Roger Daltrey as the composer Franz Liszt in Ken Russell’s 1975 film Lisztomania
British film Director Ken Russell – who directed two of my favorite films starring Roger Daltrey (Tommy and Lisztomania) has passed away in a hospital on Sunday (11/27/11) following a series of strokes. He was 84. BillBoard has a nice obit and recap of Russell’s career at This Link.
Oh man, what a blow. Steve Jobs has passed away today, October 5, 2011, due to an as yet unspecified causes (read: Cancer), though he was known to be in poor health (Jobs struggled with pancreatic cancer for over a decade and underwent a liver transplant in 2009). He was 56 years old — way too young to go. Steve can at least rest in peace knowing he created the best personal computer in the universe. The Worley Gig was created on an iMac and the Mac is the only brand of computer I will ever own. Apple Mac Forever! You can read the LA Times Obit on Steve Jobs at This Link.
I just heard that Singer Amy Winehouse has passed away today, July 23, 2011, at her home in London. Details can be found at This Link. What a sad waste of a life and a true talent. RIP Amy.
From Spinner Dot Com:
Singer-songwriter Andrew Gold, the writer of the 1977 hit “Lonely Boy” and a frequent collaborator of Linda Ronstadt’s, died in his sleep at his Encino, Calif., home on June 3, the Los Angeles Times reports. The 59-year-old had been battling cancer.
Gold seemed destined to find a career in music, thanks to the accomplishments of his family. His mother, Marni Nixon, sang for Natalie Wood in West Side Story and for Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady, while his father, Ernest Gold, won an Oscar for his score of the 1960 film Exodus.
Taking up multiple instruments on Ronstadt’s Heart Like a Wheel, Prisoner in Disguise and Hasten Down the Wind, Gold added a charm and robustness to the famous singer’s records. “Andrew was so enormously talented it almost seemed effortless,” Ronstadt told the Los Angeles Times. “He was a real cornerstone of those early records … He was so bubbly and so smart and we were so impressed with what a good musician he was.”
Gold worked as a session musician for James Taylor, Carly Simon and Loudon Wainwright III. His impressive resume also includes the theme song to NBC’s Mad About You and his hits “Lonely Boy” and “Thank You for Being a Friend,” the latter of which was used as the Golden Girls theme.
Gold is survived by his wife, Leslie Kogan, his mother, two sisters and three daughters.
I can’t believe I managed to miss this news. I was just on the phone with my friend Neal Smith (2011 R&R Hall of Fame Inductee with the band called Alice Cooper) and he sort of casually mentioned to me, “You know that Jack Richardson passed away a couple of weeks ago, right?” Seriously, I had no idea. Richardson was a studio legend best known for producing over fifteen albums for The Guess Who, but he’s also responsible for sending a young Bob Ezrin to New York to produce Alice Cooper (the band)‘s breakthrough album, Love it to Death (1971). He went on to produce John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Double Fantasy and Alanis Morrisette’s phenomenally successful debut, Jagged Little Pill among many other best selling albums. Jack was considered to be a “Drummer’s Dream Producer” and during the time I wrote for Modern Drummer I interviewed many players who sang Jack’s praises. Jack Richardson is also the father of noted music producer Garth Richardson, who actually mixed the sound for the reunited Alice Cooper Band when they performed at Revolver Magazine’s Golden Gods Awards in Los Angeles last month. Richardson was 81 years old when he passed away on May 13, 2011 after years of declining health. You can read more about the life and career of Jack Richardson at This Link.