- Jan 4 R. D. Burman, Indian film score composer (1942: A Love Story), dies at 54
- Jan 5 Victor van Os, Dutch jazz guitarist, dies at 39
- Jan 7 Bobby Pratt, American jazz trombone and piano player, dies at 67
- Jan 8 Jay Blackton, American conductor and arranger (Guys & Dolls; Oklahoma!), dies at 84
- Jan 9 Silas Hogan, American blues singer and guitarist, dies at 82
- Jan 11 Roger "Ram" Ramirez, American jazz piano player and composer, dies at 80
- Jan 13 Frederick William Sternfield, musicologist, dies at 79
- Jan 15 György Cziffra, Hungarian-French pianist (Chopin, Liszt), dies at 72
Harry Nilsson (1941-1994)
Jan 15 American pop and rock singer-songwriter ("Everybody's Talkin'"; "One"; "Without You"), dies of a heart attack at 52
- Jan 15 Philippe Brun, French jazz trumpeter, dies at 85
- Jan 17 Grady "Fats" Jackson, tenor Sax Player, dies at 66
- Jan 17 Noël Chiboust, French jazz trumpeter, saxophonist, clarinetist, and bandleader, dies at 84
- Jan 18 Arthur Altman, American songwriter ("All Or Nothing At All"), dies at 83
- Jan 18 Torbjörn Hultcrantzn, Swedish jazz double bass player, dies at 56
- Jan 22 (Aristotelis) "Telly" Savalas, American actor (Kojak; On Her Majesty's Secret Service), and singer ("If"), dies of prostate cancer at 72
- Jan 22 Rhett Forrester, American singer (Riot) (b. 1956)
- Jan 27 Eddie Calhoun, American jazz bassist, dies at 72
- Jan 27 Stanley Adams, American lyricist and songwriter ("What a Diff'rence a Day Makes"), dies from cancer at 86
- Jan 30 Byron "Wild Child" Gipson, American blues singer ("Sittin' Here Cryin'"), dies at 64
- Jan 30 Ernestine "Tiny" Davis, American jazz vocalist and trumpeter (International Sweethearts of Rhythm), dies at 86
- Jan 30 Finn Arnestad, Norwegian contemporary classical composer (Ritagliata), dies at 78
Country Singers
Jazz Singers
Opera Singers
Pop Singers
Rappers
Rock Singers