Musicians Who Died in 1976

  • Jan 3 Mateusz Gliński, Polish conductor, musicologist (Scriabin, Chopin), composer, and pedagogue (Winsdor University), dies at 83
  • Jan 5 Georges Migot, French composer, and poet (Les Agrestide; L'Arche), dies at 84
  • Jan 5 Mal Evans, British Beatles roadie and personal assistant, dies in a confrontation with police at his Los Angeles home at 40
  • Jan 10 Howlin' Wolf [Chester Arthur Burnett], American blues musician (Smokestack Lightnin', Killing Floor), dies of complications during kidney surgery at 65
  • Jan 23 Paul Robeson, American stage and screen bass-baritone singer ("Old Man River"), actor, and civil rights activist, dies of stroke complications in Philadelphia at 77
  • Jan 28 Chris Kenner, American R&B singer-songwriter (I Like it Like That), dies at 46
  • Jan 30 Beau De Glen "Mance" Lipscomb, American blues singer and guitarist ("Shine On, Harvest Moon"), dies of a stroke at 80
  • Jan 31 Buster Brown, American blues singer and harmonica player (Fannie Mae), dies at 64
  • Jan 31 Evert Axel Taube, Swedish ballad singer and composer, dies at 85
  • Feb 2 Erling Kjellsby, Norwegian organist, educator and composer, dies at 75
  • Feb 2 Maurice Jacobson, British concert pianist, composer, and music publisher, dies at 80
  • Feb 5 Rudy Pompilli, American musician (Bill Haley and His Comets) (b. 1926)
  • Feb 6 Vince Guaraldi, American jazz pianist and composer ("Cast Your Fate to the Wind"; Peanuts TV specials), dies of a heart attack at 47
  • Feb 9 Percy Faith, Canadian-American pop and easy listening composer and bandleader ("Theme from A Summer Place"), dies at 67
  • Feb 12 Clifton Williams, American composer (The Ramparts; Sinfonians), dies from cancer at 52
  • Feb 13 Alice "Lily" Pons, French-American coloratura soprano opera singer (Metropolitan Opera, 1931-60) and actress (That Girl From Paris), dies of pancreatic cancer at 77
  • Feb 22 Florence Ballard, American pop and R&B singer (The Supremes, 1959-67 - "Buttered Popcorn"; "Where Did Our Love Go"), dies of a heart attack at 32
  • Feb 24 Charles Wilfred Orr, English pianist and composer (settings of A.E. Housman poems), dies at 82
  • Mar 1 Jean Martinon, French conductor and composer, dies at 66
  • Mar 3 Alfred Sendrey [Szendrei], Hungarian-American organist, conductor, musicologist, and composer, dies at 92
  • Mar 7 Erwin Kroll, German composer, dies at 90
  • Mar 11 Louis Gesensway, Latvian-American violinist (Philadelphia Orchestra, 1926-71), and composer (Ode To Peace), dies at 70
  • Mar 18 James McCartney, father of Paul McCartney, dies at 73
  • Mar 18 Robert de Roos, Dutch composer, dies at 69
  • Mar 19 George Sklavos, Greek composer, dies at 87
  • Mar 19 Paul Kossoff, British rock guitarist (Free - "All Right Now"), dies on flight from Los Angeles to New York of a pulmonary embolism at 25
  • Mar 30 Reuben "Rube" Bloom, American pianist, arranger, bandleader (The Bayou Boys), songwriter ("Fools Rush In (Where Angels Fear to Tread)"; "Give Me the Simple Life"), dies at 73
  • Apr 1 Freddie Lennon, father of John Lennon (Beatles), dies at 63
  • Apr 1 Miroslav Ponc, Czech composer, dies at 73
  • Apr 3 Maurice Johnstone, English brass band composer, dies at 75
  • Apr 9 Akio Yashiro, Japanese composer, dies at 46
  • Apr 9 Phil Ochs, American anti-war folk singer ("I Ain't Marching Anymore"; "Draft Dodger Rag"), commits suicide at 35
  • Apr 22 Frutuoso de Lima Viana, Brazilian pianist and composer, dies at 79
  • Apr 25 Alexander Brailowsky, Russian-French pianist (Chopin specialist), dies at 80
  • Apr 29 Wilhelm Maler, German composer, dies at 73
  • Apr 30 Edvard Fliflet Braein, Norwegian composer (Ut mot havet (Out To Sea); Anne Pedersdotter), dies at 51
  • May 9 Raymond Chevreuille, Belgian composer, dies at 74
  • May 9 Valentino Bucchi, Italian composer, dies at 59
  • May 11 Camille Schmit, Belgian composer, dies at 68
  • May 12 Rudolf Kempe, German conductor (Tonhalle Orch 1965-72), dies at 65
  • May 14 Keith Relf, British blues-rock singer and harmonica player (The Yardbirds - "For Your Love"; Renaissance, 1969-71), electrocuted while playing an improperly earthed electric guitar at 33
  • May 17 Charles Stepney, American pianist, arranger, and record producer (Chess Records; Minnie Riperton; Ramsey Lewis; Earth, Wind & Fire), dies of a heart attack at 45
  • May 21 Harold Blair, Australian tenor and Aboriginal activist, dies at 51
  • May 21 Sulo Nikolai Salonen, Finnish composer, dies at 77
  • Jun 7 Bobby Hackett, American jazz cornetist, trumpeter (Glenn Miller; Benny Goodman; Jackie Gleason), and orchestra leader (Air Time '57), dies at 61
  • Jun 11 Folke Eriksberg [Eriksberger], Swedish jazz and session guitarist and composer, dies at 65
  • Jun 14 Géza Anda, Hungarian-Swiss pianist (Mozart; Bartók), dies at 54

Johnny Mercer (1909-1976)

Jun 25 American singer, Academy Award-winning lyricist ("Moon River"; "That Old Black Magic"; "And the Angels Sing": Come Rain Or Come Shine"), and record label executive (Capitol Records), dies from an inoperable brain tumor at 66 [1]

  • Jul 13 Max Butting, German composer, dies at 87
  • Jul 24 Leo Shuken, American film music composer and arranger (Stagecoach; The Fabulous Dorseys; The Unsinkable Molly Brown), dies at 69
  • Jul 28 Lucie Mannheim, German singer and actress (39 Steps), dies at 77
  • Aug 5 Betty Clooney, American singer (Jack Paar Show), dies at 45
  • Aug 6 Gregor Piatigorsky, Ukrainian-American cellist, dies at 73
  • Aug 9 Max Vredenburg, Dutch composer and music critic, dies at 72 [1]
  • Aug 19 Jenö Kenessey, Hungarian conductor and composer, dies at 70
  • Aug 22 Gina Bachauer, Greek classical pianist of Austrian heritage, dies at 63
  • Aug 24 Michael Head, British organist, pianist, and composer, dies at 76
  • Aug 26 Lotte Lehmann, German soprano (Der Rosenkavalier, More than singing), dies at 88
  • Aug 27 Mukesh [Mathur], Indian "playback singer" for Bollywood films, dies of a heart attack at 53
  • Aug 29 Jimmy Reed, American blues singer ("Soulin'"; "Big Boss Man"), dies of epileptic seizure at 50
  • Aug 29 Kazi Nazrul Islam, Bengali poet, musician, revolutionary and philosopher, dies at 77
  • Sep 8 Asen Karastoyanov, Bulgarian composer, dies at 83
  • Sep 8 Joaquin Zamacois Soler, Chilean-Spanish composer, dies at 81
  • Sep 11 Jan Kunc, Czech composer (Czech State Anthem), dies at 93
  • Sep 20 Johan Boskamp, Dutch opera singer and actor, dies at 85
  • Sep 26 (Louis Charles) "L. C." Robinson, American blues singer, guitarist, fiddler, and electric steel guitar player, dies of a heart attack at 62
  • Sep 27 Miloš Sokola, Czech violinist and composer, dies at 63
  • Sep 30 Louis Fourestier, French cellist, composer (Polynice; Patria), conductor (Paris Opera, 1938-65), and pedagogue (Paris Conservatoire, 1945-65), dies at 84
  • Oct 3 Herb Flemming [Nicolaiih El-Michelle], American jazz trombonist and vocalist, dies at 77
  • Oct 3 Victoria Spivey, American vaudeville and blues singer, pianist, organist, and songwriter ("Dope Head Blues"; Organ Grinder Blues"), dies at 69
  • Oct 7 Nikolai Lopatnikoff, Estonian-American composer (Variazioni Concertanti), dies at 73
  • Oct 10 Connee Boswell, American jazz singer (Pete Kelly's Blue), dies at 68
  • Oct 10 Silvana Armenulic, Yugoslavian folk singer (b. 1939)
  • Oct 12 José Rozo Contreras, Colombian saxophonist, conductor, and composer, dies at 82
  • Oct 23 Leonard Lee, American vocalist (Shirley & Lee - "I'm Gone"), dies at 40
  • Oct 24 Richard Sturzenegger, Swiss composer and cellist, dies at 70
  • Oct 27 Deryck Victor Cooke, composer, dies of a cerebral hemorrhage at 57

Walter Piston (1894-1976)

Nov 12 Jr, American two-time Pulitzer Prize winning composer (Incredible Flutist), music theorist, and educator (Harvard, 1926-60), dies at 82

  • Nov 17 Victor Alessandro, composer, dies at 60
  • Nov 27 Victor Alessandro, American orchestral conductor (Oklahoma City; San Antonio), dies on his 61st birthday
  • Nov 28 Robert Fleming, Canadian composer, dies at 55
  • Dec 4 Tommy Bolin, American rock guitarist and songwriter (Deep Purple), dies of heroin and other substances overdose at 25

Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)

Dec 4 English composer (The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra; Peter Grimes), dies of heart failure at 63

  • Dec 12 John "Jack" Cassidy, American stage and screen actor and Grammy Award-winning singer (Shangri-La; The Eiger Sanction: She Loves Me; Columbo), dies in an apartment fire at 49
  • Dec 12 Vinko Zganec, Croatian ethnomusicologist (b. 1890)
  • Dec 28 Freddie King, American blues singer (Hideaway), dies at 42