playing on the band's last four albums.

Robin Lumley
17 Jan 1948 – 9 Mar 2023
Versatile English jazz musician who specialised in keyboard and who also produced and wrote.  He worked with numerous artists ranging from David Bowie to Gary Brooker and was a member of the group Brand X alongside artists Phil Collins, John Goodsall and Percy Jones.

Napoleon XIV (Jerrold Laurence Samuels)
3 May 1938 – 10 Mar 2023
Versatile figure in US music who sang, wrote and produced. He is most known, however, for the mad-cap Sixties hit They’re Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-Haa.  He also wrote/co-wrote for other artists, such as the US top-10 hit for Adam Wade, As If I Didn't Know, and The Shelter of Your Arms, for Sammy Davis Jnr.

Tongo (José Abelardo Gutiérrez Alanya) 
24 Sep 1957 – 10 Mar 2023
Peruvian popular singer and entertainer and campaigner for social justice, whose song La Pituca helped him find a wider audience.

Jim Durkin
1965 – 10 Mar 2023
American musician who played guitar with and was a founder member of the metal band Dark Angel.  He performed on their first three albums — the 1985 debut We Have Arrived and then Darkness Descends and Leave Scars — before taking his leave in 1989 and then rejoining in 2013.

Simon Emmerson
12 Mar 1956 – 13 Mar 2023
British musician, producer and political activist, who founded the bands Working Week, Weekend, and Afro Celt Sound System – the latter a European and African group who fused electronic sounds with traditional Gaelic and West African music. Their albums were released through Peter Gabriel’s Real World Records, and the band frequently performed at WOMAD and other festivals.

Canisso
1966 – 13 Mar 2023
Brazilian musician and bassist with the punk band Raimundos (named in tribute to The Ramones), formed in the late Eighties and achieving Gold and Platinum certifications in the 1990s, including with the album MTV Live.

Bobby Caldwell
15 Aug 1951 – 14 Mar 2023
Versatile US R&B, jazz and soul singer and songwriter, best known for the 1978 and much-sampled hit What You Won’t Do For Love, which reached the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10.  Caldwell went on to write successfully for numerous artists including the No.1 smash The Next Time I Fall for both Amy Grant and Peter Cetera.

Tony Coe
29 Nov 1934 – 16 Mar 2023
British jazz musician whose talents included sax, flute and clarinet. Starting out in an army career, which saw him perform in military bands, he was drawn to the jazz community and found himself working with many of its leading figures, including Humphrey Lyttleton, Denis Preston, John Dankworth, Stan Getz, and Dizzy Gillespie, among others. In the Seventies he performed on John Martyn’s Solid Air LP and he can also be heard on Paul McCartney’s I'll Give You a Ring, released in 1982.  Coe additionally contributed to film soundtracks, including Superman II, Victor-Victoria, and Leaving Las Vegas.

Clarence "Fuzzy" Haskins
8 Jun 1941 – 16 Mar 2023
US Vocalist who performed with The Parliaments – the Fifties and Sixties doo-wop group – and was also a founding member of the influential Seventies funk groups Parliament, and Funkadelic before he went on to pursue a solo path. Along with his fellow band members, Haskins was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and also received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Mick Slattery
1946 – 17 Mar 2023
English musician who was one of the founding members of rock band Hawkwind. Slattery left the prog rock outfit soon after its formation in 1969, going on to work with other rock artists.

Janine Shalom
N/a – March 2023
British theatrical and music theatre publicist who was Director of Theatre PR at Premier for 17 years and before that was at MacDonald & Rutter, following periods at the Almeida and The National Theatre. 

Dima Nova
1988 – 20 Mar 2023
Russian musician and founder in 2012 of the successful electronic music group, Cream Soda

Tom Leadon
16 Sep 1952 – 22 Mar 2023
US musician who was a founding member of Mudcruth – Tom Petty’s original band, and he continued as its guitarist after it reformed in 2007. He was also brother to former Eagles guitarist, Bernie Leadon. 

Wayne Swinny
1964 – 22 Mar 2023
US musician who was a member of the Noughties US rock band, Saliva, who were signed to Island Def Jam Records. The band really made their presence felt with their third studio album, the 2002 release, Back Into Your System, which made the Billboard 200 top-20 and launched one of their most successful songs, Always.

Keith Reid
19 Oct 1946 – 23 Mar 2023
British songwriter and later artist manager who, with the band’s Gary Brooker, was responsible for many of Procul Harum’s lyrics, including for the 1967 classic A White Shade Of Pale, which has sold over 6m copies globally. Reid also worked with other artists including John Farnham on his global smash You’re The Voice, while in 2008 he released The Common Thread, for which he wrote the lyrics for other artists to perform.

Luca Bergia
1969 – 23 Mar 2023
Italian musician and drummer who co-founded Italian rock group, Marlene Kuntz, who were influenced by the noise rock of Sonic Youth.

Nick Lloyd Webber
22 Jul 1979 – 25 Mar 2023
British composer and producer and son of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber and Sarah Hugill. Though his life was cut tragically short, Nick Lloyd Webber left his mark though numerous music projects and achievements, including a theatrical and symphonic version of The Little Prince, and the folk album, Speyside Sessions, with actor Kevin McKidd – both collaborations with James D. Reid. He composed the music for Fat Friends – The Musical, while also scoring the BBC 1 drama Love, Lies and Records, the film The Last Bus, and the children’s TV series 56 Up.  Lloyd Webber produced the Andrew Lloyd Webber Symphonic Suites and co-produced the album of the musical, Cinderella, which went to No.1 on the Official UK Album Compilation Chart in 2021. 

Ray Pillow
4 Jul 1937 – 26 Mar 2023
US artist who combined his country vocals and musicianship with the role of music publisher and industry A&R. As a performer, he took 18 singles into the Billboard Country Songs chart, making the top-10 with his duet with Jean Shepard, I’ll Take the Dog. He went on to found Sycamore Records with Larry McFadden, and later worked in Capitol Records’ A&R team, but from 1966 he also continued to perform as a member of the Grand Ole Opry and on popular TV shows such as Country's Family Reunion. Through his label, Pillow latterly released the albums, Ray Pillow Live and Country Class.

Ryuichi Sakamoto 
17 Jan 1952 – 28 Mar 2023
Japanese composer, producer and a pioneering figure in electronic music who also acted.  His first success came in 1978 as co-founder of the Yellow Magic Orchestra and he went on to work with artists ranging from David Sylvian to Youssou N’Dour.  Sakamoto composed the music for the opening of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics but is perhaps best known for composing the score to the 1983 film in which he co-starred with David Bowie, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, garnering an Academy Award and a BAFTA. Its main theme was recorded as the single Forbidden Colours and became a global hit.  Sakamoto also composed award-winning scores for films including The Last Emperor, The Sheltering Sky and The Revenant, as well as for anime and video games.  Sakamoto was awarded an Ordre Des Arts et Des Lettres for his contribution to music.

Paul O’Grady
14 Jun 1955 – 28 Mar 2023
Versatile and much loved British entertainer of Irish heritage, most famous for his drag alter ego Lily Savage, but who also made a contribution to music through countless broadcast appearances as a TV and radio host and guest, and from 2020 was President of the British Music Hall Society.

“Sweet” Charles Sherrell
8 Mar 1943 – 29 Mar 2023
American musician who drummed in his early years alongside the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Billy Cox, but perhaps became best known for recording and performing bass with James Brown, including as a member of The J.B.’s between 1973 to 1996.  He learned guitar receiving lessons from Curtis Mayfield in return for washing the star’s car, which eventually led him to join Aretha Franklin’s backing group, Johnny Jones & The King Kasuals Band.   

Brian “Brizz” Gillis
1975 – 29 March 2023
American artist, one of the founding members of Nineties boy band LFO.  The band was famous for the pop-rap hit Summer Girls, which reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Billboard singles chart.

Ray Shulman 
8 Dec 1949 – 30 Mar 2023
English songwriter, musician – a talented violinist and guitar player – and producer who, with his brothers, is most known for founding the prog rock group Gentle Giant. He also made his mark in the Eighties and Nineties as a record producer, working with such artists as The Sugarcubes, The Sundays, and Ian McCulloch, while he additionally composed for video games.

Howie Kane (Howard G. Kirschenbaum)
6 Jun 1941 – Mar 2023
US pop singer who came to wider prominence as a member of Jay and the Americans, for whom he sang vocals between 1960 and 1973, and again from 2006 until his death. 

April 2023

Robert "Red" Robinson OBC
20 Mar 1937 – 1 Apr 2023
Canadian radio DJ who was among the first to broadcast rock’n’roll music in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Seymour Stein 
18 Apr 1942 – 2 Apr 2023
A major music industry figure, Stein co-founded Sire Records  in the 1960s and went on to become VP of Warner Bros. Records.  He made his name signing new wave artists that came out of punk, including The Ramones, The Pretenders, and Talking Heads, but is perhaps best known for signing Madonna and helping to launch her career.  In a six-decade career he worked with many greats, including Lieber & Stoller as well as such British artists Depeche Mode, The Cure, The Smiths and Echo and the Bunnymen.  His achievements promoting music were recognised with an induction into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 2005 and he was also honoured by the Songwriters Hall Of Fame and the International Dance Awards, among many accolades.

Vivian Trimble
24 May 1963 – 4 Apr 2023
US musician, keyboardist and singer best know for being a member in the group Luscious Jackson in the Nineties, while she also appeared in the acts Kostars and Dusty Trails later that decade and in the early Noughties. 

Nora Forster
6 Nov 1942 – 6 Apr 2023
Of German heritage, Forster began as an actress and model but made her mark as a music promoter in the Sixties working with such artists as Jimi Hendrix, and Yes before moving to the UK at the height of Seventies punk and working with bands like The Clash and Sex Pistols. It was then she met her husband of 44 years, John Lydon, who dedicated his bid to represent Ireland in the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest to her. 

Guy Bailey
n/a – 6 Apr 2023
British music who was a co-founder of rock group The Quireboys in 1984. He co-wrote many of the band's signature songs including Hey You, I Don't Love You Anymore and There She Goes Again. After the band split in 1993, Bailey was part of a brief reunion in 1995 but didn't re-join when they re-formed fully in 2001. He worked with fellow band member Spike again in 2022, working on material for a new album.

Paul Cattermole
7 Mar 1977 – 6 Apr 2023
British singer, performer and actor who began his creative life with the National Youth Music Theatre and was a member of the Nineties/Noughties BRITs-winning pop group S Club 7. During a successful five-year period which saw the band star in their own TV series, Miami 7, they released 11 singles, four of which made No.1 on the Official Singles Chart, including the hugely infectious disco-infused smash Don’t Stop Movin’. They also claimed a No.1 studio album from the four that they released alongside three compilations, and had multiple hits across the world.  

John Regan 
28 Oct 1951 – 7 Apr 2023
US musician, songwriter and producer.  In the Eighties he was a member of former Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley’s, Frehley’s Comet, while also recording and performing with Peter Frampton for years up to 2011. He collaborated with many other artists also, including John Waite, The Rolling Stones, and David Bowie.

Lars-Ove "Lasse" Wellander 
18 Jun 1952 – 7 Apr 2023
A major figure in Swedish music, acclaimed for his work with countless artists both as a musician and producer in the recording studio and live, contributing to nearly 1700 recordings. He is most known, however, for his longstanding collaboration with ABBA – his performance on guitar and other instruments can be heard across many of their iconic singles and albums in the 70s and early 80s, while he also featured in the ABBA Movie, Chess, Mamma Mia, ABBA Voyage and other projects.

Ian Bairnson
3 Aug 1953 – 7 Apr 2023
Scottish musician who excelled in guitar, keyboards and sax. He was part of the line-up of the Alan Parsons Project but was also a member of the Seventies band Pilot, who had hits with January and Magic.  His guitar play featured on numerous Kate Bush albums and he had a memorable guitar solo on Wuthering Heights. 

Bob Heatlie 
20 Jul 1946 – 8 Apr 2023
Scottish songwriter, including for film and TV, and producer. He worked with various artists and was behind a number of Eighties hits, including Aneka’s Japanese Boy.  But his most fruitful relationship was with Shakin’ Stevens, penning a number of his songs and particularly the Christmas smash Merry Christmas Everyone.

Jah Shaka aka Zula Warrior
c. 1948 – 12 Apr 2023
Jamaican-born, London based operator of reggae and dub sound systems and active since the early Seventies.

Cliff Fish
1950 – 14 April 2023
English musician who played bass guitar and co-founded the popular Seventies entertainment act Paper Lace.  The band, who rose to prominence after winning Opportunity Knocks in 1973, went on to achieve top-40 UK hits with Billy Don't Be A Hero, and The Night Chicago Died, while also charting in the US.

Mark Sheehan
29 Oct 1976 – 14 Apr 2023
Irish musician who sang, composed and also produced. In the Nineties he was part of the group Mytown, where he performed alongside Danny O’Donoghue, and together they formed the hugely successful rock and pop band The Script, who in the past two decades enjoyed five UK No.1s in the Official Albums Chart.   

Ahmad Jamal 
2 Jul 1930 – 16 Apr 2023
A hugely influential and successful US jazz pianist over nearly 60 years, maintaining a creative peak from the Fifties through to the Nineties, who was also a bandleader and composed. He worked with and influenced many jazz greats, including Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock, while his music could also be heard in soundtracks to films such as M.A.S.H, and Bridges of Madison County.  He had a particular following in France also, and his contribution to music was recognised with a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement.

April Stevens (born Caroline Vincinette LoTempio)
29 Apr 1929 – 17 Apr 2023)
American artist of Italian descent who was a Grammy award-winning pop singer, also known for her collaborations with her brother, Nino Tempo, as Nino Tempo and April Stevens.  She had numerous hit songs in the US and Billboard charts, starting with her 1951 breakthrough with her cover of the Cole Porter penned, I'm in Love Again. Other hits followed, but Stevens is perhaps best known for her 1963 cover of Deep Purple, which reached No.1 on the Hot 100, and made top-20 in the UK. 

Otis Redding III
1964 – 18 April 2023
American musician and guitarist who, with his brother Dexter – sons of the soul/R&B legend Otis Redding – and Mark Lockett, founded the funk, soul, disco band, The Reddings. Their most well known songs included Remote Control, Doin' it, Funkin on the One, Class (Is What You Got), and the 1982 re-imaging of their father’s classic, Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay. 

Moonbin
26 Jan 1998 – 19 Apr 2023
South Korean singer, actor and dancer who worked out of the Fantagio label and was a member of the boy group Astro and its sub-unit, Moonbin & Sanha.

Mark Stewart
10 Aug 1960 – 21 Apr 2023
British vocalist and a co-founder of The Pop Group – the influential punk and avante-garde band active in the late Seventies and early Eighties.  He worked with various artists and bands across musical styles, such as Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, Tricky, Massive Attack, and Primal Scream.  He also released as a solo artist.

Len Goodman 
25 Apr 1944 – 22 Apr 2023
English professional ballroom dancer who rose to national prominence and public esteem as a one of the judges in the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing series, which also became a major platform for music and the promotion of new singles releases.

Ronald Cahute
26 Mar 1955 – 22 Apr 2023
Canadian musician, songwriter and music producer and a co-founder of the Ukrainian-Canadian group, Burya. He also arranged and was a sound engineer, producer and musical director for Ukrainian dance ensembles in Toronto.

Keith Gattis
26 May 1970 – 23 Apr 2023
US country singer-songwriter, musician, and producer. As a solo artist he released two albums and also charted the single, Little Drops of My Heart.  In 2002 he had  joined Dwight Yoakam’s band, performing lead guitar, receiving a credit on the studio album Blame the Vain. He worked with an array of country talent, ranging from George Strait and Willie Nelson to Alison Moorer and Kenny Chesney.

Billy “The Kid” Emerson (William Robert Emerson)
21 Dec 1925 – 25 Apr 2023
US R&B and rock’n’roll vocalist and songwriter – most known for his 1955 hit Red Hot – and who in his later years left the industry to become a preacher. Starting out working with Ike Turner, he and recorded for the Sun and Chess labels before forming his own imprint, Tarpon Records, releasing Denis LaSalle’s debut single along with his own records. In the late Seventies he took the path of the Church, turning his hand to gospel music. More recently he was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. 

Harry Belafonte (Harold Bellanfanti Jr.)
1 Mar 1927 – 25 Apr 2023
Jamaican-born singer who went on to become one of the Twentieth Century’s vocal greats.  His talents spanned styles including calypso, blues, and gospel, while he also made his mark in films such as Carmen and as a US Civil Rights activist.  Belafonte rose to prominence in the 1950s as the first solo artist to have a million-selling album and through such hits as Day-O (The Banana Boat Song), Jamaica Farewell, and Mary’s Boy Child. His work was recognised with many honours, spanning the Grammys (including Lifetime Achievement), an Emmy and a Tony, while he was also awarded a National Medal of Arts, a Jean Hersholt Humanitrian Award at the Academy Awards, and was inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 2022.

Wee Willie Harris (Charles Harris)
25 Mar 1933 – 27 Apr 2023
British rock’n’roll vocalis,  known for his energetic stage shows and TV performances going back to the Fifties, when he earned the epithet, "Britain's wild man of rock 'n' roll".

John Fean
1952 – 28 Apr 2023
Irish musician with the band active in the 1970s and widely regarded as the founding fathers of Celtic rock, Horslips. 

May 2023

Gordon Lightfoot
17 Nov 1938 – 1 May 2023
Canadian musician and singer-songwriter, popular with artists such as Bob Dylan, and who became a major figure in the Sixties and Seventies folk pop scene. His songs, often covered and touching on favoured themes of working strife and social injustice, include classics of the genre like For Lovin' Me, Early Morning Rain, Rainy Day People and the US Country No.1, Ribbon of Darkness, as well as a cover of the 1965 Marty Robbins hit Black Day in July. A star performer at the opening ceremony of the Calgary Winter Olympic Games of 1988, he received many honours and is considered by many as Canada’s most important songwriter.

Linda Lewis (Linda Ann Fredericks)
7 Sep 1950 – 3 May 2023
British singer with a notable vocal range, songwriter and musician who was a backing singer for many leading acts but rose to prominence in her own right in the 1970s as a pop-disco, soul and R&B singer.  She was often in the charts, with songs including Rock-a-Doodle-Doo, and, most successfully, a cover of It’s In His Kiss, which reached No.1 in the UK and other countries, while she also enjoyed a following in Japan. Lewis released a number of albums that charted in the UK, such as the top 40 hit Not A Little Girl Anymore. 

Rob Laakso 
1979 – 4 May 2023
US musician, producer, and sound engineer, largely known as the recording partner of rock artist Kurt Vile. Laakso was also a multi-instrumentalist with Vile’s backing band the Violators, and additionally performed with other acts, including indie band, Swirlies, among others. 

Chris Strachwitz
1 Jul 1931 – 5 May 2023
German-born US record company executive and music producer. In 1960 he founded and was president of Arhoolie Records, which went on to become a leading outlet of blues, cajun and norteño in the US and more globally.

Menahem Pressler
16 Dec 1923 – 6 May 2023
German-born, Israeli-American pianist player and educationalist, regarded for his work with the Beaux Arts Trio, which he co-founded in 1955.

Malcolm Dunbar
1956 – 6 May 2023
English A&R executive who worked across a number of labels during a three decade career, in the process signing and working with acts who between them achieved sales in excess of 40m records. Starting with Polydor in 1984, where he signed Lloyd Cole & the Commotions, and Orange juice, amongst others, Dunbar moved to Island Records, enjoying success with The Christians and Julian Cope, before becoming A&R Director at Warners/East West, where his run of success continued with Tanita Tikaram and others.  Spells in the indie sphere, including with Mother Records, V2 and Sanctuary, saw him work with artists as diverse as Bjork and The Cranberries, before changing career path in the Noughties and working with music start ups.  

Stuart Slater 
1946 – May 2023
Liverpool-born musician and songwriter who started out in the Sixties. He formed The Mojos, achieving the Top-10 hit Everything's Alright, subsequently covered by David Bowie. He then moved into the business side, first with CBS Records and then with Bradley's Records, where he helped launch the careers of acts including The Goodies. A move into A&R and publishing followed, working with ATV Music (later Sony/ATV Music Publishing) and then Chrysalis Records/Publishing, where he supported artists including Spandau Ballet, Living In A Box, and Go West. Showing a knack for spotting talent when giving Simon Fuller his first job, Slater was a prolific songwriter and, among other work, penned UK entries for the Eurovision Song Contest.

Rita Lee
31 Dec 1947 – 8 May 2023
Brazilian singer, composer and song-writer whose music sold over 55 million records, and was highly regarded in her home country as a popular entertainment figure and as a member of the Brazilian band 
Os Mutantes. She was also a committed animal rights activist.

Jon Povey 
20 Aug 1942 – 9 May 2023
British drummer and keyboardist. He started out playing with R&B group, Bern Elliott and the Bluecaps, who enjoyed a hit with the now hugely known and covered song, Money (That’s All I Want). Following some changes to the line-up, the band switched names to The Fenmen, and in 1967 Povey left to join Pretty Things as their keyboard player, remaining with the band on and off until 2007 and also working solo.

Gioacchino Lanza Tomasi 
11 Feb 1934 – 10 May 2023
Italian musicologist, academic, and a director of the RAI National Symphony Orchestra, and of notable opera theatres including the San Carlo in Naples and the Teatro dell’ Opere in Rome. 

Federico Savina
9 Jun 1935 – 10 May 2023
Italian sound technician and musician who also taught. Among his achievements was a BAFTA Best Sound nomination for his work on Zefferelli’s production of Verdi’s La Traviata.  

Marcel Lagorce 
14 Jun 1932 – 11 May 2023
French classical musician specialising in cornet and trumpet, and an educator in later years. Starting out with the French Republican Guard Band, he became solo trumpeter with the Symphony Radio Orchestra, before taking on the role for three decades with the Orchestre de Paris. He was also a member of the Ars Nova quintet and from 1994 appeared with the Harmonie Municipale de Limoges, performing horn and tuba.

Francis Monkman
9 Jun 1949 – 11 May 2023
British rock and classical musician who also composed classical and film scores – most notably for the acclaimed 1980 film The Long Good Friday.  An alumni of the Royal Academy of Music, Monkman was a skilled instrumentalist, specialising in guitar, harpsichord and organ.  Perhaps best known as a founding member of the rock band Curved Air and then, alongside John Williams, of the classical/pop act Sky, which reached No.1 in the singles charts with their interpretation of Bach’s Toccata. 

Abdul Karim Abdul Qader 
1941 – 12 May 2023
Kuwaiti singer who was hugely popular across the Gulf States across a six decade career, and whose profile reached its peak between the Seventies and Nineties.

Dum Dum (Washington Roberto Santana)
1969 – 12 May 2023
Brazilian rapper and lead singer of the group Facção Central.  Popular in his home country and credited for growing the appeal of Brazilian rap, he was also a committed campaigner for social justice.

Arno “Arch” Weimer 
29 Aug 1972 – 13 May 2023
Estonian musician who is most known for playing lead guitar in the Rock band Terminator.

Ingrid Haebler
20 Jun 1929 – 14 May 2023
Austrian pianist, particularly prolific in the recording studio in the three decades between the Fifties and the Eighties, where she worked closely with Denon and Phillips labels, among others, specialising in repertoire by Mozart, Schubert, Bach, and Beethoven.

Bernt Rosengren
24 Dec 1937 – 14 May 2023
Acclaimed Swedish jazz musician who excelled in tenor saxophone. His recordings, which appealed largely to his home market, received numerous accolades, including the prestigious Gyllene Skian award on five occasions over a 40 year career.

John Giblin
26 Feb 1952 – 14 May 2023
English musician who excelled with acoustic and electric bass guitar and embraced the avant garde, and whose versatility saw him span the spectrum of genres, ranging from classical and jazz to folk and rock. Most at home in the recording studio and as a session musician, he worked with many leading artists, notably Kate Bush, with whom he was close, as well as Peter Gabriel, John Martyn, and Simple Minds, among others.

Stanley Appel
9 Jun 1933 – 15 May 2023
UK TV producer and director who began as a cameraman and worked largely with BBC light entertainment programmes, and is closely associated with Top of The Pops, evolving its format in the early 1990s. He produced for many BBC music artist-based shows, including for Marti Caine, Leo Sayer, and Lulu among others.

Lester "Ska" Sterling OD
31 Jan 1936 – 16 May 2023
Jamaican saxophonist and trumpet player, known as Mr. Versatile.  Learning his craft in the Fifties as a studio musician and then in various bands, including the Jamaica Military Band, and Clue J & His Blues Blasters, he made his name as a founding member of The Skatalites, bringing him into contact with artists such as Prince Buster and Bob Marley.  Performing with the band on and off, he also pursued a solo career with LPs such as Bangarang. In 1998 he was honoured with an Order of Distinction for his contribution to Jamaican music.

Richard Landis 
18 Feb 1946 – 16 May 2023
US musician and singer-songwriter across four decades, and also ranked among the top tier of music producers, working with Capitol, Columbia, and RCA among other labels. He also ran his own Nashville recording studio –Fool on the Hill, producing for Kenny Rogers, Neil Diamond, Vince Gill, and others.

Alasdair "Algy" Ward
11 Jul 1959 – 17 May 2023
British punk and metal musician who played bass guitar for a number of bands including Australian act The Saints, and The Damned.  He later founded his own band, Tank, in 1980 as part of a new wave of British heavy metal. 

Wolf-Dieter Hauschild 
6 Sep 1937 – 18 May 2023
German conductor and celebrated choirmaster, musician – specialising in harpsichord, composer and educator.  He held a number of prestigious positions, conducting for the Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra before directing the Stuttgart Philharmonic Orchestra, then the Aalto Theatre and the Philharmonisches Staatsorcester Halle.  His body of work included recordings of Brahms and Wagner.

Pete Brown 
25 Dec 1940 – 19 May 2023
British artist whose versatile talents spanned performance poetry, vocals and songwriting.  He is perhaps best known for his collaborations with the Sixties group Cream, while he also performed in his own bands, Pete Brown & His Battered Ornaments and Pete Brown & Piblokto!. He additionally penned film scripts and set up a film production company.

Andy Rourke
17 Jan 1964 – 19 May 2023
Influential Manchester musician most known as the bassist of the Eighties indie rock group The Smiths, contributing to all four of their acclaimed studio albums.  Regarded for his melodic bass play, Rourke worked with numerous artists after The Smiths split up in 1987, including Morrissey, Sinéad O’Connor and The Pretenders, among others. He was later in the line up of the bands Freebass and D.A.R.K., and organised the Versus Cancer fundraising concerts from 2006.

Sven Nyhus 
21 May 1932 – 20 May 2023
Norwegian folk musician and composer, largely active between the Seventies and Nineties, including with the albums Bergrosa and Grimen. He then turned to academia as professor at the Norwegian Academy of Music until 2002. He received numerous accolades including the Commander of the Order of St. Olaf. 

Györgyi Lang
10 May 1957 – 20 May 2023
Versatile Hungarian singer, actor and media personality who initially rose to prominence as a member of the band Pa-do-do, but also enjoyed a successful career in film and TV, and hosted a well known radio show.

Paul Desenne 
7 Dec 1959 – 20 May 2023
Venezuelan musician and cellist who composed also.  His composition style combined elements from European music and his native Latin America.

Ed Ames (Edmund Dantes Urick)
9 Jul 1927 – 21 May 2023
American pop singer and actor who began his long career in the late Forties and early Fifties as part of the family group the Ames Brothers, but also found solo success with easy listening hits including My Cup Runneth Over, Time, and When The Snow Is On The Roses.

George Logan
7 Jul 1944 – 21 May 2023
Scottish comedian, musician and entertainer who, with his theatrical partner Patrick Fyffe, was part of the popular twentieth century comedy and musical act Hinge and Bracket – the duo playing the part of elderly, intellectual female musicians in music hall style. Logan took on the persona of Dr Evadne Hinge and with Dame Hilda Bracket performed songs to comical effect. 

Chas Newby
18 Jun 1941 – 22 May 2023
English musician who was part of The Beatles’ celebrated history, having briefly played bass for them while covering for Stuart Sutcliffe at a number of gigs in 1960. Turning down the opportunity to continue touring with them, it saw Paul McCartney become the group’s regular bass player. 

Ferus Mustafov
20 Dec 1950 – 22 May 2023
North Macedonia musician, a saxophonist of Romany heritage, also known as King Ferus Mustafov. He excelled as a multi-instrumentalist and was popular for his repertoire of Balkan folk and gypsy music, also helping to grow its appeal internationally.

James Lewis 
1960 – 22 May 2023
American singer with the Nineties US rock outfit – the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, known for their epic live performances, special effects staged shows and rock operas, which often had a festive theme.

Kirk Arrington
1962 – 22 May 2023
American drummer known largely for playing with the rock group Metal Church. 

Toni De La Ploiești
1992 – 22 May 2023
Romanian Pop-Folk singer who was popular for his native Manelist genre style.

Isaac "Redd" Holt 
16 May 1932 – 23 May 2023
US Soul and Jazz drummer. He performed with the Ramsey Lewis Trio on their acclaimed LP In The Crowd, which won the 1965 Grammy for Best Jazz Performance. Holt co-founded the soul band, Young-Holt Unltd., achieving US Gold certification with the 1968 hit Soulful Strut. Solo from the 1970s as Redd Holt, he founded the Gumption Artist Workshop, while also performing internationally, including the Montreux Jazz Festival.

Mark Adams
1958 – 23 May 2023
American guitarist who was the original bassist in the late Seventies rock band Saint Vitus.

Sheldon Reynolds
13 Sep 1959 – 23 May 2023
Grammy nominated US musician, guitarist, singer and songwriter, who was most known for his work in the 1980s as a member of R&B, soul and disco bands that included The Commodores and particularly Earth, Wind & Fire, while also working with such artists as Smokey Robinson and Barbara Weathers.  Highly acclaimed for his lead guitar play, Reynolds was inducted into the NAACP Hall of Fame.

Bill Lee
23 Jul 1928 – 24 May 2023
US jazz musician and composer, perhaps best known as the father of acclaimed film-maker Spike Lee, for whom he composed the original music of many of his films in the 1980s, including She’s Gotta Have It, Do The Right Thing, and Mo’ Better Blues.  Bill Lee was involved in numerous albums put out on the Strata-East label and he also directed the 1980 album The New York Bass Violin Choir.

İlham Gencer
1925 – 24 May 2023
Turkish jazz pianist and vocalist who helped to popularise the genre in his homeland. He also found more mainstream music success as a singer, promoted by his son Bora Gencer.

Tina Turner (b. Anna Mae Bullock)
26 Nov 1939 – 24 May 2023
US-born singer who became a global icon, earning the epithet Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll thanks to her searing vocals and performances. Her talent spanned genres ranging from rock and pop to gospel and soul, and in a six decade career she sold over 180m albums and was honoured with 12 Grammys and five BRIT Awards among other accolades, including induction into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Her life struggles and difficult relationship with Ike Turner made her a role model to others.  She was the first Black artist and woman to be on the cover of Rolling Stone. Starting in the 1950s and 60s, she rose to prominence as lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue and with R&B/soul infused rock hits, including Nutbush City Limits, River Deep, Mountain High, and Proud Mary. She left in 1976 to pursue a solo career, which initially stalled but then skyrocketed in the Eighties as she reinvented herself to create a unique sound and style with her 1984 multi-platinum LP Private Dancer and the global smash What’s Love Got To Do With It.  Hits followed, including Private Dancer, We Don’t Need Another Hero (Thunderdome), The Best, and The Bond track, Goldeneye, while Turner also broke touring records, including in 1988 for the largest single audience for a concert of 180,000 paying fans. Turner also embraced film, with notable parts in Tommy and Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome, and in later years found a new audience with the acclaimed musical story of her life, Tina. 

Jack Martin Händler 
30 Aug 1947 – 24 May 2023
Slovak musician and violinist but known mostly as a conductor. A product of the Conservatory of Bratislava, and then the Moscow Conservatory, he left his mark founding the Solistes Européens Luxembourg.

Javier Álvarez  
8 May 1956 – 24 May 2023
Innovative Mexican composer and educator who blended styles and traditions from around the world into his work and also combined new music technology with a variety of instruments to create a distinct sound.  

Joy McKean OAM
14 Jan 1930 – 25 May 2023
Australian country music singer-songwriter known as the queen of Australian country music, who was also  wife and manager to Slim Dusty – between them releasing over 100 records – and mother to artist Anne Kirkpatrick.  She received numerous accolades, including the first ever Golden Guitar (which she won 45 times) for her composition Lights on the Hill, and she was also awarded an Order of Australia in 1991. 

Jean-Louis Murat
28 Jan 1952 – 25 May 2023
French musician and actor who first found success in 1989 with his album Cheyenne Autumn, but reached wider celebrity with his single Regrets (with Mylene Farmer) in 1991, which sold 300,000 copies and made the top 3.  Thereafter Murat was a regular fixture in the French charts, while he also enjoyed film success.

Mohamed Jamal
1934 – 26 May 2023
Lebanese singer, composer and actor whose career spanned nine decades and who was highly regarded across the Arab world.  His earliest successes came in the 1970s with popular songs including Oh, O Umm Hamada, I Want To See You Every Day, and I Don’t Have Money To Give You.

Reuben Wilson 
9 Apr 1935 – 26 May 2023
US organist who specialised in soul jazz and is considered to have inspired a generation of acid jazz musicians. His is most known for his signature track Got to Get Your Own.

Mordechai Rechtman 
16 May 1926 – 27 May 2023
Israeli bassoon player – who worked largely with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra – and also a conductor, arranger and a music educationalist, teaching at Tel Aviv University for more than three decades, as well as the Indiana School of Music, and the Juilliard School, among other places of learning.

Dickie Harrell
1941 – 31 May 2023
American musician who is known mainly for his work with rock’n’roll pioneer, Gene Vincent, and his backing band, the Blue Caps.

June 2023

John Rowan
1966 – June 2023
US drummer who went by the name Blackie Onassis and performed with the Chicago rock act Urge Overkill in the 1990s. He contributed vocals on three albums, notably Supersonic Storybook in 1991, and famously contributed to their cover of Neil Diamond's Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon for the Pulp Fiction soundtrack.

Cynthia Weil
18 Oct 1940 – 1 Jun 2023
One of America’s great songwriters with husband Barry Mann, responsible for hits of stage, screen and radio in a five-decade career. These included Looking Through The Eyes of Love, I Just Can’t Help Believing, On Broadway (with Leiber & Stoller), Saturday Night at the Movies and most notably the co-written You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ recorded by the Righteous Brothers. Part of the brilliant team that worked out of the Bril Building, including Carole King and Neil Diamond, their work was recognised with Grammy awards and inductions into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriter Hall of Fame. 

Roy Taylor
1957 – 1 Jun 2023
Irish singer and bass guitar player, who performed with the pop and rock band, Jump the Gun. The group enjoyed domestic success during the Eighties and represented Ireland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, coming a creditable eighth in the jury voting.

Mick Hutson
1965 – 1 Jun 2023
English rock photographer who, over a four decade career working with music publications including Metal Hammer, Classic Rock, and Q Magazine, captured iconic images of many leading rock bands and musicians. These notably included David Bowie, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, The Rolling Stones, Nirvana, Paul McCartney, Metallica, Aerosmith, and Paul Weller among many others over a four decade career. 

Pacho Al Qaedas (Neftalí Álvarez Núñez)
24 Mar 1981 – 1 Jun 2023
Puerto Rican rapper and also known for his role in the duo Pacho & Cirilo. In October 2021, he released his first single, All Star Game, with artist Lunay, under the label Duars Entertainment. 

Kaija Saariaho 
14 Oct 1952 – 2 Jun 2023
Finnish, pioneering composer of avant-garde classical music, who in her performances often combined live music with electronics.  She worked with various orchestras, music and opera houses, and record labels around the world. In a 2019 BBC Music Magazine poll of composers, Saariaho was voted the greatest living composer at the time.

George Winston 
11 Feb 1949 – 4 Jun 2023
US pianist and instrumentalist known for his solo recordings. Starting out in the early 70s, he found acclaim with his 1980 studio LP Autumn, starting a run of platinum-selling albums. In all he released 16 recordings, resulting in 15 million album sales globally, and helping him to achieve Grammy wins and nominations.

Astrud Gilberto
29 Mar 1940 – 5 Jun 2023
Iconic Brazilian singer, songwriter and performer, most known for helping to popularize Samba and Bossa Nova outside of her native Brazil from the Sixties onwards. Her classic recording of The Girl From Ipanema brought her international acclaim and recognition and a global audience.

Tony McPhee
23 Mar 1944 – 6 Jun 2023
British blues guitarist and singer most known as the founder of the blues rock band The Groundhogs, who in the Sixties toured with John Lee Hooker and similar blues acts.  The band enjoyed three top-10 albums in the UK charts, while McPhee also achieved solo success with his LP The Two Sides of Tony (T.S.) McPhee.

Peter Belli (born Georg Peter Brand)
19 Jun 1943 – 8 Jun 2023
German-born Danish singer whose career began in 1959 with Trefters, and it wasn’t long before, with his new group, Les Rivals, he became Denmark’s first bona fide rock star – supporting visiting UK acts including The Rolling Stones and The Beatles. In the same period, he began acting in a number of Danish movies. In the late 1980s Belli returned to his rock roots, enjoying success with his Yeah album.

Jack Earls
23 Aug 1932 – 12 Jun 2023
American rock’n’roll and rockabilly musician who started out in the 1950s, signing for Sun Records and releasing A Fool For Lovin’ You. He continued working in the rock’n’roll scene, including on the Olympic and other labels from the Seventies onwards.

Christy Dignam
23 May 1960 – 13 Jun 2023
Irish singer who was perhaps most known as the lead vocalist of the Irish rock band, Aslan, and who, over a four decade career, also enjoyed sol chart success.

Blackie Onassis
1966 – 13 Jun 2023
American musician with alt rock act, Urge Overkill. The band are widely known for their song Sister Havana, and their cover of the Neil Diamond track, Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon, which featured in the Tarantino cult film, Pulp Fiction.  

Sergey Kolchin
1978 – 15 Jun 2023
Musician with the late Seventies Russian and formerly Soviet rock group, Zemlyane. The band’s 1980s hit, Trava u Doma, was chosen to be the first official anthem of the Russian space program.

Peter Dickinson
15 Nov 1934 – 16 Jun 2023
British composer and musicologist. Having studied at Oxford and then New York’s Juilliard School, where he became immersed in the city’s experimental music scene, he returned to the UK in the early Sixties to set up ground-breaking courses on music improvisation – teaching in London and then Keele University in 1974, where he created a centre for the study of American music. He continued for a decade until a move to Goldsmiths, before becoming a Fellow and head of music at the Institute of United States Studies in London.

Teresa Taylor (aka Teresa Nervosa)
10 Nov 1962 – 18 Jun 2023
American music artist and actress also.  She was perhaps most known for drumming with the new wave rock group, the Butthole Surfers in the 1980s.

Big Pokey (Milton Jerome Powell Jr.)
29 Nov 1974 – 18 Jun 2023
Texan rapper associated with the ‘chopped and screwed’ style, and who was one of the original members of the group Screwed Up Click.

Ryan Siew
1997 – 19 Jun 2023
Musician and for a decade guitarist with the Australian metal group Polaris.

John Waddington
1 Jan 1960 – 20 Jun 2023
UK musician who played guitar with the electronic rock act he co-founded, The Pop Group. Waddington started out as the main vocalist, guitarist and songwriter for the punk band, The Boyfriends. After The Pop Group disbanded in 1981, he worked with a number of other bands including Maximum Joy and the German electro act, U-BahnX. His last credited performance was on the 2006 Lily Allen album, Alright, Still.

Peter Brötzmann 
6 Mar 1941 – 22 Jun 2023
German sax player and clarinetist, considered am influential figure in European free jazz.  He released more than 50 studio albums across his career, also collaborating with key figures in free jazz, such as Derek Bailey, Anthony Braxton, and experimental musicians like Keiji Haino. His 1968 album, Machine Gun, is regarded as “one of the landmark albums of 20th-century free jazz".

Jesse McReynolds
9 Jul 1929 – 23 Jun 2023
US country and bluegrass musician, particularly regarded for his unique style of mandolin play.

Lee Rauch
10 Sep 1964 – 23 Jun 2023
US drummer and percussionist who was part o the ‘thrash’ metal scene and performed with several bands in the Eighties, including Megadeth, Dark Angel and Wargod.

Tapas Bapi Das (aka Bapida)
22 Sep 1954 – 25 Jun 2023
Indian singer-songwriter and musician, known also as one of the co-founders of the Seventies Bengali rock group, Moheener Ghoraguli. 

Jason Winder (aka Jason Wilder)
1975 – 25 Jun 2023
English DJ who worked in the UK festivals scene, but was most known in Thailand, where he developed a large following for his broadcasts on Phuket Live 89.5FM. 

Ysabelle Lacamp 
7 Nov 1954 – 26 Jun 2023
French writer and actress, but who also sang – in 1987 releasing the single Baby Bop.

Bobby Van Osborne
7 Dec 1931 – 27 Jun 2023
US country and bluegrass artist, including mandolin player, who, with his brother Sonny, co-founded the Osbourne Brothers. He was also a member of the Grand Ole Opry and the International Bluegrass Hall of Fame, although other honours included a Purple Heart for his service as a member of the US Marine Corps.

Monte Cazazza 
23 Jan 1949 – 27 Jun 2023
US musician and composer, most known for his pivotal role in helping to evolve industrial music, including through recordings made with the UK-based Industrial Records in the 970s.

Clarence Barlow
27 Dec 1945 – 29 Jun 2023
English classical and electro-acoustic composer and also an educationalist, teaching at the Royal Conservatory of the Hague, among other places of learning.

Rick Froberg (Eric Gerald Farr)
19 Jan 1968 – 30 Jun 2023
US musician as well as a visual artist who was a vocalist and guitar player for the west coasts groups Pitchfork, Drive Like Jehu, and Hot Snakes. 

Tim Blackmore MBE
1944 – June 2023
Respected broadcaster and figure in the UK radio industry. He began his career with the BBC and was part of the team that launched Radio 1 in 1967, before producing Tony Blackburn, Noel Edmonds and the BBC R1 Roadshow. He went on to become Head of Music and later going on to be appointed Head of Programmes at Capital Radio whilst also playing a key role with the Radio Academy, the Sony Radio Awards, and Unique Broadcasting (later UBC Media Group).

July 2023

Michael "Mo" Foster 
22 Dec 1944 – 3 Jul 2023)
Multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and composer who worked with dozens of artists, including Phil Collins, Ringo Starr, Joan Armatrading, Brian May, Frida of ABBA, George Martin, and Van Morrison as well as the London Symphony Orchestra. He also released several albums under his own name and established himself as a public speaker.

George Tickner
8 Sep 1946 – 5 Jul 2023
US rock guitarist and songwriter who was also a founding member of the Eighties band Journey. Previously he had played in San Francisco group Frumious Bandersnath, while also performing in the Seventies alongside Jerry Garcia.

Ferren "Coco" Lee
17 Jan 1975 – 5 Jul 2023
Chinese-American singer and songwriter who began her career in Hong Kong before developing an international following, releasing more than 20 albums in a two-decade career.

Caleb Southern
26 Dec 1969 – 6 Jul 2023
US musician and producer who was also an academic. He came to be referred to as the "fourth member" of American alt rockers, Ben Folds Five, after some of their albums at his Kraptone Studios and he toured with them.  

Violeta Hemsy de Gainza
25 Jan 1929 – 7 Jul 2023
Argentine musician and writer who became a leading figure in music education and music therapy for children. Her many credits included presidency of the Latin American Forum of Musical Education from its foundation in 1995 to 2005.

Özkan Uğur
17 Oct 1953 – 8 Jul 2023
Turkish rock and pop artist who also acted, but is best known as being a member of the popular group, MFÖ.

Sam Cutler (born Brendan Lyons)
10 Mar 1943 – 11 Jul 2023
British tour manager who looked after Grateful Dead, and The Rolling Stones among many others he supported on the road.

Jane Birkin OBE
14 Dec 1946 – 16 Jul 2023
Anglo French actress and singer, famous for her Je t’aime duet with Serge Gainsbourg, which reached no.1 in the UK charts in 1969, the first foreign language song to do so. In addition to her extensive acting and musical credits, she lent her name to the celebrated Hermès Birkin handbag. Birkin occasionally appeared in films such as the Agatha Christie adaptations Death on the Nile (1978) and Evil Under the Sun (1982).
Tony Bennett 
3 Aug 1926 – 21 Jul 2023
Legendary US American MOR, jazz and trad pop vocalist. He received many accolades, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award, and two Primetime Emmy Awards. He was named an NEA Jazz Master and a Kennedy Center Honoree and founded the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in Astoria, Queens, New York. He sold over 50 million records worldwide and earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Bennett attracted renewed acclaim late in his career for his collaboration with Lady Gaga, which began with the album Cheek to Cheek (2014) – the two performers toured together to promote the album throughout 2014 and 2015. With the release of the duo's second album, Love for Sale (2021), Bennett broke the individual record for the longest run of a top-10 album on the Billboard 200 chart for any living artist; his first top-10 record and signature tune was I Left My Heart in San Francisco in 1962. He also broke the Guinness World Record for the oldest person to release an album of new material, at the age of 95 years and 60 days.

Vince Hill
16 Apr 1934 – 22 Jul 2023
British Pop and MOR singer and entertainer, best known for his 1967 cover of the Rodgers and Hammerstein show tune Edelweiss, which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart and stayed on the chart for 17 weeks. He recorded 25 studio albums and several soundtracks, wrote songs and plays and hosted TV shows during the 1970s and 1980s, including They Sold a Million, Musical Time Machine, and the chat show Gas Street.

Raymond “Froggy” Froggatt
13 Nov 1941 – 23 July 2023
British songwriter who also sang and who began his career in the Sixties rock’n’roll scene before finding his niche with country and western.  Whilst chart success eluded his various band line-ups, which included The Buccaneers, Monopoly, and The Raymond Froggatt Band, Froggatt wrote successfully for a number of other acts in the Sixties, including the Dave Clark Five, and Cliff Richard. 

Patty Ryan
6 May 1961 – 23 Jul 2023
German vocalist perhaps most known for her Eighties disco track You're My Love, You're My Life. Her debut album Love is the Name of the Game produced a number of chart hits which helped to make her an instant star in her homeland, and over time she developed a keen following in parts of mainland Europe as well.

Brad Houser
7 Sep 1960 – 24 Jul 2023
American guitarist who also excelled on saxophone and clarinet. He co-founded the New Bohemians (later
Edie Brickell an the New Bohemians) and later the jazz-rock band Critters Buggin.

Randy Meisner
8 Mar 1946 – 26 Jul 2023
US musician, singer and songwriter, most known as one of the founding members of The Eagles. He became known for his signature bass playing and high-harmony backing vocals with the band, for whom he co-wrote the 1975 global hit Take it to the Limit. Meisner also worked with other artists through his sessions work. 

Mick Csáky
31 Aug 1945 – 26 Jul 2023
British documentary producer and director who since the Seventies championed independent films, including the ground-breaking series Africa in 1984. He later directed Mozart in Turkey (2000), eventually staging his opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail in Istanbul’s Topkapi palace.  Among other music related works, in 1995 he directed Placido Domingo: A Musical Life. A further project which brought history and music together, screened by the BBC in 2005, was Africa Live: The Roll Back Malaria Concert, a collaboration with Youssou N’Dour, which saw more than 100 African musicians perform in Senegal.

Sinéad O'Connor
8 Dec 1966 – 26 Jul 2023
Irish singer, songwriter and activist, who also developed iconic status among her many fans for her anti-establishment campaigning. Her 1987 debut LP, The Lion and the Cobra, launched her career, followed by her biggest global success in 1990 with I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got, which featured her classic cover of Prince’s Nothing Compares 2 U – honoured by the Billboard Music Awards as the world’s top single that year. Further success came with Am I Not Your Girl? and Universal Mother, before O’Connor’s career developed to encompass songs for film, numerous artist collaborations and appearances at charity fundraising concerts. O'Connor's 2021 memoir, Rememberings, became a bestseller and highlighted her life-long commitment to human rights causes and her fight against abuse and discrimination, which in 1992 had led Time Magazine to name her the most influential woman of 1992 for her protest against the Church.

Billy White Jr.
n/a – Jul 2023
American creative who designed the now iconic Celtic cross tattoo on the cover of Guns N’ Roses' debut album Appetite for Destruction.

August 2023

Carl Davis CBE 
28 Oct 1936 – 3 Aug 2023
US-born British conductor and composer celebrated for his TV, film and concert music productions – notably his 1991 collaboration with Sir Paul McCartney, the acclaimed Liverpool Oratorio. His prolific output saw him write the music for more than 100 TV programmes, including the 1973 award-winning World At War ITV series, The Naked Civil Servant (1975), The Far Pavilions (1984) and the 1995 BBC production of Pride and Prejudice. His many film credits include the French Lieutenant’s Woman. He was married for over 50 years to actress Jean Boht of Bread fame.

John Gosling
6 Feb 1948 – 4 Aug 2023
UK keyboardist and vocalist most known as a member of The Kinks in the Seventies and their US success.  After he left the group, he co-formed The Kast Off Kinks, a spin-off band of ex-members. A student at the Royal Academy of Music, he later opened a music shop in Berkhamsted before going on to teach.

Erkin Koray
24 Jun 1941 – 7 Aug 2023
Turkish singer and guitarist who became active in the early 1970s and continued recording to the start of the Noughties.

DJ Casper (William Perry Jr.)
31 May 1965 – 7 Aug 2023
US DJ, known for his trademark all-white stage consume.  He is most regarded for his biggest hit Casper Slide Pt. 1 (also known as Cha Cha Slide), which proved a particularly popular work-out song in the US. DJ Casper followed up with Casper Slide Pt. 2, while his original song was later picked up by Universal Music.

David LaFlamme
4 May 1941 – 8 Aug 2023
US vocalist and musician who specialised in violin.  He is perhaps best known as one of the co-founding members of the west coast band It’s a Beautiful Day.

Sixto Rodriguez 
10 Jul 1942 – 8 Aug 2023
American folk musician, though most popular in South Africa, where his music became influential, and Australia and New Zealand.  In the Nineties he unexpectedly became known to a much wider audience, developing cult appeal, when determined South African fans tracked him down – a story subsequently told in the 2012 Academy Award-winning documentary Searching for Sugar Man.

Jamie Reid
16 Jan 1947 – 8 Aug 2023
British visual artist who is celebrated for his record sleeve designs, not least the iconic cover for the Sex Pistols single God Save the Queen, which was acclaimed as "the single most iconic image of the punk era" by Q magazine and is now part of a collection at the National Portrait Gallery.

Robbie Robertson OC
5 Jul 1943 – 9 Aug 2023
Acclaimed Canadian musician who played lead guitar for Bob Dylan in the Sixties/Seventies and was a musician and songwriter with the influential Americana group The Band until 1978 as well as a solo artist. His success saw him inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and he is ranked 59th in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest guitarists.  His memorable compositions include The Weight, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and Up on Cripple Creek with the Band and solo hits Broken Arrow and Somewhere Down the Crazy River. He also collaborated on film & TV soundtracks from the Eighties onwards, not least with Martin Scorsese, beginning in the 1978 ‘rockumentary’ The Last Waltz and continuing through iconic movies including Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Casino, Gangs of New York, The Wolf of Wall Street, The Irishman, and most recently the 2023 film Killers of the Flower Moon.

Ron Peno
26 Jul 1955 – 11 Aug 2023
Australian rock vocalist and songwriter who was best known as frontman of the band Died Pretty during the Eighties and Nineties. Prior to this he had performed with Seventies punk outfit The Hellcats and then rock groups The 31st, and The Screaming Tribesmen. In his later years, he played as part of the alt-country act The Darling Downs, followed by a spell with his own band, Ron S. Peno & The Superstitions.

Clarence Avant
25 Feb 1931 – 13 Aug 2023
Leading US music figure who began in artist management and became hugely influential. Given the epithet The Godfather of Black Music, his story was told in the 2019 documentary The Black Godfather, featuring former US presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama among others. Initially working with such R&B artists as Little Willie John and jazz talent like Jimmy Smith, he founded Avant Garde Enterprises and played a key role with labels including Venture Records Inc. and Sussex Records, and later the iconic Stax Records.  Avant also ventured into broadcast with KTYM-FM – the first African-American owned FM radio station in LA.  Through his career he was known for his advocacy for equitable treatment for African-American artists in the entertainment industry, acknowledged in 2021 with his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Patricia Bredin
14 Feb 1935 – 13 Aug 2023
Versatile English performer, both as an actress on stage and in TV and film and as a singer.  She will perhaps be best remembered for making history as the UK’s first representative in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1957, finishing seventh in Frankfurt with the song All, the first-ever song sung in English at Eurovision. 

Arnold Östman
24 Dec 1939 – 15 Aug 2023
Swedish conductor and director who studied musicology and developed a talent for piano and harpsichord
along with an interest in early opera. Together with conducting, including spells as artistic director and conductor of the Vadstena Academy, the NorrlandsOperan in Umeå, and of the Drottningholm Palace Theatre, Östman also conducted a wide range of repertoire at Covent Garden as well as other opera houses in Vienna, Madrid, Washington, and Paris, and also worked with numerous orchestras across the world.

Jerry Moss
8 May 1935 – 16 Aug 2023
American music industry executive, known along with artist Herb Alpert as the co-founder of A&M Records. After a spell in the army, Moss began his career promoting the 1958 Crests hit 16 Candles. In 1960 he teamed up with Alpert to form what became A&M Records, which they managed until 1993, having sold the business to Polygram in 1989.  Later in the Nineties they expanded the Almo Sounds publishing company to produce records, using it as a vehicle for Alpert's music.  Both were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. Moss was a renowned philanthropist, and with his wife Tina donated $25m to the LA Music Center. UMG's Sir Lucian Grainge said: "Jerry Moss was one of music's true pioneers and great entrepreneurs with a unique vision for what a label should be and how to build trusting long-term relationships with artists. The independent spirit he and Herb Alpert championed at A&M Records is foundational to the culture that powers UMG today. On behalf of everyone at UMG, we offer our deepest condolences to his family."

Bobby Eli (Eli Tatarsky)
2 Mar 1946 – 17 Aug 2023
US artist and composer, who was an integral part of the Seventies Philadelphia scene. He co-founded the group, MFSB, but arguably leaves his greatest legacy in his work with other greats, including recordings by The Jacksons, David Bowie, Teddy Pendergrass, Jay-Z, Elton John, The Stylistics, and Patti LaBelle, to name a few.  His songwriter credits include the million-selling single, Love Won’t Let Me Wait, and Zoom, which in 1982 Fat Larry’s Band took to No.2 in the UK Singles Chart. Eli also produced, arranged and performed on hit singles for Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Regina Belle, Rose Royce, and Sister Sledge, among many others.  Eli’s many achievements were recognised in 2016 with an induction into the Musicians Hall of Fame.

Walter Aipolani 
1955 – 17 Aug 2023
Hawaiian-born American musician, singer, and songwriter and guitarist in Hawaiian music. Known variously as “Bruddah Waltah” and also the Father of Hawaiian Reggae, Aipolani and the groups he performed in, including Island Afternoon, helped to popularise Hawaiian-style reggae music in the 1980s and 1990s.

Gary Young
3 May 1953 – 17 Aug 2023
US musician and producer, known as the original drummer of Pavement since its formation in 1989 until he left four years later, leaving his mark sufficiently for Stylus magazine to rank him among the 50 greatest rock drummers.  He released the solo albums, Hospital, Things We Do for You, and The Grey Album but also leaves a legacy in the Universal Shock Mount for microphones, which he developed. He starred in a documentary about his own life and career, Louder Than You Think, which premiered at SXSW to critical acclaim in 2023.

Ray Hildebrand
1941 – 18 Aug 2023
American vocalist who was part of the US American pop singing duo, Paul & Paula- who are best remembered for their million-selling, No.1 of 1962, Hey Paula.

Vašo Patejdl 
10 Oct 1954 – 19 Aug 2023
Slovak musician and composer known as a founding member of the popular group Elán. He also wrote for other artists and composed for film.

Salvatore "Toto" Cutugno
7 July 1943 – 22 August 2023
Italian singer, songwriter and entertainer much loved in his homeland, not least for his evocative and anthemic 1983 signature song L’Italiano. A regular entrant of the San Remo festival, Cutugno sold over 100m records and successfully represented Italy in the 1990 Eurovision Song Contest, winning with Insieme: 1992, which celebrated the European ideal. He went on to co-host the next edition of the show, held in Rome.

Vaccine (Christine Clements)
26 Dec 1979 – 22 Aug 2023
US producer of dubstep, and a pioneer as one of the first women to record and produce in the genre.

Dianne Bonney
1984 – 22 Aug 2023
Australian industry executive who became head of digital at Absolute Label Services. Diane arrived in the UK in 2007 and with her husband and producer Shimon started the drum & bass label Audioporn before joining Absolute in 2016, who paid tribute by saying: “We are all devastated by the loss of such a cherished member of our team and a truly vibrant person. Dianne’s family and friends all have deep roots and great success in the music industry, and we know they are all so proud of the amazing career she forged for herself. Dianne was a tremendously creative, knowledgeable, tenacious colleague, who worked incredibly hard to get to the top of her game. She was very proud of being a woman in music – and one in such an influential position. She did not take that responsibility lightly; she was an inspiration to her team. More than anything, she was a strong and supportive colleague, who wanted the best for everyone. Our industry is poorer without her, and we will miss her greatly. Her legacy will forever remain alive in our business and in our hearts.”

Bernard Marsden
7 May 1951 – 24 Aug 2023
British guitarist known mostly for working with rock band Whitesnake and for co-writing (with David Coverdale) many of the band’s hits, including Here I Go Again and Fool For Your Loving. In his career he also worked with acts including UFO, Cozy Powell, and Elkie Brooks and pursued a solo path in his latter years, reaching the Official Albums Chart top 20 in 2021 with his last album Kings. 

Chris Overland
n/a – 24 Aug 2023
British guitarist and songwriter who was a founding member of the Eighties rock band FM. They wrote the original version of the track Shot In the Dark, which would become a nod-Eighties hit for Ozzy Ozbourne. Chris played on the band's first two albums, 1986's Indiscreet and 1989 sophomore Tough It Out.

Brian McBride
6 Jul 1970 – 25 Aug 2023
US musician who performed as a solo artists but is perhaps most known as part of the Nineties duo, Stars of the Lid, and he also performed with the Pilot Ships, and Bell Gardens. 

John Kezdy
1959 – 26 Aug 2023
American vocalist, musician and frontman with the Eighties US punk band, The Effigies.

Faye Fantarrow
28 Apr 2002 – 26 Aug 2023
English singer-songwriter from Sunderland who came to wider prominence through BBC Introducing in 2022, leading to a collaboration with Dave Stewart. In 2021 she had won the Lindisfarne Alan Hull Award.

Len Chandler Jr.
27 May 1935 – 28 Aug 2023
US folk musician and civil rights campaigner who, at the height of the Vietnam War, performed in Jane Fonda’s anti-war troupe, the FTA.  His songs, including Beans in My Ears, influenced Bob Dylan, among others, while his 1964 anthem, Keep On Keepin' On, featured in a Martin Luther King Jr. speech. 

James Casey
1983 – 28 Aug 2023
American musician and lead singer-songwriter and guitarist of the late Nineties US rock group, the Trey Anastasio Band (TAB).  

Jamie Crick
2 Aug 1966 – 29 Aug 2023
English radio broadcaster who presented shows from the Nineties onwards based largely around classical music and jazz on stations including BBC Radio 3, Classic FM, Jazz FM and since 2019 Scala FM.

Elliot Goldman
1935 – 30 Aug 2023
US founding executive at Arista Records where he was Executive VP of GM, when it was launched in 1974 by Clive Davis. In tribute, Davis said Goldman “played a substantial role in the history of Arista Records and strongly contributed to its success”. Goldman went on to serve as President and CEO of BMG Music, having also worked in executive positions at CBS Records and Warner Communications in a career that spanned six decades in total.  Goldman was also on the boards of the RIAA and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation and was co-chairman of the home entertainment division of the UJA-Federation of New York.

Jack Sonni (John Thomas)
9 Dec 1954 – 30 Aug 2023
US musician, writer and marketing executive in a varied career, most known as a rhythm guitarist with Dire Straits in their peak Brothers in Arms period. He met the band when he was part of the New York rock scene in the late Seventies and was invited to join them for the 1984 recording of Brothers in Arms and the subsequent world tour as well as their famous 1985 Live Aid performance. 

Curtis Fowlkes 
19 Mar 1950 – 31 Aug 2023
US vocalist and jazz musician who co-founded the Jazz Passengers group. The band recorded the 1994 acclaimed album, In Love, which included contributions from Deborah Harry (later to become a member), Jeff Buckley, and Mavis Staples, among others.

September 2023

Jimmy Buffett
25 Dec 1946 – 1 Sep 2023
US singer-songwriter known for his tropical rock sound. A prolific recording artist, releasing more than 30 albums, Buffett will be remembered for a number of major hits which collectively came to be known as “The Big 8”, including arguably his most successful song Margaritaville, which the RIAA in the US ranked in its top 250 Songs of the Century.  Buffett was also a highly successful author and restaurant entrepreneur.

Jack Pointer Mackenzie
1988 – 1 Sep 2023
British dancer, choreographer and filmmaker who worked in music and particularly with the band JLS, who he met through his work on the X Factor, and other artists including Justin Bieber and Katy Perry. Starting out as a breakdancer, he also taught dance, including in schools. 

Gary Wright
26 Apr 1943 – 4 Sep 2023
US musician and composer best known for his Seventies global hit Dream Weaver, which was subsequently popularised by the film Wayne’s World. He recorded solo and also with the blues group Spooky Tooth.  Time spent in the UK saw him work with George Harrison on his album All Things Must Pass. He collaborated with other greats also including B.B. King, Jerry Lee Lewis, Harry Nilsson, and Ronnie Spector.

Steven Harwell
9 Jan 1967 – 4 Sep 2023
American lead vocalist and musician, most associated with the group he co-founded, Smash Mouth, from 1994 until he retired in 2021. Initially a hip-hop rapper, he found his creative calling with the rock genre and Smash Mouth and is best known for their hits Walkin on the Sun and All Star – the latter achieving global success after it was featured on the Shrek soundtrack. 

Joe Fagin
Jan 1940 – 5 Sep 2023
Singer-songwriter from Liverpool who emerged at the same time as The Beatles, occasionally sharing the bill with them at the Cavern Club with his band The Strangers. In a varied career that so him tour extensively and also perform as a session musician, he is known for his Eighties hit That’s Livin’ Alright and for singing the cover of As Time Goes By for the 1990s comedy series of the same name starring Judi Dench and Geoffrey Palmer.

Larry Chance (Lawrence Figueiredo)
19 Oct 1940 – 5 Sep 2023
American artist and musician who was most known as the lead singer of the Sixties doo-wop act, Larry Chance and the Earls (originally called the High Hatters). Their 1962 single, Remember Then, brought them national success, followed up by Life Is But a Dream, and I Believe. 

Bruce Guthro ONS
31 Aug 1961 – 5 Sep 2023
Canadian-born singer-songwriter who found success as lead vocalist with Scottish Celtic rock group Runrig, joining them in 1998. He remained active in the Canadian music scene also, including in 2012 as co-producer of his son Dylan’s award-winning debut LP All That's True, co-writing five of the album’s songs. In October 2023 Guthro was posthumously appointed a member of the Order of Nova Scotia for “contributions to the music industry, Canadian culture and philanthropy”. 

Richard Davis 
15 Apr 1930 – 6 Sep 2023
American jazz rock performer, especially celebrated for his bass play, and who also contributed to numerous acclaimed albums, such as Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks and Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run. In a long and distinguished career, he worked with many fellow artists, ranging from Frank Sinatra, and Miles Davis, to classical greats Igor Stravinsky, and Leonard Bernstein.

Charles Gayle 
28 Feb 1939 – 7 Sep 2023
Versatile US musician who was one of the leading talents in the free jazz movement.  An accomplished performer on saxophone and clarinet, he was also a percussionist and played piano, bass, and percussionist.

Mylon LeFevre 
6 Oct 1944 – 8 Sep 2023
US musician who, with his band, Mylon and Broken Heart, was a leading exponent of Christian rock genre, earning a place in the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.

Brendan Croker
15 Aug 1953 – 10 Sep 2023
English musician who recorded under his own name but also with the band The Five O'Clock Shadows – as well as being a member of the Notting Hillbillies. In the Eighties he had spells with The Mekons, among others, and also worked with artists including Eric Clapton, Tanita Tikaram and Mark Knopfler.

Charles Robison
1 Sep 1964 – 10 Sep 2023
Prolific American country music vocalist, performer and songwriter.  He enjoyed solo success as well as with the bands Chaparral, Millionaire Playboys, and Two Hoots and a Holler. He found his widest audience when releasing the 1996 album, Bandera, which gave him three of his biggest hits including My Hometown.

Matt Stewart
1982 – 10 Sep 2023
American rick musician who was a member of the US ska punk group, Streetlight Manifesto.

Geoff Davies
1943 – 12 Sep 2023
British music retailer and label founder who in 1971 opened the Liverpool independent record shop Probe Records, which played a key role in the city’s punk and new wave music scene and at various stages employed staff who went on to become successful artists, including Pete Wylie, Julian Cope, and Pete Burns. Probe expanded into wholesale in the Eighties, supplying stock to wider music retail, and then with broadcaster John Peel and writer Andrew Kenyon-Smith Davies set up Probe Records, which famously signed and supported the cult band Half-Man, Half-Biscuit.

MohBad (Ilerioluwa Oladimeji Aloba)
3 Jan 1996 – 12 Sep 2023
Nigerian rapper, vocalist and songwriter, perhaps most known for his hits Ponmo, Peace, Feel Good, and particularly KPK (You Will Always Be Remembered) in collaboration with the artist Rexxie, which was nominated for the 2022 Headies Awards.

Clive Fisher
1952 – Sep 2023
UK music executive with roles that included Universal Music UK Executive Vice President and also Director of Legal & Business Affairs. He worked on a number of artist deals for UMG and its labels, including more recently Elton John, Metallica, and Queen. He also played a key role in the company’s move into theatre projects including Mamma Mia!.  Fisher served the industry as a board member of UK licensing organisations PPL and VPL, and as a member of the BPI’s Rights Committee. Sir Lucian Grainge CBE, Chairman & CEO Universal Music Group, said: “Clive Fisher was a loyal colleague who loved people and enjoyed being in the company of characters. Over the 25 years we worked together, he created a unique role for himself as a behind-the-scenes dealmaker who used his soft-power and personal networks within the industry to close countless artist and label deals. Many times over the years someone would congratulate me for an executive’s work in making a deal. What they didn’t know was that it was Clive leveraging his relationships and his credibility within the legal community that was often the deciding factor. I will miss him greatly.”

David Harmsworth
1977 – 12 Sep 2023
UK music industry executive and lawyer who in his last role held the position of General Counsel at PPL– the music licensing company which he joined in 2003 and served for nearly two decades. In this capacity David was also chair of the UK Music Rights & Legal Affairs Committee, a director of the British Copyright Council, chair of the BCC Collective Management Organisation and sat on the BPI Rights Committee. PPL CEO Peter Leathem OBE said: “David was my first appointment at PPL 19 years ago and he turned out to be one of the key people who created the PPL of today. An incredibly able lawyer, a thoroughly kind and conscientious friend and colleague. I will miss him greatly. His ability, and his friendly and collaborative nature made him very popular across the music industry and creative copyright world more generally, which is why he operated in so many external roles as well as his role at PPL. He will be missed by so many and my thoughts, and those of everyone at PPL, are with his wife Heather, his three young children and their families.”

Roger Whittaker
22 Mar 1936 – 13 Sep 2023
English musician and singer-songwriter in the folk and traditional style, and known for his trademark whistling. He achieved the height of his popularity in the 1970s when he was also a regular performer on British TV screens. Also popular in the US, Australia and Germany thanks to hit songs The Last Farewell, and Durham Town (The Leavin’), Whittaker is estimated to have sold up to 60 million records during his career. 

Paul Woseen
1967 – 15 Sep 2023
Australian musician who played bass guitar with Australian rock band The Screaming Jets. The group enjoyed three top-5 albums, including the 1991 release All For One, while their single of the same year, Better, made No.4. In 2013. Woseen also enjoyed solo success, releasing the acoustic album, Bombido.

John Marshall
28 Aug 1941 – 16 Sep 2023
UK drummer who performed with a number of bands, including jazz rock act, Nucleus, which he co-founded, and for much of the Seventies, Soft Machine.

Irish Grinstead
1980 – 16 Sep 2023
American singer who, with her singer LeMisha, is most known as a member of the all women group, 702. 

Francis "Lou" Deprijck 
11 Jan 1946 – 19 Sep 2023
Singer, musician and producer who was a big part in the Belgian pop scene of the Seventies and Eighties, and whose songs went on to sell over 20 million copies globally, particularly his co-written 1977 post-punk classic performed by Plastic Bertrand, Ca Plane Pour Moi – one of the biggest hits in the French language.

Katherine Anderson
16 Jan 1944 – 20 Sep 2023
US vocalist, known as a founding member of the all-woman Motown group The Marvelettes. Their 1961 smash Please Mr Postman was covered by others, notably The Carpenters, but they also enjoyed chart  success with hits including Playboy, and Beachwood 45789. Anderson stepped back from the group after the label relocated to LA, but drew on the power of music to work with young people in her Detroit home town.

Kent Stax
n/a – 20 Sep 2023
US drummer who spent much of his career performing with the hardcore punk band Scream – appearing on their first three albums, including the 1983 debut, Still Screaming. When quitting in 1986, he was replaced by 17-year-old Dave Grohl. Stax re-joined when they reformed in 2009 and remained a member until his death.

Terry Kirkman
12 Dec 1939 – 23 Sep 2023
US vocalist and songwriter, known to his fans as a singer with the American pop group, The Association, writing a number of their hits, including Cherish, and Everything That Touches You. With the group, he was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2003.

Nashawn Breedlove
17 Feb 1977 – 24 Sep 2023
US actor, but who particularly left his mark in music when he played the character Lotto to engage in a rap battle opposite Eminen’s B-Rabbit in the 2002 film 8 Mile. 

Russell Batiste Jr. 
12 Dec 1965 – 30 Sep 2023
US drummer who worked with numerous bands and artists, including the Funky Meters, Papa Grows Funk, and Visa Blue from the Sixties onwards.

October 2023

Ron Haffkine 
13 Dec 1938 – 1 Oct 2023
US music producer, composer and artist manager who was known largely for his long association with Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show, the American MOR/rock band who achieved a string of big international hits, including Sylvia’s Mother, and When You’re in Love with a Beautiful Woman.

Jacqueline Dark 
1968 TBC – 3 October 2023
Australian mezzo soprano who was a member of Opera Australia and other Australian companies. Her powerful voice was matched by her stage presence as well as her comic timing, which she put to memorable effect when performing Don Elvira in Mozart’s Don Giovanni as well as in various roles in musical theatre.

Jon Kennedy
1979 – Oct 2023
British guitarist who was best known for his spell in the Nineties playing bass for metal band Cradle of Filth, but who also performed with his group Hecate Enthroned.

Shinji Tanimura
11 Dec 1948 – 8 Oct 2023
Japanese singer-songwriter who co-formed the popular group Alice and was largely active in the Seventies. He wrote for other singers, including Momoe Yamaguchi, while he also performed extensively across Asia.  He also recorded for the Japanese division of Casablanca Records – home to Donna Summer.

Charles "Buck" Trent
17 Feb 1938 – 9 Oct 2023
US country musician, specializing in banjo, steel and electric bass and guitar. 

Rudolph "Rudy" Isley
1 Apr 1939 – 11 Oct 2023
US singer-songwriter, famously one of the founding members of The Isley Brothers.  Moving with his brothers to New York in the late Fifties, the group signed to RCA and recorded the now iconic Shout.  In the Sixties they formed their own T-Neck Records label, releasing the Grammy-winning hit record It’s Your Thing.  Other hits followed, but in the 1980s Isley left music to become a Minister.  His contribution to the industry was recognised when he was inducted into the Rock ’n ’Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.

Jeff Clark-Meads
n/a – Oct 2023
British music industry journalist, author, publicist and respected industry voice. He was News Editor of leading UK trade publication Music Week during the 1980s, served as Director of Communications at the BPI and was later European News Editor of Billboard. As an author his books include How To Be A Pop Idol.

Stephen Rubin
10 Nov 1941 – 13 Oct 2023
Celebrated US book publisher, known particularly for his work at Doubleday publishing John Grisham’s The Firm and Dan Brown The Da Vinci Code, among others, but he was also the New York Times  music critic. 

Jack Oliver
19 Feb 1945 – 14 Oct 2023
British industry executive and artist manager and adviser who was President of the Beatles’ Apple record label between 1969-1971, helping to manage the artist Mary Hopkin during this period.  He left to develop a career in concert promotion, working with such artists as The Eagles, James Taylor, Carole King, and Cat Stevens, before becoming personal advisor to the actor Nicolas Cage and also producing videos.

Carla Bley (Lovella May Borg) 
11 May 1936 – 17 Oct 2023
US jazz musician and composer, and an influential artist in the Sixties wave of free jazz.  She was arguably most known for her jazz opera Escalator on the Hill, together with various compositions brought to life by other artists, including Robert Wyatt and Jimmy Giuffre. Bley pioneered the idea of record labels founded by independent artists, and in a five decade career she recorded and released more than 20 albums.

Dwight Twilley 
6 Jun 1951 – 18 Oct 2023
US rock and pop vocalist  and songwriter who achieved top-20 success with his singles I’m on Fire and Girls in the Seventies and Eighties respectively.  Performing in a band bearing his own name up to 1978, he later went solo. He released his last album, Always, in November 2014.

Lars "Lasse" Berghagen
3 May 1945 – 19 Oct 2023
Swedish singer, songwriter, and also TV presenter, who notably represented his country in the 1975 Eurovision Song Contest with his entry Jennie, Jennie. 

Mark the 45 King (Mark James)
16 Oct 1961 – 19 Oct 2023
Aka DJ Mark the 45 King – an epithet that came from his ability to make beats using obscure 45-rpm singles – 
Mark James was an influential and regularly sampled New York hip-hop producer and DJ. 

Gregg Sutton
1 Jul 1949 – 22 Oct 2023
US musician, specialising in guitar and bass, who sang and wrote also, including for other acts. He performed solo and was also as a member of the country rock band Lone Justice for a brief period in the 1980s.

Mervin Shiner
20 Feb 1921 – 23 Oct 2023
American country musician, vocalist and songwriter who was regarded for his honky-tonk style. He worked in film and radio also and is perhaps best known for his song Why Don’t you Haul Off and Love Me. 

Angelo Bruschini
1960/1961 – 23 October 2023
English guitarist of Italian heritage whose Bristol upbringing saw him contribute to the city’s Nineties trip-hop scene, including with Massive Attack – performing on their acclaimed album Mezzanine alongside other recordings. He played with other groups also, including The Blue Aeroplanes and The Numbers.

Paul Harris 
12 Dec 1944 – 24 Oct 2023
American multi-instrumentalist, keyboard player and producer who worked with many leading artists between the Sixties and Eighties, including B.B. King, The Doors, ABBA, and Judy Collins. He collaborated extensively with Stephen Stills in particular, and was a member of his band Manassas in the Seventies.

Steve Riley
22 Jan 1956 – 24 Oct 2023
American drummer and percussionist who started out in the US rock scene of the early Eighties and worked with numerous groups and artists over his career, including the bands Keel, W.A.S.P., and L.A. Guns.

Goa Gil (Gilbert Levey)
11 Oct 1951 – 26 Oct 2023
US-born musician and DJ, who was also known for his mixing and event skills. He was a key influence in the Goa trance and psytrance electronic music movements.

Heath (born Hiroshi Morie)
22 Jan 1968 – 29 Oct 2023
Japanese musician and singer-songwriter best known as bass guitarist of the Japanese rock band X Japan, performing with them in two spells – first in the Nineties, when they released two No.1 albums, Art of Life, and Dahlia, and again from 2007 until his passing in 2023. He had previously been a member of the groups Paranoia and Media Youth and he also found success as a solo artist.

November 2023

Sean Martin
1997 – 6 Nov 2023
British musician and lead singer of the Liverpool band, Night Café. The group released their debut EP, Get Away from the Feeling in 2017, and their debut album, 0151, in 2019.

C-Knight (Arnez Blount)
1971 – 7 Nov 2023
US rapper who was a member of Dove Shack, who made their debut on Warren G’s LP Regulate… G Funk Era, and are known for their hit Summertime in the LBC, off their debut LP, This Is the Shack. They followed up with Reality Has Got Me Tied Up a decade later, and, in between, C-Knight released a solo LP Knight Time.

Johnny Ruffo
8 Mar 1988 – 10 Nov 2023
Australian artist who sang, wrote, danced, and acted, including as part of TV reality shows and in the soap Home and Away.  He rose to prominence via the X Factor, going on to become a TV presenter in his own right.  He enjoyed ARIA singles success with the top-30 hits On Top and Take it Home. 

Nahee 
28 Oct 1999 – 10 Nov 2023
South Korean singer-songwriter and K-Pop star. Her break into music arrived in 2019 with the track Blue City, which brought her to wider public attention.  Her most recent song from 2022, Love Note!, built on her popularity at home.

Conny Van Dyke 
28 Sep 1945 – 11 Nov 2023
American artist, largely known for her body of acting work, but who sang and record also

Kevin Turen
16 Aug 1979 – 12 Nov 2023
US film and television producer whose film credits included the acclaimed music related film The Idol.

Pete Garner
1964 – Nov 2023
English musician who was the original bassist of the band The Stone Roses, performing with them between 1983 to 1987 before leaving to work at HMV. His basslines are considered to have shaped the band’s early sound, contributing to now classic songs including So Young, Tell Me, and Sally Cinnamon. 

George Brown
5 Jan 1949 – 17 Nov 2023 
Versatile US musician – a drummer, percussionist, keyboard player, songwriter and a co-founding member of US R&B, funk, soul and jazz band Kool & The Gang, who scored a number of global hits in the Seventies and Eighties, including Celebration, Ladies Night and Get Down On It, as well as winning two Grammy Awards and seven American Music Awards.

Charlie Dominici
16 Jun 1951 – 17 Nov 2023 tbc
US vocalist, songwriter and musician who started out as part of the folk duo Billy and Charles and achieved success with a number of bands and as a solo artist. But he arguably found his biggest audience when part of the metal band Dream Theater, contributing to their debut album, When Dreams and Day Unite.

Imelda Mounfield
- 18 Nov 2023
British events agent who was also the wife of Stone Roses bassist Mani. Since her diagnosis with stage 4 bowel cancer, she raised thousands of pounds for charities and good causes.

Catherine Christer “C.C.” Hennix
25 Jan 1948 – 19 Nov 2023
Multi-talented Swedish figure, who alongside her avant-garde music was also a poet, philosopher, mathematician and a  visual artist.  As a musician, she worked with other leading artists, and her recordings continue to find new audiences.

Marc "Mars" Williams
29 May 1955 – 20 Nov 2023
US saxophonist who started out in the Eighties new wave, including with the bands The Waitresses and The Psychedelic Furs, and also performing with such artists as Billy Idol, but who also became an influential figure in the jazz scene, including as a member of the acid jazz group he co-founded, Liquid Soul.

Jean Knight
26 Jan 1943 – 22 Nov 2023
US R&B/soul singer who, as an artist with Stax Records in the 1970s scored a Hot 100 No. 2 hit and R&B chart-topper with Mr. Big Stuff, which also featured on her self-titled debut LP and was Grammy nominated. Her other notable recordings included You Got The Papers (But I Got The Man) and My Toot Toot.

Phil Quartararo
7 Jan 1956 – Nov 22 2023
US music industry executive who was part of the launch team of Virgin Records America where he became President and CEO and worked with artists including The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul and the Spice Girls. He was later appointed President of Warner Bros. Records, working with artists such as Linkin Park and Madonna, before joining EMI and then becoming an entrepreneur and consultant.

Jim Salestrom
20 Feb 1956 – 22 Nov 2023
US singer-songwriter who was the lead vocalist with the Seventies group Timberline.  Following this, he was a member of Dolly Parton’s band in the 1980s, while as a solo artist, he performed in shows internationally.

Greg "Fingers" Taylor
3 Jun 1952 – 23 Nov 2023
US rock and blues performer of the harmonica, most remembered for his performances with Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band. Taylor also released five studio albums, including his 1984 debut LP, Harpoon Man.

Les Maguire
27 Dec 1941 – 25 Nov 2023
UK musician who from 1961 to 1966 was a member of Merseybeat band and Beatles contemporaries Gerry and the Pacemakers, the first act to score three UK No.1 singles with their first three hits, including You’ll Never Walk Alone. He later fronted blues act Hog Owl and made reunion appearances with the Pacemakers.

Kevin “Geordie“ Walker
18 Dec 1958 – 26 Nov 2023
UK songwriter, musician and producer who was co-founder and guitarist with post-punk band Killing Joke with whom he recorded 15 studio albums, including their self-titled debut and the UK Top 20 entries Revelations, Night Time, Pandemonium and Pylon. He was also in  The Damage Manual and Murder Inc.

Shane MacGowan
25 Dec 1957 – 30 Nov 2023
British-born, Irish singer-songwriter and musician who was the lead singer and principal lyricist of the Celtic punk band the Pogues. He recorded five studio albums with the group, including Rum Sodomy & The Lash and If I Should Fall From Grace, and scored two UK Top 10 singles, The Irish Rover with The Dubliners and the Christmas classic Fairytale Of New York, on which he duetted with Kirsty MacColl. After leaving the group in 1991, he recorded and performed as Shane MacGowan and The Popes, as well as a solo artist, including collaborations with Joe Strummer, Nick Cave and Sinead O’Connor.  He rejoined the Pogues in 2001 for reunion concerts and remained with them until they broke up in 2014.

December 2023

Myles Goodwyn
23 Jun 1948 – 3 Dec 2023
Canadian singer, songwriter and musician, most noted for his career long work with the rock outfit April Wine, with whom he released 16 studio albums, including the self-titled debut and the breakthrough sophomore LP, On Record, featuring the hit cover of Hot Chocolate’s You Could Have Been A Lady. With his band, Goodwyn went on to garner more than 10 million album sales and was also honoured with a National Achievement Award and induction into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame.

Denny Laine
29 Oct 1944 – 5 Dec 2023
British songwriter and musician who scored a UK No.1 single in 1965 with Go Now as frontman of the Moody Blues before leaving the band the following year to form the Electric String Band whilst simultaneously pursuing a solo career. In 1971 he became a founding member of Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles group, Wings, the only permanent member outside of Paul and Linda. His contributions included co-penning with McCartney the nine-week No.1 hit Mull Of Kintyre, which became the first single to surpass 2 million UK sales and was the top seller of the 1970s.

Adrian Morgan
1943 – 17 Nov 2023
English musician who played bass guitar with the Bristol band, The Cougars, known for their interpretations of pop and even classical pieces of music.

Benjamin Zephaniah (né Springer)
15 Apr 1958 – 7 Dec 2023
British artist of Jamaican heritage who was known for his writing, including as a dub poet, but was also a musician and an actor and became a powerful voice calling for social and racial justice.  In 1982 his tribute album to Nelson Mandela, Rasta, which featured the Wailers performing for the first time since the death of Bob Marley, prompted the South African president to invite him to host his 1996 Two Nations Concert.

Richard Kerr
14 Dec 1944 – 8 Dec 2023
British singer-songwriter and composer who co-wrote the song Brandy which under a name-change to Mandy became a US Billboard Hot 100 No.1 and global hit for Barry Manilow. He also co-penned the Manilow hits Looks Like We Made It and Somewhere In The Night, Dionne Warwick’s US top five hit I’ll Never Love This Way Again and songs recorded by artists such as Kenny Rogers, Roy Orbison and Bonnie Raitt.

Essra Mohawk (Sandra Hurvitz)
23 Apr 1948 – 11 Dec 2023
US singer-songwriter who made numerous recordings, including her single Sufferin' Til Suffrage and her acclaimed sophomore album, Primordial Lovers. However, she was equally known for her compositions Change of Heart and Stronger than the Wind being recorded by Cyndi Lauper and Tina Turner respectively. 

Jeffrey Foskett
17 Feb 1956 – 11 Dec 2023
American guitarist and singer who toured and recorded with Brian Wilson since the 1980s. Alongside Wilson, he was part of the Beach Boys’ 50th anniversary reunion tour and album in 2012 before joining the legendary group as a permanent member. He also worked with artists including Paul McCartney, Roy Orbison and Jeff Beck.

Zahara (né Bulelwa Mkutukana)
9 Nov 1987 – 11 Dec 2023
South African singer, songwriter and guitarist who became a major star in her own country with a series of platinum-selling albums, including her 2011 debut Loliwe. Nelson Mandela invited her to perform a private beside concert at his home, which inspired her to compose and record a song named after the former South African President.

Travis Dopp
n/a – 14 Dec 2023
American musician who was guitarist in the metal band Small Brown Bike, who formed in the late 1990s. Their debut album, Voices, was released in January 2008.

Bob Johnson
18 Mar 1944 – 15 Dec 2023
British guitarist, singer and songwriter who was a member of the folk rock band Steeleye Span from 1972 to 1977, then from 1980 to 2001, including on the UK hit albums Now We Are Six and All Around My Hat (and the single of the same name) and the Top 20 single Gaudete. Between his stints with Steeleye Span he recorded a concept album with the group’s Peter Knight.

Colin Burgess
16 Nov 1946 – 16 Dec 2023
Australian musician who was the drummer in the rock band the Masters Apprentices before becoming the original drummer with AC/DC. In 1983, he and his brother Denny formed the hard rock band His Majesty who, like Masters Apprentices, were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.

Jim Ladd
17 Jan 1948 – 17 Dec 2023
US radio DJ, producer and writer, known for his freeform style. Rising to prominence in the Eighties, he came to wider attention as the host of the hour-long show, Innerview, which, for over a decade, was syndicated nationally across 160 stations. In 1987 he parodied the style of the radio DJ when appearing on Roger Waters’ solo LP, Radio K.A.O.S., subsequently joining him on tour. Ladd also appeared in such films as Say Anything, Tequila Sunrise, and She’s Out Of Control. In 2005 he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in honour of his four-decade career, with Slash of Guns N' Roses inducting him.

Joseph "Amp" Fiddler
17 May 1958 – 18 Dec 2023 
US singer, songwriter, keyboardist, and record producer from Detroit, whose talents spanned a range of musical genres, including funk, soul, funk, and electronica. He contributed to the band Enchantment, and in the 1980s and 1980s was part of George Clinton’s influential groups, Parliament and Funkadelic.

Eric Moyo
1982 – 20 Dec 2023
Zimbabwean vocalist who found fame after he won the inaugural series of Idols East Africa.

Laura Lynch
1958 – 22 Dec 2023
American country musician who was bassist and vocalist with The Dixie Chicks (now The Chicks) – the US’ best-selling all-woman band since Neilsen SoundScan began at the start of the Nineties . Lynch contributed to the band’s acclaimed albums, which have gone on to sell more than 30 million copies globally and have helped them to garner 13 Grammy Awards.

Lisandro Meza 
26 Sep 1937 – 23 Dec 2023
Colombian vocalist who also excelled as a performer on the accordion. Meza had a successful solo career, but earlier, in the Sixties, had also been part of the group, Los Corraleros de Majagual, popular in his country and other parts of South America.

Willie Ruff
1 Sep 1931 – 24 Dec 2023
US jazz artist, proficient in the double bass and French horn, who enjoyed a successful career in music whilst also serving in academia.

David Freeman
22 May 1939 – 25 Dec 2023
American music executive who in 1963 founded the County record label, which specialised in southern string band music, and then he set up retail and wholesale businesses for the bluegrass market. In 1978 he helped his associate Barry Poss to found the iconic bluegrass record label, Sugar Hill Records, while two years later he acquired pioneering bluegrass label, Rebel Records. Over all this time, Freeman became an authority on Bluegrass music and in 2002 he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honour.

Rak Sanghvi
Apr 1967 – 25 Dec 2023
British music executive who worked in music publishing for more than 25 years, including serving as MD of Sony/ATV Music Publishing UK, during which time its signings and roster included Ed Sheeran, Robert Plant, Noel Gallagher, Gary Barlow, Jessie J and Rudimental. He became MD of Spirit B-Unique in 2015, rising to the position of Spirit Music Group’s Global President and overseeing a roster that included James Bay, John Newman and Snow Patrol member and Ed Sheeran collaborator Johnny McDaid. He left Spirit in 2022, then worked as a consultant across music publishing.

Tom Smothers
2 Feb 1937 – 26 Dec 2023
US all-round artist, primarily known as a comedian and actor, but also regarded as a musician, including as part of the musical comedy duo, the Smothers Brothers. On one of their TV shows, Smothers famously co-performed Give Peace a Chance with John Lennon.

Rudy Flores
1948 – 26 Dec 2023
American Latino musician who performed with the Mexican grupero band, Los Humildes – popular on both sides of the border, earning a Grammy nomination in 1986 for their acclaimed album, 13 Aniversario.

Tim Tuer
11 Jan 1961 – 26 Dec 2023
British recorded music commercial executive, who worked at a number of record companies and their labels over a number of years, including Warmer Music and Polygram/Phonogram. 

Les McCann
23 Sep 1935 – 29 Dec 2023
US jazz artist, performing on piano and vocals.  He was regarded as soul jazz innovator, and his music has been widely sampled by the hip-hop community.

Maurice Hines 
13 Dec 1943 – 29 Dec 2023
US artist and brother to Gregory Hones, mainly known as an actor and dancer, but also regarded as a vocalist and a performer in musical theatre.  He worked with many of the greats, including Louis Armstrong and Quincy Jones, and he also had a leading role in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1984 film, The Cotton Club. 

Sandra Reaves-Phillips
23 Dec 1944 – 29 Dec 2023
US actress and singer who excelled in musical theatre, acclaimed for her many stage performance, including for her 2010 role in Low Down Dirty Blues in 2010. Among other honours, she also received a Drama League Award for Outstanding Performer for Rollin' on the T.O.B.A. on Broadway.

Klee Benally
1975 – 30 Dec 2024
Indigenous American musician who, with her siblings, formed the Native American punk group, Blackfire. Their musical style was a fusion of traditional Navajo Diné and alternative rock, incorporating human rights and political messages.

January 2024

Christoph Karrer
20 Jan 1947 – 2 Jan 2024
Versatile German musician and composer regarded as a pioneer of Kraurock, including with his band Amon Düül Il. He also composed for film, notably the soundtrack to Syberberg's San Domingo.

Glynis Johns
5 Oct 1923 – 4 Jan 2024
South-African born British actress, whose decorated career on stage and screen spanned seven decades. Whilst appearing in many notable films and theatre productions, she arguably found her biggest audience playing the role of the Winifred Banks in Disney’s Mary Poppins, performing the award-winning song Sister Suffragette. She also appeared in numerous musical theatre productions, including Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music, for which her performance of Send in the Clowns received a Tony Award.

David Soul (né David Solberg)
28 Aug 1943 – 4 Jan 2024
British-American actor and singer best known for his co-starring role in the US TV series Starsky & Hutch but who also had a successful music career, initially as the “Covered Man” on The Merv Griffin Show in the 1960s then in the following decade with international hits including the trans-Atlantic chart-topper Don’t Give Up On Us and Silver Lady, which also reached No.1 in the UK.

Gene Deer
1 Jun 1964 — 4 Jan 2024 tbc
Mid-west US rock, blues, and country musician and singer-songwriter who recorded for the Slippery Noodle Sound label.  In 2002 he was taken on by Indy racer Kenny Brack as musical director for his band Kenny Brack and the Subwoofers, which toured with the Indy Racing League. Subsequently they released the album Live in Nashville, which also  featured Ed King, the former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist.

Lawrence Collins
4 Oct 1944 – 5 Jan 2024
US musician, guitarist and songwriter, starting out as a part of the Fifties rock ‘n’ roll duo, The Collins Kids, but also known as a solo artist and, notably, for co-writing the 1972 Americana anthem Delta Dawn, recorded by Bette Midler and Helen Reddy, among others.

Del Palmer
3 Nov 1952 – 5 Jan 2024
British musician and songwriter best known for his work as a bass player on Kate Bush albums including Lionheart, Never For Ever, Hounds Of Love and her most recent studio release, 2011’s 50 Words For Snow. He also engineered a handful of her albums, including The Sensual World and The Red Shoes. He recorded several solo albums and collaborated with artists including Roy Harper and Midge Ure.

Iasos (Joseph Bernardot)
9 Jan 1947 – 6 Jan 2024
Greek-born, US musician and composer who was regarded a pioneer of new age music. Releasing though his company Inter-Dimensional Music, Iasos performed and also taught around the world, with his music featured by NASA, among others.

Tony Clarkin
24 Nov 1946 – 7 Jan 2024
British musician who was principal guitarist and songwriter for the rock band Magnum across four decades, including a six-year hiatus between 1995 and 2011 when he was with his band Hard Rain. Magnum broke through in 1982 with the top-20 song Chase The Dragon, but found wider prominence when working with Manager Keith Baker and later Queen’s Roger Taylor to achieve top-5 album success with Wings of Heaven. 

Phill Niblock
2 Oct 1933 – 8 Jan 2024
US filmmaker, composer, and videographer who was an influential figure in avant-garde music working through his role as director of the foundation Experimental Intermedia.

James Kottak
26 Dec 1962 – 9 Jan 2024
Prolific US drummer who recorded with and performed for numerous rock bands over a three-decade-plus career. These notably included German metal group, The Scorpions, whom he joined in 1996, as well as Kingdom Come, Montrose, Warrant, Wild Horses, Buster Brown and his own band Kottack.

Annie Nightingale CBE
1 Apr 1940 – 11 Jan 2024
Pioneering British radio and television presenter who became the first female presenter on BBC Radio 1, which she joined in 1970, and the longest-serving broadcaster in the network’s history, remaining with the station until her death. She presented a request show on Radio 1 for a number of years, while also hosted a current affairs programme, music chat show and latterly championed electronic and dance music, including hosting from 1994 onwards The Chill Out Zone. She was also the first female presenter of the BBC TV music show The Old Grey Whistle Test, introducing and championing in her 11-year run artists including Talking Heads and Siouxsie and The Banshees. She presented occasional programmes on BBC Radio 2, wrote books and in 2020 was awarded a CBE for services to radio broadcasting. 

Bill Hayes
5 Jun 1925 – 12 Jan 2024
American performer known mainly for his acting roles, notably the character of Doug Williams in the long-running TV drama, Days of Our Lives,  but who started out as a singer in the late Forties. His recording of The Ballad of Davy Crockett topped the US Billboard Charts in 1955 and provided a base for further success. 

Jo-El Sonnier
2 Oct 1946 – 13 Jan 2024
US singer-songwriter, musician and accomplished accordion player, specialising in country and cajun music. Initially finding some success with Mercury Nashville Records in the Seventies, a move to RCA saw him break through with major hits, including No More One More Time. He went on to release more than 30 albums in a five-decade long career.

Laurie Johnson MBE
7 Feb 1927 – 16 Jan 2024
British composer who, having started out in the Coldstream Guards band and then the KPM Music Library, graduated into writing the scores to  countless film and TV series, including Dr Strangelove and the cult shows The Avengers and The Professionals as well as family favourites Animal Magic and This is Your Life.  He was also a bandleader and his arrangements of big-band swing numbers were well regarded.

Toni Stern
4 Nov 1944 – 17 Jan 2024
US musician and songwriter who was known for her collaborations with artist Carole King, writing the lyrics for several songs of her songs from the Sixties and Seventies, including the classic, It’s Too Late. In 2017, Stern published a book of poetry, As Close as I Can.

Silent Servant (John Juan Mendez)
14 Aug 1977 – 18 Jan 2024
US techno DJ and producer who is regraded as a pioneer of the LA underground techno scene. He performed as a member of the Tropic of Cancer group and also the collective known as the Sandwell District, whom he directed and released a number of singles with.

Marlena Shaw (born Marlina Burgess)
22 Sep 1939 – 19 Jan 2024
US vocalist whose talent spanned jazz and blues and then soul and disco, with her songs sampled by the hip-hop community and in commercials.  Her career began in the Sixties with Chess Records, with whom she recorded her acclaimed cover of California Soul, before she moved on to another iconic jazz label – Blue Note, and then Columbia Records. It was during this period that Marlena recorded Don’t Ask To Stay Until Tomorrow - the theme song to the award-winning film Looking For Mr Goodbar, as well as a remake of one of disco’s biggest hits, Touch Me In The Morning. Marlena continued to record and perform well into the Noughties and in 2022 the BPI awarded her a BRIT Certified Gold Disc for California Soul.

Mary Weiss
28 Dec 1948 – 19 Jan 2024
American singer best known as the lead vocalist of the 1960s girl group The Shangri-Las ,whose hits included the US Billboard Hot 100 No.1 Leader Of The Pack and Remember (Walking In The Sand). After the group’s split in 1968, she gave up music but reunited with The Shangri-Las on several occasions. Leader Of The Pack was inducted in its Singles category at the 2019 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Norman Jewison CC OOnt
21 Jul 1926 – 20 Jan 2024
Canadian filmmaker, who, alongside his cannon of acclaimed and often award-winning movies, such as In the Heat of the Night and Mask, also directed the film musical of Fiddler on the Roof starring Topol, winning three Academy Awards along with many other accolades.

Margo Smith (born Betty Lou Miller)
9 Apr 1939 – 23 Jan 2024
US country singer and songwriter, known also as the Tennessee Yodeler, who in the latter part of her career went on to become a leading performer of Christian music.  Initial success arrived in the 1970s thanks to two No.1 hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, followed in later years by successful albums.

Frank Farian
18 Jul 1941 – 23 Jan 2024
German singer and record producer who founded the groups Boney M and Milli Vanilli following his own successful career as a recording artist. The disco-pop group Boney M scored a series of global hits under him during the 1970s, including Rivers Of Babylon and Daddy Cool, while beginning at the end of the following decade he enjoyed brief but significant success with the German R&B group Milli Vanilli, although their careers ended in infamy when it was found the line-up had not performed on their records. His other successes included the Latin pop band No Mercy, rock group Far Corporation and Eurodance act La Bouche.

Melanie
3 Feb 1947 – 23 Jan 2024
American singer-songwriter who topped the US Billboard Hot 100 with the self-penned Brand New Key and whose other hits included What Have They Done To My Song Ma, Lay Down (Candles In The Rain) and a cover of The Rolling Stones’ Ruby Tuesday. She was won of only three women to perform at the original Woodstock festival in 1969. 

Bhavatharini Raja
23 Jul 1976 – 25 Jan 2024
Indian actress who sang in her many of her film roles also, often under the direction of her composer father, Ilaiyaraaja. Her performance in the film Bharathi of the song Mayil Pola Ponnu Onnu saw her recognised in 2000 with the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer. 

Tony Cedras 
1952 tbc – 29 Jan 2024
South African keyboardist, especially proficient in the accordion and harmonium as well as on guitar and trumpet.  His talent saw him perform with numerous leading artists, such as Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, Harry Belafonte, and Paul Simon, for whose live band he performed between 1987 to 2012.

Chita Rivera (Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero)
23 Jan 1933 – 30 Jan 2024
Celebrated American Latina actress, singer, and dancer who was highly decorated for her extensive stage and screen work, with honours including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009 and a Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2018, capping multiple awards and nominations. Acclaimed performances in the early Fifties productions of Call Me Madam and then Guys and Dolls propelled her to early stardom and marked the start of a long and successful career, highlighted by memorable appearances in West Side Story, where played Anita, Bye Bye Birdie, Chicago, and her award-winning title role in Kiss of the Spider Woman.

Paul Brett 
20 Jun 1947 – 31 Jan 2024
English musician who pursued a varied career, both as a rock guitarist – notably performing with The Strawbs as well as The Overlanders, and The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, among others, as well as working with artists ranging from Lonnie Donegan to Roy Harper, before going on to become a respected music writer. Later in his career he also appeared as an expert on BBC TV’s Antiques Roadshow and Flog It!.

February 2024

Nicky Graham
Jan 1945 – Feb 2024
South-African born British songwriter, music producer and industry executive who enjoyed a varied career, including as a musician working with David Bowie on his Ziggy Stardust tour. He was an A&R manager with Polydor and CBS Records, also turning his hand to writing hits for acts ranging from Bros (UK No.1 I Owe You Nothing) to Ant n Dec (Let’s Get Ready to Rhumble) – earning a BASCA Gold Badge Award for his work. He also was the BBC’s A&R consultant for Eurovision as well as a director for PRS Music.  

Wayne Kramer
30 Apr 1948 – 2 Feb 2024
American guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer who was co-founder and guitarist in the Sixties Detroit counterculture and anti-establishment rock group MC5, whose song Kick Out The Jams has been widely covered. The group recorded the albums Back In The USA and High Time before disbanding in 1972 after which he pursued a solo career, formed Gag War with Johnny Thunders and later joined Was (Not Was). 

Steve Brown
25 Oct 1954 – 2 Feb 2024
British composer, lyricist, record producer and arranger who wrote music for TV shows including Spitting Image, Dead Ringers, The Ant & Dec Show and Saturday Takeaway.  He worked with comedians including Rory Bremner, Harry Hill and Alistair McGowan, and as a record producer worked with artists including Laura Mvula and Rumer.

Derrick McIntyre
1958 - 2 Feb 2024
British musician who played bass on Jamiroquai’s 2005-released sixth studio album Dynamite. He also worked with artists including Emeli Sandé, Will Young, Beverley Knight, Mica Paris and Roy Ayers.

Aston “Family Man” Barrett
22 Nov 1946 – 3 Feb 2024
Jamaican songwriter, musician and producer best known as the bandleader and bassist of Bob Marley’s backing group The Wailers with whom he performed on iconic albums such as Catch A Fire and hit singles including Jamming, I Shot The Sheriff and No Woman No Cry. He also played on albums by artists including Burning Spear, Peter Tosh and Keith Hudson. Prior to The Wailers, he was a member of Lee “Scratch” Perry’s backing band The Upsetters.

Toby Keith
8 Jul 1961 – 5 Feb 2024
American country music singer, songwriter, record producer and actor who scored 10 No.1 albums on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and four on the Billboard 200 countdown, including Unleashed and Shock’n Y’all and Big Dog Daddy, as well as landing 20 US Billboard country No.1 hits, among them Should’ve Been A Cowboy, How Do You Like Me Now, American Soldier and Beer For My Horses with Willlie Nelson. He was nominated for seven Grammy Awards.

Mallorca Lee
15 Jul 1972 – 5 Feb 2024
Scottish DJ, producer and musician who was one of the pioneers of rave music, including as part of the groups Ultra-Sonic and Public Domain and in a solo career. Ultra-Sonic were one of the most notable rave acts of the 1990s with tracks including Annihilating Rhythm and Obsession, while Public Domain scored a UK Top 10 hit in 2000 with Operation Blade (Bass In The Place). 

Henry Fambrough
10 May 1938 – 7 Feb 2024
US vocalist who was the last surviving member of the Motown-signed Soul/R&B group, The Spinners, performing with them in a remarkable six decade career from 1954 until he retired in 2023. Known for his baritone voice, Fambrough featured on their hits including Could It Be I’m Falling In Love and Ghetto Child.  

Mojo Nixon (Neill Kirby McMillan Jr.)
2 Aug 1957 – 7 Feb 2024
US American musician and actor, but perhaps most known for Elvis Is Everywhere, the novelty song featured on MTV. Known for a style blending punk and rockabilly described as ‘psychobilly’. Nixon hosted his radio show The Loon in the Afternoon on the North American satellite channel Sirius XM.

Jimmy Van Eaton
23 Dec 1937 – 9 Feb 2024
US rock ‘n’ roll drummer, vocalist and producer, who started out with his own dixie jazz band, the Jivin' Five, before forming his first rock ‘n’ roll band, the Echoes.  He is perhaps most known, however, for his 1950s Sun Records sessions with Jerry Lee Lewis and other artists.  Van Eaton, aka J.M, was referred to by Lewis as "The creative rock 'n' roll drummer".

Damo Suzuki (né Kenji Suzuki)
16 Jan 1950 – 9 Feb 2024
Japanese musician best known as the vocalist for the influential German Krautrock group Can between 1970 and 1973 when they recorded ground-breaking albums including the double set Tago Mago, Ege Bamyasi and Future Days. He was part of several new band projects in the 1980s, including the Damo Suzuki Band. 

Lloyd “Randy” Sparks
29 Jul 1933 – 11 Feb 2024
US musician, singer and songwriter, known for founding the folk rock groups The New Christy Minstrels and the Back Porch Majority.  His career began in the late Fifties with two albums released on the Verve label, including the 1959 sophomore, Walking the Low Road, which yielded the cashbox machine hit single of the same name.  Sparks went on to work in film also, including The Big Night, and Thunder Road, while his song Saturday Night in Toledo, Ohio was recorded by John Denver to reach a wider audience. 

Steve Wright MBE
26 Aug 1954 – 12 Feb 2024
British radio and sometime TV broadcaster, considered groundbreaking by many, who introduced the ‘zoo’ format to UK radio and worked for much of his career for the BBC, including at Radio 1 and Radio 2. He presented Steve Wright in the Afternoon weekdays on Radio 1 from 1981 to 1993, moving the following year to the breakfast show but left the station in 1995. After a brief period working outside the BBC, he returned to the Corporation in 1996 to host a Saturday morning programme and Steve Wright’s Sunday Love Songs on Radio 2, presenting the latter until his death. In 1999 he returned to weekday presenting to host Radio 2’s afternoon show Mondays to Fridays, remaining there until 2022. In August 2023 he took over the station’s iconic Saturday show Pick Of The Pops. His TV career included presenting Top Of The Pops and Top Of The Pops 2. He was awarded an MBE for services to radio in the 2024 New Year Honours.

Kerry "Fatman" Hunter
1970 – 13 Feb 2024
American musician who is perhaps best known for performing with the regional roots ensemble, the New Orleans Nightcrawlers. Their most recent album, Atmosphere, claimed the 2020 Grammy for Best Regional Roots Music Album.

Ian “Tich” Amey
15 May 1944 – 15 Feb 2024
English musician and guitarist – most famously the “Tich” making up the Sixties pop and rock group, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beak, Mick & Tich. Starting out in the 1950s as a member of Eddy and the Strollers, Amey went through a number of band line ups before becoming part of the group where he made his name. His mastery of stringed instruments can be heard in the band’s classic songs, Bend It, and The Legend of Xanadu.

Dexter "Dex" Romweber 
18 Jun 1966 – 16 Feb 2024
US rockabilly and roots rock guitarist, known largely as one-half of the Flat Duo Jets. He also fronted the Dex Romweber Duo with sister Sara.

* NB Some January and February 2023 entries that were not included in last year’s In Memoriam are added here.

The BRIT Awards extend our profound condolences to the families and friends of all the many artists and industry colleagues lost to us these past 12 months, whose lives and contributions we remember and celebrate.

The BRITs are appreciative of the many sources that enable us to research and compile this information, which we take care to get right, but, in the event of any unintended inaccuracies, we are happy to correct on notification.