- Dec 4 Stonewall Jackson, American country music musician ("Waterloo"; "A Wound Time Can't Erase"), dies from complications of vascular dementia at 89
- Dec 5 Buddy Merrill [Leslie Behunin], American guitarist and steel guitar player (Lawrence Welk Show. 1955-74), dies at 85
- Dec 5 John Miles, British vocalist and musician (John Miles Band - "Rebel"; "Zaragon"; Alan Parsons Project), dies at 72
- Dec 7 Steve Bronski Scottish rock keyboard player (Bronski Beat - "Smalltown Boy"), dies from smoke inhalation in a fire at his Soho flat at 61 [1]
- Dec 8 Barry Harris, American bebop jazz pianist (Cannonball Adderly; Lee Morgan; "The Bird of Red and Gold"), and educator, dies of COVID-19 complications at 91 [1]
- Dec 8 Ralph Tavares, Cape Verdean-American R&B and soul singer (Tavares - "Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel"), dies at 79
- Dec 8 Robbie Shakespeare, Jamaican reggae bassist (Sly & Robbie - "DJ Riot"), dies of kidney failure at 68
- Dec 10 Michael Nesmith, American rock guitarist (The Monkees), and singer-songwriter ("Different Drum"), dies of heart failure at 78 [1]
- Dec 11 Galina Samsova [Samtsova], Russian ballerina (London Festival Ballet, 1964-73), and artistic director, dies at 84
- Dec 12 Vicente Fernández, Mexican Grammy Award-winning singer, known as "El Rey de la Música Ranchera" (The King of Ranchera Music), actor, and film producer, dies at 81
- Dec 13 Joe Simon, American soul and R&B singer ("Power of Love"), dies at 85
- Dec 14 Karl Heinz Wahren, German pianist and composer (Nocturnal Dances of the Tuscan Virgins in the Florentine Gardens at the Height of the Inquisition), dies at 88
- Dec 14 Phil Chen, Chinese-Jamaican rock session and touring bassist (Jeff Beck, 1974-76; Rod Stewart, 1977-80; Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger), dies of cancer at 75
- Dec 15 Francisco Kroepfl, Argentinian composer, dies at 90
- Dec 15 Wanda Young, American pop singer (The Marvelettes - "Please Mr. Postman"; “Don’t Mess With Bill"), dies of heart disease at 78
- Dec 16 Pavle Despalj, Croatian composer and conductor (Zagreb; Miami; Tokyo), dies at 87
- Dec 19 Carlos Marín, Spanish pop-opera baritone (Il Divo), dies of COVID-19 at 53
Sally Ann Howes (1930-2021)
Dec 19 British-American stage and screen actress and singer (Brigadoon; Chitty Chitty Bang Bang - "Truly Scrumptious"), dies at 91
- Dec 22 Jürg Wyttenbach, Swiss pianist, composer, and conductor, dies at 86
- Dec 22 Robin Le Mesurier [Halliley], British session and touring guitarist (The Wombles; Rod Stewart; Johnny Hallyday), dies of cancer at 68
- Dec 24 J.D. Crowe, American bluegrass banjo player and bandleader (The New South), dies at 84
- Dec 25 Tifini Hale, American pop singer (Party - "Rodeo"; "That's Why"), dies of cardiac arrest at 46
- Dec 29 John Hartman, American rock drummer (Doobie Brothers, 1970–79 & 1987–92 - "China Grove"), dies at 71
- Dec 30 Gottfried Michael Koenig, German-Dutch composer, educator, and electronic music pioneer, dies at 95
- Dec 31 Juraj Filas, Slovak composer (Oratio Spei (Prayer of Hope)), dies of COVID-19 at 66
- Dec 31 Liisa Pohjola, Finnish concert pianist and music professor, dies at 85
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