Musicians Who Died in 2011

  • Jan 1 Charles Fambrough, American jazz bassist (Jazz Messengers), dies at 60
  • Jan 1 Marin Constantin, Romanian composer and conductor, dies at 85
  • Jan 4 Gerry Rafferty, Scottish guitarist and vocalist (Steeler's Wheel - "Stuck In The Niddle"; solo - "Baker Street"), dies at 63
  • Jan 4 Miick Karn [Andonis Michaelides], Cypriot-British new wave and art rock fretless bassist, and singer-songwriter (Japan), dies of cancer at 52
  • Jan 5 Roland Kayn, German electronic music composer, dies at 77
  • Jan 8 Hans Ulrich Engelmann, German composer (Ophelia), dies at 79
  • Jan 9 Debbie Friedman, American singer-songwriter and arranger of Jewish religious music ("Mi Shebeirach"), dies of pneumonia at 59
  • Jan 10 Bosko Petrovic, Croatian jazz musician, founder of the Zagreb Jazz Quartet, dies at 75
  • Jan 10 Liana Alexandra, Romanian pianist and composer, dies from a cerebral hemorrhage at 63
  • Jan 10 Margaret Whiting, American singer (It Might As Well Be Spring, Time After Time), dies at 86
  • Jan 14 Trish Keenan, lead vocalist of English band Broadcast (b. 1968)
  • Jan 17 Donald "Don" Kirshner, American rock & roll producer known as "The Man With the Golden Ear" (invented bubblegum music), dies at 76
  • Jan 24 Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, Indian khayal (romance) and devotional (bhajan and abhangsad) singer, dies at 88
  • Jan 26 Charlie Louvin [Loudermilk], American country singer-songwriter, and guitarist (Louvin Brothers - "The Only Way Out (Is to Walk Over Me)"), dies of cancer at 83
  • Jan 26 Gladys Horton, American pop singer (The Marvelettes- "Please Mr. Postman"; "Too Many Fish In The Sea"), dies at 65 [or 66]
  • Jan 29 Emanuel Vardi, Israeli-American viola virtuoso and conductor (South Dakota Symphony 1978-82), dies at 95 [1]
  • Jan 29 Milton Babbitt, American mathematician, composer of serial and electronic music (Correspondences), and teacher (Princeton; Juilliard), dies at 94
  • Jan 30 John Barry [Prendergast], English film score composer (James Bond films; Born Free), dies at 77
  • Feb 6 Gary Moore, Irish rock guitarist (Skid Row-Oh Pretty Woman), dies at 58
  • Feb 12 Elizabeth "Betty" Garrett, American actress, comedian, singer and dancer (All in the Family), dies of an aortic aneurysm at 91
  • Feb 12 Peter Alexander [Ferdinand Maximilian Neumayer], Austrian actor and singer (Who Wants to Sleep?), dies at 84
  • Feb 14 George Shearing, British-American blind jazz pianist (Lullaby of Birdland), dies at 91
  • Feb 18 Carlos Veerhoff, Argentine-born German composer, dies at 84
  • Feb 20 Terry Clements, American guitarist (Gordon Lightfoot), dies of complications from a stroke at 63
  • Feb 23 Jack Gottlieb, American composer, writer and editor, dies at 80
  • Feb 25 Rick Coonce, American rock drummer (Grass Roots), dies at 64
  • Feb 26 Eugene Fodor, American classical violinist (1974 Tchaikovsky Award), dies from cirrhosis at 60
  • Feb 27 Eddie Kirkland, Jamaican-American blues guitarist, singer and harmonica player (Have Mercy On Me), dies in a car accident at 87
  • Mar 2 Čestmír Gregor, Czech composer, dies at 84
  • Mar 3 Aldo Clementi, Italian composer (Collage), and teacher (University of Bologna, 1971-92), dies at 85
  • Mar 4 Johnny Preston, American pop singer (Running Bear), dies at 71
  • Mar 8 Mike Starr (musician), American Musician (b. 1966)
  • Mar 11 Loleatta Holloway, American disco singer ("Love Sensation"), dies of heart failure at 64
  • Mar 12 Joe Morello, American jazz drummer (Dave Brubeck Quartet - "Blue Rondo à la Turk"), dies at 82
  • Mar 12 [Augustus] Owsley Stanley III, American audio engineer and LSD cook who worked with the Grateful Dead, dies in a car crash in Australia at 76
  • Mar 14 Ronnie Hammond, American rock singer (Atlanta Rhythm Section, 1972–83 & 1988–2001 - "So In To You"), dies of heart failure at 60
  • Mar 15 Melvin Sparks, American soul-jazz, hard bop, jazz-blues, and session guitarist (Lou Donaldson, Houston Person, Jimmy McGriff), dies from complications of diabetes at 64
  • Mar 15 Nate Dogg [Nathaniel Dwayne Hale], American rapper ("Regulate"), dies from heart failure related to multiple strokes at 41
  • Mar 15 Smiley Culture [David Victor Emmanuel], British reggae singer ("Police Officer"; "Cockney Translation"), dies from a self-inflicted stab wound at 48
  • Mar 17 Ferlin Husky, American country singer (Born to Lose, Gone), dies at 85
  • Mar 18 Jet Harris [Terence Harris], English rock bassist (Drifters), dies of cancer at 71
  • Mar 19 Kym Bonython, Australian radio broadcaster, jazz musician, speedway promoter, dies at 90
  • Mar 20 Johnny Pearson, British pianist, arranger, orchestra leader, and composer (Cilla Black; Top of the Pops; Dusty Springfield), dies at 85
  • Mar 21 Pinetop Perkins, Member of the Blues Hall of Fame (b. 1913)
  • Mar 28 Lee Hoiby, American concert pianist composer (1957 Arts & Letters; Summer and Smoke), dies at 85
  • Mar 31 Mel McDaniel, American country singer ("Baby's Got Her Blue Jeans On"), dies of lung cancer at 68
  • Apr 2 George E Mahlberg, American astronomer (Mt Palomar/Mt Wilson, California, 1974-78), movie actor, sound engineer, and DJ (Dr. Cosmo), dies at 56
  • Apr 3 Calvin Russell [Kosler], American blues, roots, and rock singer-songwriter and guitarist (Dream Of The Dog), dies of liver cancer at 62
  • Apr 4 Bronisław Kazimierz Przybylski, Polish composer (Requiem, In Memory of the Children – Martyrs of the War) and educator, dies at 69
  • Apr 4 Scott Columbus, American heavy metal drummer (Manowar, 1983–91 & 1994–2008), takes his own life at 54
  • Apr 9 Daniel Catán, Mexican composer (Rappaccini's Daughter; Florencia en el Amazonas), dies at 62
  • Apr 9 Roger Nichols, American recording engineer, producer and inventor (Steely Dan; John Denver), dies of pancreatic cancer at 66
  • Apr 11 Billy Bang [William Walker], American free jazz violinist and composer, dies of lung cancer at 63
  • Apr 11 La Esterella [Ester Lambrechts], Flemish pop singer ("Oh Lieve Vrouwetoren"), dies at 91
  • Apr 11 Lacy Gibson, American Chicago-style blues guitarist, singer and songwriter ("Switchy Titchy"), dies of a heart attack at 74
  • Apr 16 Paul Des Marais, American composer, dies at 90 [1]
  • Apr 17 Eric Gross, Austrian-Australian pianist, composer (Na shledanou v Praze (Good-bye in Prague); Moonscape), conductor, and educator (University of Sydney, 1960-91), dies at 84
  • Apr 17 Nikos Papazoglou, Greek singer and songwriter (b. 1948)
  • Apr 19 Jaroslav Smolka, Czech composer (Metamorfosi), music director, dramaturge, pedagogue, and musicologist, dies at 78
  • Apr 23 Peter Lieberson, American composer, dies of cancer at 64
  • Apr 23 Tom King, American rock guitarist, songwriter, guitarist, and arranger (The Outsiders - "Time Won't Let Me"), dies of congestive heart failure at 68
  • Apr 26 Phoebe Snow [Laub], American singer-songwriter ("Poetry Man"), dies at 60
  • Apr 27 Marian Mercer, American actress and singer (Dean Martin Show), dies at 75
  • Apr 29 David Mason, British orchestral, solo and session trumpet player (The Beatles "Penny Lane"), dies of leukemia at 85
  • May 5 Arthur Laurents, American playwright (West Side Story: Gypsy), and screenwriter (Rope; Anastasia), dies at 93
  • May 7 "Big" George Webley, British broadcaster, composer, bandleader and musician, dies of a heart attack at 53
  • May 7 John Walker [Maus], American rock vocalist (Walker Brothers - "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)"), dies of liver cancer at 67
  • May 8 Cornell Dupree, American jazz and R&B session guitarist (Atlantic Records - Aretha Franklin), dies of emphysema at 68
  • May 11 (Eugene) "Snooky" Young, American jazz trumpeter who mastered the plunger mute, dies at 92
  • May 13 Bernard Greenhouse, American cellist (Beaux Arts Trio), dies at 95
  • May 13 Bruce Ricker, American jazz and blues documentarian (The Last of the Blue Devils; Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser), dies at 68
  • May 13 Jack Richardson, Canadian record producer (The Guess Who), dies at 81
  • May 15 Bob Flannigan, American jazz singer (The Four Freshmen), dies at 84
  • May 18 Leonard Kastle, opera composer, librettist, director (The Passion of Mother Ann), and film maker (The Honeymoon Killers), dies at 82
  • May 19 Kathy Kirby, English singer (Secret Love), dies at 72
  • May 22 Ze'ev Wolfgang Steinberg, Israeli violist and composer, dies at 92
  • May 27 Gill Scott-Heron, American writer, poet and singer ("Whitey on the Moon"), dies at 62
  • May 27 Jeff Conaway, American actor and singer (Taxi - "Bobby"; Grease - "Kenickie"; Babylon 5 - "Zack"), dies of pneumonia and sepsis at 60
  • May 29 Simon Brint, British comic actor, musician, and television composer (French and Saunders; A Bit of Fry & Laurie; Monarch of the Glen), takes his own life at 60
  • May 30 Giorgio Tozzi, American operatic bass (dubbed vocals of Emile de Becque for "South Pacific" film), dies at 88
  • Jun 2 Erapheael “Ray” Bryant, American jazz pianist, composer and arranger ("Madison Time"), dies at 79
  • Jun 2 Willem Duys, Dutch TV presenter, commentator and music producer, dies at 82
  • Jun 3 Andrew Gold, American rocker ("Lonely Boy"), and songwriter (Thank You For Being A Friend; The Final Frontier), dies in his sleep of heart failure at 59
  • Jun 4 Andreas P. Nielsen, Danish author and composer, dies at 58
  • Jun 4 David “Frankie” Toler, American drummer and percussionist (Allman Brothers), dies at 59 [1]
  • Jun 4 Kevin Kavanaugh, American rock keyboard player (Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, 1975-90), dies at 59
  • Jun 4 Martin Rushent, British sound engineer (Gentle Giant; Shirley Bassey), and record producer (Buzzcocks; The Human League), dies at 62
  • Jun 7 Hubert Du Plessis, South African pianist and composer, dies at 88
  • Jun 7 Nataraja Ramakrishna, Indian classical dancer, choreographer, and musicologist, dies at 88
  • Jun 8 Alan Rubin, American jazz and session trumpeter and flugelhorn player (SNL; Blues Brothers) known as "Mr Fabulous", dies of cancer at 68
  • Jun 11 Seth Putnam, American extreme heavy metal guitarist and vocalist, dies of a heart attack at 43
  • Jun 12 Carl Gardner, American pop-rock vocalist (The Coasters - "Yakety Yak"), dies at 83
  • Jun 18 Clarence Clemons, American saxophonist, known as "The Big Man" (The E-Street Band), dies of complications from a stroke (b. 1942); flags in New Jersey are lowered to half-mast
  • Jun 20 Jerome Rosen, American composer, dies at 89
  • Jun 20 [Anna] Ottilie Patterson, Irish blues and jazz singer (Chris Barber Jazz Band), dies at 79
  • Jun 25 Goff Richards, British brass band music composer and arranger
  • Jul 5 Malcolm Forsyth, South African-Canadian trombonist and composer (Atayoskewin), dies of pancreatic cancer at 74
  • Jul 7 Josef Suk, Czech concert violinist (Artist of Merit, 1977), violist, and namesake of composer grandfather, dies of prostate cancer at 81
  • Jul 9 Facundo Cabral, Argentine folk, rock, and protest singer-songwriter, shot and killed riding in a car with a concert promoter at 74
  • Jul 9 Würzel [Michael Burston], British musician (Motörhead), dies of ventricular fibrillation at 61
  • Jul 10 Pierrette Alarie, Canadian operatic soprano, dies at 89
  • Jul 10 Roland Petit, French choreographer and dancer (b. 1924)
  • Jul 11 George Lascelles, English Earl of Harewood, Director of the Royal Opera House, dies at 88
  • Jul 12 David Carr, British rock keyboardist (The Fortunes, 1963-68 - "You've Got Your Troubles"; "Here It Comes Again"), dies at 67
  • Jul 13 Jerry Ragovoy, American songwriter ("Piece Of My Heart"; "Time Is On My Side"; "Pata Pata"), and record producer, dies following a stroke at 80
  • Jul 18 Osvaldo Lacerda, Brazilian composer (Piratininga), and music professor, dies at 84
  • Jul 19 Karen Khachaturian, Russian composer, dies at 90

Amy Winehouse (1983-2011)

Jul 23 British singer-songwriter ("Stronger Than Me"; "Rehab"), dies from alcohol poisoning at 27

  • Jul 23 Johnny Hoes, Dutch musician and producer (Wished I'd Stayed With My Mom), dies at 94
  • Jul 24 Dan Peek, American rock vocalist and guitarist (America), dies at 60
  • Jul 24 Jane White, African-American actress and singer (Strange Fruit, Once Upon a Mattress), dies at 88
  • Jul 25 Arsene Souffriau, Belgian pioneering electronic music composer, dies at 86
  • Aug 2 DeLois Barrett Campbell, American gospel singer (Barrett Sisters), dies at 85
  • Aug 7 Marshall Grant, American bassist (Johnny Cash's Tennessee Two), dies at 83
  • Aug 11 Jani Lane [John Oswald], American heavy metal rock songwriter, and singer (Warrant - "Cherry Pie"), dies of acute alcohol poisoning at 47
  • Aug 13 Topi Sorsakoski [Pekka Tammilehto], Finnish blues singer, and guitarist, dies of lung cancer at 58
  • Aug 15 Betty Thatcher [Newsinger], English progressive rock lyricist (Renaissance - "Carpet of the Sun"; "Mother Russia"), dies of cancer at 67
  • Aug 22 Jean-Charles Capon, French jazz cellist and composer (Confluence; Baroque Jazz Trio), dies at 75
  • Aug 22 Jerry Leiber, American songwriter (Leiber & Stoller - "Hound Dog"; "Jailhouse Rock"; "Is That All There Is?"), dies at 78
  • Aug 22 Nickolas "Nick" Ashford, American songwriter, record producer ("Ain't No Mountain High Enough"; "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)"), and singer (Ashford & Simpson - "Solid"), dies of throat cancer at 70
  • Aug 28 George Green, American songwriter ("Hurts So Good", "Rain On The Scarecrow"), dies of lung cancer at 59
  • Aug 29 David "Honeyboy" Edwards, American delta blues guitarist, dies at 96
  • Sep 6 Wardell Quezergue, American jazz, blues, and funk composer, arranger, record producer, and bandleader, known as the "Creole Beethoven", dies at 81
  • Sep 13 DJ Mehdi [Favéris-Essadi], French hip hop and electro producer, dies from falling through a skylight at his home at 34
  • Sep 18 Kurt Sanderling, German conductor (East Berlin Symphony 1960-77), dies at 98
  • Sep 19 Ctirad Kohoutek, Czech composer, dies at 82
  • Sep 19 Johnny Răducanu, Romanian jazz pianist, dies of a heart attack at 79
  • Sep 20 Robert Whitaker, British photographer whose work was used on Beatles and Cream album covers, dies at 71
  • Sep 26 Harry Muskee, Dutch blues-rock vocalist (Cuby & Blizzards), dies of cancer at 70
  • Sep 27 Johnny "Country" Mathis, American country music songwriter and singer, dies of stroke complications at 80
  • Sep 29 Sylvia Robinson, American singer (Mickey & Sylvia - "Love Is Strange"; solo - "Pillow Talk"), record producer, and record label executive (Sugar Hill Records), dies of congestive heart failure at 76
  • Sep 30 Marv Tarplin, American guitarist and songwriter (The Miracles, 1958-73 - "The Tracks of My Tears"), dies at 70
  • Oct 1 David Vickerman Bedford, British composer and educator, dies at 74
  • Oct 5 Bert Jansch, Scottish folk musician (Pentangle), dies of lung cancer at 67
  • Oct 6 Brad Felt, American jazz tuba and euphonium player, composer, and bandleader, dies of pancreatic cancer at 55
  • Oct 8 Antonio Iglesias Álvares, Spanish pianist, composer, educator and critic, dies at 93
  • Oct 8 Mikey Welsh, American bass player (Weezer, 1998-2001 - "Island In The Sun"), dies of a drug overdose at 40
  • Oct 8 Roger Williams [Louis Jacob Weertz], American popular music pianist ("Born Free"), dies of pancreatic cancer at 87
  • Oct 10 Jagjit Singh, Indian Musician, Ghazal Maestro, Padma Bhusan awardee (b. 1941)
  • Oct 12 Joel "Taz" DiGregorio, American country-rock keyboardist (Charlie Daniels Band), killed in a car accident at 67 [1]
  • Oct 14 Chuck Ruff, American rock drummer (Edgar Winter Group - "Frankenstein"), dies after a long illness at 60
  • Oct 15 Elizabeth "Betty" Driver, British singer and actress (Coronation Street; Pardon the Expression), dies from pneumonia at 91
  • Oct 16 Pete Rugolo, American bandleader and arranger (Fugitive), dies at 95
  • Oct 20 Barry Feinstein, American portrait photographer and album cover designer (Bob Dylan; Peter, Paul & Mary; Janis Joplin; George Harrison), dies at 80
  • Oct 21 Edmundo Ros, Trinidadian-Venezuelan musician and arranger, dies at 100
  • Oct 22 Karl-Heinz Köper, German conductor, and composer (Tuba-Tabu; Pop Corn Concerto), dies at 84
  • Oct 28 Beryl Davis, British-American cabaret and big band singer (Quintette du Hot Club de France, Glenn Miller's US Army Air Force Orchestra), dies of complications from Alzheimer's disease at 87
  • Oct 31 Liz Anderson, American country music singer-songwriter (Mama Spank, The Game of Triangles), dies of heart and lung disease at 81
  • Nov 1 André Hodeir, French classical and jazz violinist, and composer, dies at 90
  • Nov 2 Sickan Carlsson, Swedish actress and singer (b. 1915)
  • Nov 5 Bhupen Hazarika, Indian singer, composer, lyricist, music director, and filmmaker, dies at 85
  • Nov 8 Heavy D [Dwight Errington Myers], Jamaican-American rap artist, dies at 44
  • Nov 15 Dulcie Gray, British singer, actress, author and lepidopterist (Mine Own Executioner), dies at 95
  • Nov 15 Mark "Moogy" Klingman, American rock musician and songwriter (Utopia), dies of bladder cancer at 61
  • Nov 22 Paul Motian, American jazz drummer (Bill Evans Trio; Keith Jarrett), composer, and bandleader (Electric Bebop Band), dies of bone marrow cancer at 80
  • Nov 23 Montserrat Figueras, Catalan soprano and early music advocate (Hespèrion), dies at 69
  • Nov 24 Fjölnir Stefánsson, Icelandic composer, dies at 81
  • Nov 25 (Henry) Lee "Shot" Williams, American blues singer ("I Like Your Style"), dies ar 73
  • Nov 27 Sultan Khan, Indian classical musician, dies at 71
  • Nov 28 Andrew Kazdin, classical record producer, dies at 77
  • Nov 30 J. Blackfoot [Colbert], American soul singer (The Soul Children"; solo -"Taxi"), dies of pancreatic cancer at 65
  • Dec 2 Howard Tate, American soul singer and songwriter ("Ain't Nobody Home"; "Get It While You Can"), dies of complications of multiple myeloma and leukemia at 72
  • Dec 3 Philip Burrell, influential Jamaican record producer, dies of a heart attack at 57
  • Dec 4 Hubert Sumlin, American blues guitarist (Howlin' Wolf), dies at 80
  • Dec 6 Dobie Gray [Lawrence Brown], American musician and singer (Drift Away), dies of cancer at 71
  • Dec 8 Dick Sims, American Hammond B-3 organist (Bob Seger; Eric Clapton), dies of cancer at 60
  • Dec 8 Minoru Miky, Japanese composer for traditional Japanese instruments, dies at 84
  • Dec 9 Myra Taylor (née Render), American jazz singer ("Spider and the Fly"; Wild Women of Kansas City), songwriter, and actress, dies at 94
  • Dec 12 John Gardner, English classical composer, dies at 94
  • Dec 15 Bob Brookmeyer, American jazz and studio pianist, valve trombone player, arranger, and composer (Stan Getz; Jerry Mulligan), dies of congestive heart failure at 81
  • Dec 16 Mark Kopytman, Russian-Israeli composer (Voices of Memory), musicologist, and pedagogue (Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, 1974-94). dies at 82
  • Dec 17 Cesária Évora, Cape Verdean morna singer known as "the Barefoot Diva", dies from respiratory failure at 70
  • Dec 18 Ralph MacDonald, American rock percussionist and songwriter ("Just the Two of Us"), dies of cancer at 67
  • Dec 20 (Thomas) "Sean" Bonniwell, American rock guitarist and singer-songwriter (The Music Machine - "Talk, Talk"), dies of lung cancer at 71
  • Dec 25 Israel Baker, American concert and session violinist (NBC Symphony; Paramount Studios Orchestra), dies at 92
  • Dec 25 Jim "Motorhead" Sherwood [Euclid James Sherwood], American rock musician (Mothers Of Invention), dies at 69
  • Dec 26 Sam Rivers, American jazz musician (exponent of free jazz), dies of pneumonia at 88
  • Dec 29 Bobby Purify [Robert Lee Dickey], American soul singer (I'm Your Puppet), dies at 72
  • Dec 31 Omus Hirshbein, classical music impresario and music director, dies at 77