- Jan 2 Dick Powell [Richard Ewing Powell], American singer, actor, producer and director (Cry Danger, Dick Powell Theater), dies from cancer at 58
- Jan 3 Oskar Back, Hungarian-Dutch violinist and pedagogue, dies at 83
- Jan 10 Tadeusz Szeligowski, Polish composer (The Peacock and the Girl), dies at 66
- Jan 13 (Conrad) "Sonny" Clark, American hard pop jazz and session pianist, composer, and group leader (Sonny's Crib), dies of a heart attack, exacerbated by heroin use, at 31
- Jan 16 Gilardo Gilardi, Argentine composer, pianist and conductor (La leyenda del urutaú, Réquiem, Misa de Gloria), dies at 73
- Jan 16 Ike Quebec, American jazz tenor saxophone player, and pianist, dies of lung cancer at 44
- Jan 30 Francis Poulenc, French pianist and composer (Concert champêtre; Les Biches), dies of a heart attack at 64
Country Singers
Jazz Musicians
Opera Singers
Pop Stars
Rappers
Rockers