Musicians Who Died in 2016

Deaths 1 - 200 of 205

David Bowie (1947-2016)

Jan 10 English rock singer-songwriter ("Space Oddity"; "Changes"; "Ziggy Stardust"; "Heroes"), mime, and actor (Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence; Labyrinth), dies of cancer at 69

Jan 11 Gilberto Mendes, Brazilian composer, dies at 93
Jan 14 René Angélil, Canadian music executive, actor and director (Omertà, L'apparition), and husband of Céline Dion, dies of throat cancer at 73
Jan 16 Gary Loizzo, American rock guitarist and singer (American Breed - "Bend Me, Shape Me"), dies of pancreatic cancer at 70
Jan 17 Dale "Buffin" Griffin, English rock drummer (Mott The Hoople - "All Young Dudes"), and producer (BBC's John Peel sessions), dies from complications of Alzheimer's disease at 67
Jan 17 Mic Gillette, American trumpet, trombone, and flugelhorn player (Tower of Power, Cold Blood, The Sons of Champlin), dies of a heart attack at 64

Jan 18 American Grammy Award-winning guitarist, singer-songwriter (The Eagles - "Take it Easy"; "Heartache Tonight";"Tequila Sunrise"; solo - "Smuggler's Blues"; "The Heat Is On"), and Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame member, dies from complications of rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis, and pneumonia at 67

Jan 24 Yvonne Chouteau, Native American dancer (one of the "five Moons" of Oklahoma), dies at 86
Jan 25 Denise Duval, French soprano (music of Francis Poulenc), dies at 94
Jan 25 Frank Collett [Taglieri], American jazz pianist and bandleader, dies of liver failure at 75
Jan 25 Leif Solberg, Norwegian organist, choral conductor and composer, dies at 101
Jan 26 Colin Vearncombe, British singer-songwriter (Black - "Wonderful Life"), dies from injuries in a car accident at 53
Jan 28 Paul Kantner, American rock singer and guitarist (Jefferson Airplane - "Volunteers"), dies following a heart attack at 74
Jan 28 Signe Toly Anderson, American singer, founding member of Jefferson Airplane, dies of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at 74
Jan 29 Alden Ashforth, American composer and professor of ethnomusicology, dies at 82
Jan 29 Aurèle Nicolet, Swiss flautist (Berlin Philharmonic), and educator, dies at 90
Feb 3 Saulius Sondeckis, Lithuanian violinist, conductor, orchestra leader (Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra, 1960-2004), dies at 87
Feb 4 Jimmie Haskell [Sheridan Pearlman], American arranger (Ricky Nelson; Chicago; Sheryl Crow), and film and television score composer, dies at 89
Feb 4 Leslie Bassett, American classical composer (Variations for Orchestra - Pulitzer Prize, 1966), and educator (University of Michigan, 1952-92), dies at 93
Feb 4 Maurice White, American singer-songwriter (Earth, Wind & Fire - "Shining Star"), dies at 74
Feb 4 Ulf Söderblom, Finnish conductor (Finnish National Opera, 1973-93), and teacher, dies at 85
Feb 6 Dan Hicks, American singer and songwriter (Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks), dies at 74
Feb 8 Violetta Verdy, French ballerina and teacher, dies at 82
Feb 14 Steven Stucky, American Pulitzer Prize-winning composer (Silent Spring; August 4, 1964; Los Angeles Philharmonic, 1988-2009), conductor (Ensemble X, 1997-2006), educator, and musicologist, dies of brain cancer at 66
Feb 15 George Gaynes, Dutch-Finnish-American singer, stage and screen actor (Tootsie; Police Academy; General Hospital), dies at 98
Feb 15 Louis Lane, American conductor (Akron, 1959-83; Lake Erie Opera, 1964-72), and educator (Cleveland Institute, 1982-2004), dies at 72
Feb 15 Vanity [Denise Matthews], Canadian R&B singer, Prince protege ("Nasty Girl"), actress (52 Pick Up), and evangelist dies of kidney failure at 57
Feb 16 Gwyneth George, Welsh cellist and teacher, dies at 95
Feb 21 Pascal Bentoiu, Romanian composer, dies at 88
Feb 22 Sonny James [James Loden], American country music singer-songwriter (Young Love), dies at 87
Feb 23 Lennie Baker, American rock saxophonist musician (Sha Na Na, 1970-99), dies at 69
Feb 24 Miguel Ángel Coria, Spanish composer of classical music, dies at 78
Feb 25 John Chilton, English jazz trumpeter (Feetwarmers), dies at 83
Feb 26 Eri Klas, Estonian conductor (Netherlands Radio Symphony; Aarhus Symphony; Estonian National Opera, 1975-95), and educator, dies at 76
Feb 26 Howard Quilling, American classical composer (From Quiet Beginnings), and educator, dies at 80
Feb 29 Aron Burton, American electric and Chicago blues bass guitarist, singer, and songwriter, dies of heart disease and diabetes at 77
Mar 1 Martha Wright [Wiederrecht;], American stage, concert and radio singer and actress (South Pacific; The Sound Of Music)), dies at 92
Mar 4 Zhou Xiaoyan, Chinese operatic soprano and pedagogue (Shanghai Conservatory, 1949-65 and 1970-78), dies at 98
Mar 5 Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Austrian conductor (Early Music Movement), dies at 86

George Martin (1926-2016)

Mar 8 British record producer (The Beatles), dies at 90

Mar 9 Juvenal "Naná' Vasconcelos, Brazilian jazz and world music percussionist, and berimbau player (Pat Metheny, Björk, Milton Nascimento), dies of lung cancer at 71
Mar 9 Robert Horton [Meade Howard Horton Jr.], American actor and singer (Kings Row, Wagon Train, Arena), dies at 91
Mar 10 Ernestine Anderson, American jazz vocalist and blues singer, dies at 87
Mar 10 Gogi Grant [Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg], American singer ("The Wayward Wind"), dies at 91
Mar 10 Keith Emerson, English rock keyboardist (Emerson, Lake & Palmer), commits suicide at 71
Mar 14 Peter Maxwell Davies, British composer (Prolation, Taverner), dies at 81
Mar 16 Frank Sinatra, Jr., American singer and bandleaderr, dies at 72
Mar 20 Peter Williams, British organist and musicologist, dies at 78
Mar 22 Phife Dawg [Malik Taylor] American rapper (A Tribe called Quest), dies from diabetes complications at 45
Mar 23 Gegham Grigorian, Armenian operatic tenor, and artistic director (Yerevan Opera, 2000-07), dies at 65
Mar 26 David Baker, American jazz trombonist and cellist, jazz and classical composer (Reflections), and educator (Indiana University), dies at 84
Mar 30 Bram Beekman, Dutch organist, composer and teacher (Brabants Conservatory, 1980-2012), dies at 66
Mar 30 Gianmaria Testa, Italian singer-songwriter, dies of cancer at 57
Mar 30 Howard Cable, Canadian conductor, arranger, and composer, dies at 95
Mar 30 Mike Gibbons, American rocker (Bo Donaldson & the Heywoods - "Billy Don't Be A Hero"), dies at 69
Apr 2 Gato Barbieri, Argentinian Latin jazz musician (Last Tango in Paris), dies at 83
Apr 3 Don Francks, Canadian actor, singer and musician (Terminal Choice; Finian's Rainbow), dies at 84
Apr 4 (Dorothy) "Dottie" Schwartz (née Hummitzsch), American barbershop quartet vocalist (The Chordettes, 1946-52), dies at 89
Apr 4 Carlo Mastrangelo, Italian-American rocker (Dion & The Belmonts), dies of cancer at 78
Apr 5 Leon Haywood, American funk and soul singer, and keyboardist ("It's Got To Be Mellow"; "I Want'a Do Something Freaky To You"), dies at 74
Apr 6 Dennis Davis, American jazz, rock and funk drummer (Roy Ayers; David Bowie, 1975-80; Stevie Wonder), dies of cancer at 66

Merle Haggard (1937-2016)

Apr 6 American country singer-songwriter ("Mama Tried"; "If We Make It Through December"; "Okie from Muskogee"), dies on his 79th birthday

Apr 11 Emile Ford, Caribbean-born British singer and engineer (first black male singer to top UK charts), dies at 78
Apr 12 Alan Loveday, New Zealand and British violinist, dies at 88
Apr 13 Jeremy Steig, American jazz flutist ("Howlin' for Judy"; "Wayfaring Stranger"), dies of cancer at 73
Apr 16 Peter Tolson, English rock guitarist (Pretty Things), dies at 64
Apr 17 Warren Davis, American doo-wop singer (The Monotones - "The Book of Love"), dies at 77
Apr 18 Brian Asawa, Japanese-American countertenor, dies of liver failure at 49
Apr 18 [Julia Liane] Aleah Stanbridge, South African metal musician (Trees of Eternity), dies of cancer at 39
Apr 21 Lonnie Mack, American rocker ("Baby What's Wrong"), dies at 74

Prince Rogers Nelson (1958-2016)

Apr 21 American funk, rock, R&B singer-songwriter and musician ("1999"; "Purple Rain"), dies from an accidental overdose of painkillers at 57

Apr 24 Billy Paul [Paul Williams], American soul singer ("Me & Mrs Jones"), dies of pancreatic cancer at 81
Apr 24 Jan Henrik Kayser, Norwegian concert pianist (Grieg Prize, 1978), dies at 83
Apr 24 Papa Wemba [Wembadio Kikumba], Congolese singer, known as the "King of Rumba Rock", dies after collapsing on stage at 66
Apr 25 Mei Baojiu, Chinese opera performer and director (Mei Lanfang Peking Opera), dies at 82
Apr 29 Dmytro Hnatyuk, Ukrainian baritone (1951-88), opera director State Opera, 1975-88), and parliamentarian, dies at 91
Apr 30 Phil Ryan, Welsh keyboardist and composer (Man; Pete Brown), dies at 69
May 2 Alan Elsdon, British jazz trumpeter, flugelhorn player (Midnite Follies Orchestra), and bandleader, dies at 81
May 4 Ursula Mamlok, German-American avant-garde composer, and teacher, dies at 93
May 11 David King, British graphic designer (album cover art for Jimi Hendrix and The Who), photographer (I Am King), and historian (The Commissar Vanishes), dies at 73
May 12 Julius La Rosa, American singer (fired by Arthur Godfrey on the air), dies at 86
May 17 Guy Clark, American folk and country singer-songwriter (Heartbroke), dies of lymphoma at 74
May 21 Nick Menza, American musician and drummer (Megadeth), dies at 51
May 31 Corry Brokken, Dutch pop singer (1957 Eurovision), dies at 83
Jun 2 Freddie Wadling, Swedish actor and musician (The Leather Nun, Fleshquartet), dies at 64
Jun 3 Dave Swarbrick, British folk fiddler, and songwriter (Fairport Convention; Martin Carthy), dies pneumonia at 75
Jun 5 Phyllis Curtin, American soprano (NYC Opera), dies at 94
Jun 10 Christina Grimmie, American singer and contestant on "The Voice", dies of a gunshot wound at 22
Jun 11 Alberto Remedios, British opera and concert singer, dies at 81
Jun 13 Ofelya Hambardzumyan, Armenian folk singer, dies at 91
Jun 13 Oleg Karavaichuk, Russian pianist and composer, dies at 88
Jun 14 Henry McCullough, Irish guitarist (Wings), dies at 72
Jun 15 Ladislaw Kupkovic, Slovak composer, dies at 80
Jun 17 Prince Be [Attrell Cordes], American rapper (PM Dawn), dies from diabetes complications at 46
Jun 18 Peter Feuchtwanger, German piano teacher, musicologist, and composer (Studies in Eastern Idiom; Introduction and Ragas for 8 Violas and cello), dies at 85
Jun 20 Bill Ham [Billy Mack Ham], American music impresario and manager (ZZ Top), dies at 79
Jun 21 Wayne Lamar Jackson, American soul and R&B trumpeter (Mar-Keys; The Memphis Horns), dies of congestive heart failure at 74
Jun 23 Ralph Stanley, American bluegrass musician, dies at 89
Jun 24 Bernie Worrell, American keyboardist (Funkadelic-Cosmic Slop), dies of cancer at 72
Jun 27 Harry Halbreich, German-Belgian musicologist (Arthur Honegger, Bohuslav Martinů), dies at 85
Jun 27 Mack Rice, American musician and songwriter ("Mustang Sally"; "Respect Yourself"), dies at 82
Jun 28 Scotty Moore, American guitarist (for Elvis), dies at 84
Jun 28 Sergei Cortez, Chilean-Belarusian composer (Jubilee and The Bear; Giordano Bruno), dies at 81
Jun 29 Inocente Carreño, Venezuelan composer (Margariteña), and pedagogue (Prudencio Esáa, 1970-90), dies at 96
Jun 29 Rob Wasserman, American jazz and rock double bassist, and composer (RatDog; Duets), dies at 64
Jul 4 Geoffrey Shovelton, English opera singer, dies at 80
Jul 5 Alirio Díaz, Venezuelan guitarist, composer, and musicologist, dies at 92
Jul 7 Rokusuke Ei, Japanese author and lyricist (Sukiyaki), dies at 83
Jul 12 Gregg Smith, American choral conductor and composer, dies at 84
Jul 16 Alan Vega [Bermowitz] American punk rock vocalist (Suicide - "Ghost Rider"; "Dream Baby Dream"; Cubist Blues), and visual artist, dies at 78
Jul 16 Bonnie Brown, American country singer (The Browns), dies at 77
Jul 17 Gary S. Paxton [Larry Wayne Stevens], American musician and songwriter ("Monster Mash"; "Alley Oop"), dies at 77
Jul 20 Wayne Carson, American country musician and songwriter ("Always On My Mind"; "The Letter"), dies at 73
Jul 24 (Margaret) "Marni" Nixon [McEathron], American soprano singer and film 'ghost voice' (for Audrey Hepburn in "My Fair Lady"; Natalie Wood in "West Side Story**"; Deborah Kerr in "The King And I"), dies at 86
Jul 26 Einojuhani Rautavaara, Finnish composer (Kaivos), dies at 87
Jul 26 Sandy Pearlman, American lyricist; music producer, artist manager (Blue Öyster Cult), music journalist and record company executive, dies form complications of a stroke at 72
Aug 3 Matt Higgins Doran, American composer (Roland the Minstrel Pig; Faculty Meeting), pedagogue (St. Mary's College), and magician, dies at 94
Aug 4 Patrice Munsel [Munsil], American operatic soprano (Metropolitan Opera, 1943-58; Patrice Munsel Show), dies at 91
Aug 6 Pete Fountain [Pierre LaFontaine], American jazz and Dixieland clarinetist (Lawrence Welk, 1957-59), dies at 86
Aug 15 Bobby Hutcherson, American jazz vibraphone and marimba player ("Little B's Poem"; SFJAZZ Collective), dies of emphysema at 75
Aug 20 Irving Fields [Yitzhak Schwartz], American lounge pianist and composer (Ilona Massey Show; Bagels & Bongos), dies at 101
Aug 20 Matt Roberts, American rock guitarist (3 Doors Down - "When I'm Gone"), dies of prescription drug overdose at 38
Aug 22 (Jean-Baptiste) "Toots" Thielemans, Belgian-American jazz harmonica player, guitarist, whistler, and composer, dies at 94
Aug 22 Roberto Cassan, Italian-American jazz and folk accordionist, dies of a heart attack at 53
Aug 25 Rudy Van Gelder, American recording engineer (Miles Davis, John Coltrane), dies at 91
Aug 28 Juan Gabriel [Alberto Aguilera Valadez], Mexican singer,-songwriter dies of a heart attack at 66
Aug 31 Jacques Leduc, Belgian composer, dies at 84
Sep 1 Raymond Daveluy, Canadian organist (St. Joseph's Montreal, 1960-2002), composer and educator, dies at 89
Sep 6 Lewis Merenstein, American record producer (Miriam Makeba; Van Morrison's Astral Weeks; Glass Harp), dies of pneumonia at 81
Sep 8 Johan Botha, South African operatic tenor, dies of liver cancer at 51
Sep 8 Prince Buster [Cecil Bustamente Campbell], Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer ("Al Capone"; "Madness", "Whine and Grine"), dies at 78
Sep 10 Knut Wiggen, Norwegian computer music pioneer and composer, dies at 89
Sep 12 Hidayat Inayat Khan, British-French classical composer, conductor and Sufi teacher, dies at 99
Sep 21 John D. Loudermilk, American country singer and songwriter ("Tobacco Road"; "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye"), dies of cancer at 82
Sep 24 Buckwheat Zydeco [Stanley Dural, Jr.], American B-3 organist, accordionist and singer ("Where There's Smoke, There's Fire"), dies of lung cancer at 68
Sep 25 Jean Shepard, American country singer (Ozark Jubilee), dies of Parkinson's disease at 82
Sep 25 Kashif Saleem [Michael Jones], American R&B, disco, and soul keyboardist (B.T. Express, 1976-79 - "Can't Stop Groovin' Now, Wanna Do It Some More"), songwriter, and record producer, dies at 59
Sep 25 Rod Temperton, British pop musician and songwriter ("Boogie Nights"; "Thriller"; "Give Me the Night"; "Yah Mo B There"), dies of cancer at 66
Sep 30 Oscar Brand, Canadian-born American folk vocalist (Draw Me a Laugh), dies at 96
Oct 1 Edda Heiðrún Backman, Icelandic stage and screen actress, singer, theater director, and painter, dies of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) at 58
Oct 2 Neville Marriner, English conductor and violinist (Academy of St Martin in the Fields), dies at 92
Oct 2 Thomas Round, British tenor (Gilbert and Sullivan For All), dies at 100
Oct 3 Joan Marie Johnson, American pop singer (The Dixie Cups - "Chapel Of Love"; "Iko Iko"), dies of congestive heart failure at 72
Oct 4 Caroline Crawley, British alt-rock singer (Shelleyan Orphan; Babacar), dies at 53
Oct 4 Donald H. White, American composer (Lyric Suite for Euphonium and Winds; Tuba Sonata) and educator, dies at 95
Oct 5 Pompeiu Hărăşteanu, Romanian basso profondo singer (Opera Bonn, 1968-72; Romanian National Opera, 1972-2012), dies at 81
Oct 8 Don Ciccone, American singer-songwriter (The Critters - "Mr. Dieingly Sad"; The Hit Men), dies of a heart attack at 70
Oct 12 (William) "Sonny" Sanders, American soul vocalist, songwriter, arranger and producer (Jackie Wilson), dies at 77
Oct 13 Gerhard Wimberger, Austria composer (Glove), dies at 93
Oct 19 Yvette Chauviré, French ballerina, dies at 99
Oct 24 Bobby Vee [Velline], American pop singer ("Devil Or Angel"; "Take Good Care Of My Baby"), dies at 73
Oct 24 Pete Burns, English singer (Dead or Alive, "Spin Me Round"), dies of a cardiac arrest at 57
Oct 26 Stuart Edwards, British guitarist (Edison Lighthouse - "Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes"), dies of cancer at 73
Oct 29 Roland Dyens, French classical guitarist, composer, and arranger (Libra Sonatine), dies at 61
Nov 1 (Martin) "Bap" Kennedy, Irish singer-songwriter ("Moonlight Kiss"; "Sailor's Revenge"), dies of pancreatic cancer at 54
Nov 2 Bob Cranshaw, American jazz bassist (Blue Note Records; Sonny Rollins; Stanley Turrentine; Duke Pearson), dies of cancer at 83
Nov 3 Kay Starr [Katherine Starks], American pop singer ("Wheel of Fortune"), dies at 94
Nov 4 Eddie Harsch [Hawrysch], Canadian keyboardist (Bulldog; The Black Crowes - "Hard To Handle"), dies at 59
Nov 6 Zoltan Kocsis, Hungarian pianist and conductor, dies of cancer at 64

Leonard Cohen (1934-2016)

Nov 7 Canadian writer and singer-songwriter ("Hallelujah"; "Death of Ladies Man"; "Suzanne"), dies at 82

Nov 9 Al Caiola, American guitarist (Bonzanza theme), dies at 96
Nov 9 Zoltán Kocsis, Hungarian pianist, conductor and composer, dies of cancer at 64
Nov 11 Raynoma Singleton [Gordy], music producer and singer-songwriter (Motown), dies at 79
Nov 13 Leon Russell, American musician and singer-songwriter (Carny), dies at 74
Nov 14 Holly Dunn, American country singer (Daddy's Hands), dies of cancer at 59
Nov 15 Jules Eskin, American cellist (Boston Symphony, 1964-2016), dies of cancer at 85 [1]
Nov 15 Milt Okun, American music producer, conductor, and arranger (Peter, Paul and Mary; John Denver), dies at 92
Nov 15 Mose Allison, American jazz and blues piano player, singer, and composer ("Everybody's Cryin Mercy"; "Your Mind Is on Vacation"), dies at 89
Nov 18 Sharon Jones, American soul singer (Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings), dies of cancer at 60
Nov 23 Larry Hosford, American folk singer-songwriter (The King Takes The Queen), dies at 73
Nov 24 Florence Henderson, American actress (The Brady Bunch - "Carol"), and singer,dies at 82
Nov 24 Pauline Oliveros, American composer (Sound Patterns), dies at 84
Nov 25 Alexander Yossifov, Bulgarian conductor and composer (Back To The Beginning), dies at 76
Nov 25 Russell Oberlin, American countertenor (Pro Musica Antiqua, 1952-66) and educator (Hunter, 1966-94), dies at 88 [1]
Nov 28 Allan Zavod, Australian classical and jazz pianist and composer, dies of brain cancer at 71
Nov 28 Mark Taimanov, Russian pianist, dies at 90
Nov 30 Aleksei Maslennikov, Russian tenor (Bolshoi Theater, 1953-88), dies at 87
Nov 30 Kamilló Lendvay, Hungarian composer (Pezzo Concertanto), conductor, and educator, dies at 78
Dec 1 Elisabeth Carron, American soprano ("The Saint of Bleecker Street"; New York City Opera, 1958-73), dies at 94
Dec 3 Antonio Membrado, Spanish-French classical guitarist and composer, dies at 81
Dec 3 Gigliola Frazzoni, Italian operatic soprano, dies at 93
Dec 4 Julia Gomelskaya, Ukrainian composer, dies in a car crash at 52
Dec 4 Radim Hladík, Czech guitarist (The Blue Effect), dies from lung illness at 69
Dec 7 Greg Lake, British rock vocalist and bassist (King Crimson, 1968-70 - "I Talk To The Wind"; Emerson, Lake & Palmer - "Lucky Man"), dies of cancer at 69
Dec 7 Junaid Jamshed, Pakistani singer (Vital Signs 1), dies in a plane crash at 52
Dec 13 Alan Thicke, Canadian actor (Growing Pains), host (Thicke of the Night), and theme song composer (Diff'rent Strokes; The Facts of Life), dies of an aortic dissection at 69
Dec 14 Karel Husa, Czech-American Pulitzer prize winning composer (Trojan Women), dies at 95
Dec 21 Weston Noble, American music educator and conductor (Luther College, 1948-2005), dies at 94
Dec 22 Bill Price, British audio engineer (Tom Jones; Wings: Sparks; Elton John), and record producer (The Clash; Sex Pistols; Waterboys), dies of cancer at 72
Dec 23 Heinrich Schiff, Austrian cellist and conductor, dies at 65
Dec 24 Jack Philip Cannon, British composer, dies at 87
Dec 24 Rick Parfitt, British pop guitarist and singer (Status Quo - "Wanderer"; "Pictures of Matchstick Men"), dies at 68