- 1831 Peter Hansel, German Austrian composer and violinist, dies at 60
- 1857 Karol Kurpiński, Polish composer (Pygmalion; Kalmora, or The Paternal Right of the Americans), conductor (Warsaw Opera, 1810-40), and pedagogue, dies at 72
- 1903 Theodore Furchtegott Kirchner, German composer, dies at 79
- 1918 Ernest Farrar, English composer and musician, dies fighting on the Western Front during WWI at 33
- 1929 Hermann Gradener, German composer, dies at 85
- 1945 "Blind" Willie Johnson, American gospel blues singer and guitarist ("Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground"), dies of malarial fever, syphilis and blindness at 48
- 1966 Fernand Lamy, French composer, dies at 85
- 1966 Jeno Vecsey, Hungarian composer, dies at 57
- 1969 Rudolph Wagner-Regeny, Hungarian German composer, dies at 66
Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970)
American rock guitarist ("Purple Haze"; "Vvoodoo Chile"; "The Wind Cries Mary"), dies from asphyxiation at 27
- 1991 Rob Tyner [Robert Derminer], American hard rock singer (MC5 - Kick Out The Jams), dies of a heart attack at 46
- 1992 Earl Van Dyke, American jazz and session piano, Hammond B-3, and harpsichord player (Motown Records' Funk Brothers, 1964-72), dies of prostate cancer at 62
- 1996 Vera Brodsky Lawrence, American concert pianist (CBS Symphony) and musicologist (Joplin; Gottschalk), dies at 87
- 1997 James "Jimmy" Witherspoon, American jump blues singer (Ain't Nobody's Business), dies at 77
- 2007 Pepsi Tate [Huw Smith], Welsh glam-rock bassist (Tigertailz), dies of pancreatic cancer at 42
- 2011 Kurt Sanderling, German conductor (East Berlin Symphony 1960-77), dies at 98
- 2013 Lindsay Cooper, British bassoonist, oboe player, and composer (Henry Cow; News From Babel; Feminist Improvising Group), dies from complications of multiple sclerosis at 62
- 2013 Lisa Otto, German soprano (Berlin State Opera, 1951-85), dies at 93
Assassination
Drug Overdose
Gunshot Wound
Murder
Plane Crash
Suicide