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INTRODUCTION
This is the Rest in Playlist for Friday, April 19th, 2024, featuring recording artists from around the world who passed away recently.
We lost a giant in the world of Southern Rock this week in our Headliner, Dickey Betts. The Allman Brothers will be bookending this week’s Reaper’s Rotation, in which you may notice we’ve tidied things up a bit here. Spring cleaning, you know? You’ll get more variety as we bring you a double shot from our Main Stage, Country Bunker, International Stage, Mosh Pit, and visit to The Church. We’ll take you to Norway, South Korea, Indonesia, Canada, and Japan, along with plenty of American artists, too.
Get ready to expand your musical horizons on this global jam session from the great beyond. Let’s kick things off with our Opening Act.
Opening Act:
[15 Apr 2024] Pooch Tavares, 81, American singer (Tavares).
In 1959, five brothers formed a band called Chubby & the Turnpikes. The oldest brother, Ralph, left us in 2021, and he is now joined by his brother Arthur on April 15th. He was better known as Pooch and the band was better known by the brothers’ last name, which they adopted in 1973. That must have done the trick, because in 1975 Pooch Tavares and his brothers finally cracked the Top Ten with this hit, “It Only Takes a Minute.”
Tavares – It Only Takes A Minute
Headliner:
[18 Apr 2024] Dickey Betts, 80, American Hall of Fame musician (The Allman Brothers Band) and songwriter (“Jessica“, “Ramblin’ Man“), cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Our Headliner this week is the great Dickey Betts, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Grammy Winner as co-founder of The Allman Brothers Band, who passed away on April 18th, succumbing to cancer and COPD. Betts, along with Duane Allman, redefined the sound of guitar rock with their dual harmony leads and intricate melodic instrumentals. Betts was also the songwriter behind the band’s only Top Ten single, the #2 smash from 1973, “Ramblin’ Man.”
The Allman Brothers Band – Ramblin’ Man
Main Stage:
[12 Apr 2024] Rico Wade, 52, American music producer (Organized Noize) and songwriter (“Player’s Ball“, “Don’t Let Go (Love)“).
On our Main Stage we welcome a couple of songwriters, so don’t panic, the singers of these next tracks are all quite alive. Rico Wade, who departed on April 12th, was an American music producer who worked with TLC, Ludacris, OutKast, and Goodie Mob. He also wrote songs for OutKast and this track that peaked at #2 and was the #7 song for all of 1997, and #83 for the decade of the nineties, it’s En Vogue’s biggest international hit, “Don’t Let Go (Love).”
En Vogue – Don’t Let Go (Love)
[28 Mar 2024] Mark Spiro, 67, American songwriter (“Are You Still in Love with Me“, “I’ll See You in My Dreams“, “Mighty Wings“) and record producer, lung cancer.
Next up we have Mark Spiro, a producer who collaborated with Steve Perry, David Lee Roth, Rick Springfield, David Cassidy, Terri Nunn, Jane Wiedlin, and Julian Lennon. He also wrote music for television and songs for groups like Bad English, Heart, Cheap Trick, REO Speedwagon, Mr. Big, and Kansas. Here’s one of his compositions that went to #20 on the country charts in 1987, sung by Canada’s Anne Murray, this is “Are You Still in Love With Me?”
Anne Murray – Are You Still In Love With Me
In The News:
[10 Apr 2024] O. J. Simpson, 76, American Hall of Fame football player (Buffalo Bills) and actor (The Naked Gun, The Towering Inferno), Heisman Trophy winner (1968), acquitted double murderer, convicted armed robber, prostate cancer.
Orenthal James Simpson, the acquitted double murderer of his wife and her friend and convicted armed robber who served nine years in prison, who had also been an actor, sportscaster, and football player who won college football’s 1968 Heisman Trophy, died on April 10th from prostate cancer at the age of 76. Nice work, Reaper.
The Church:
[18 Apr 2024] Mandisa, 47, American gospel singer (“Only the World“, “Angels We Have Heard on High“, “Stronger“).
Our next artist died suddenly in her home on April 18th. She was one of four top ten American Idol finalists to win a Grammy Award, along with Jennifer Hudson, Kelly Clarkson, and Carrie Underwood. Mandisa finished ninth in the 2006 season but went on to become a star in contemporary gospel music, nominated for New Artist of the Year in 2008 and winning the 2014 Grammy in that genre for her #1 hit album Overcomer. Here is the title track from that album.
Mandisa – Overcomer
[08 Apr 2024] Melitha Sidabutar [ms], 23, Indonesian gospel singer, heart failure.
It’s rare that a child born in the 21st century makes our playlist, but sadly, Indonesia’s Melitha Sidabutar joined us on April 8th at just 23 years old. She had the same enlarged heart problem that took her twin sister in 2020. In 2023, she won an Indonesian award for Christian Music. This is Melitha Sidabutar with “Penolog Yang Setia.”
Melitha Sidabutar – Penolong Yang Setia
Country Bunker:
[14 Apr 2024] Ben Eldridge, 85, American five-string banjo player (The Seldom Scene).
We begin with a man who has been playing the 5-string banjo for seventy years. Ben Eldridge was the last original member of The Seldom Scene, a bluegrass band that pioneered a revival in the genre in the 1970s. In addition to his work with the band, he had over fifty albums to his credit. Eldridge went to the afterlife on April 14th. This is The Seldom Scene with “Wait a Minute.”
The Seldom Scene – Wait A Minute
[06 Apr 2024] Bjørgulv Straume [no], 85, Norwegian Jew’s harp player.
I guarantee you that we’ve never had a performer in the Reaper’s Rotation like Norway’s Bjørgulv Straume, who passed away on April 6th. I can’t tell you much else about him, except that he’s the first player of the Jew’s harp, or mouth harp, that we’ve had on the program. Here is Bjørgulv Straume performing “Fanitullen.”
Bjørgulv Straume – Fanitullen
International Stage:
[11 Apr 2024] Park Boram, 30, South Korean singer.
From South Korea we welcome a singer who on any other week would likely be our youngest performer. Park Boram died on April 11th at just 30 years old, collapsing suddenly at a friend’s house. She had three top ten singles in Korea in her career and also contributed to popular film soundtracks, like this song, “Falling,” from the movie Hyde, Jekyll, Me.
Park Boram – Falling
[16 Apr 2024] Clorofila, 56, Mexican nortec musician (Nortec Collective).
Next up we have an interesting mix from Clorofila, who was born Jorge Verdín in Los Angeles, but grew up in Tijuana and was a founding member of Nortec Collective, a group that pioneered the early 2000s Nortec sound that combines electronic dance music with Mexican norteño and banda music. He also released a couple of solo albums. Clorofila died on April 16th. Here is Nortec Collective with “I Count the Ways.”
Nortec Collective – I Count The Ways
Mosh Pit:
[08 Apr 2024] Jon Card, 63, German-born Canadian drummer (SNFU, D.O.A., Subhumans).
Jon Card was a Royal Canadian Air Force brat born in Germany who played drums for the punk rock bands Personality Crisis, SNFU, D.O.A., and The Subhumans. He met his maker on April 8th. Let’s go back to his time with D.O.A., one of the progenitors of American hardcore punk, and their 1987 cover of “The Midnight Special.”
D.O.A. – The Midnight Special
[15 Apr 2024] Reita, 42, Japanese bassist (the GazettE).
Next, we have a founding member of the popular Japanese rock band The Gazette, bass player Reita, who died on April 15th. Her band placed nine of their ten albums in the Japanese top ten, and the tenth hit #19, as well as sixteen top ten rock singles. Here’s one of four from the Gazette to have peaked at #2, this is “Shiver.”
the GazettE – Shiver (Album Version)
Encore:
[18 Apr 2024] Dickey Betts, 80, American Hall of Fame musician (The Allman Brothers Band) and songwriter (“Jessica“, “Ramblin’ Man“), cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
We welcome the great Dickey Betts back to close our show. We’ve kind of lost the art of the instrumental in the 21st century, but the charts in the 20th century were loaded with them. This next song, in its full album-length glory, was named for Betts’ infant daughter and written to be played with only two fingers of the left hand, as a tribute to jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, whose ring and pinky fingers had been severely burned and played mostly with his middle and index fingers. You may also know it as the theme song for the TV show, Top Gear. This is the Allman Brothers Band with “Jessica.”
The Allman Brothers Band – Jessica
Closing:
And that’s the Rest in Playlist for Friday, April 19th, 2024. Join us here next week as we chronicle the latest musicians, singers, and songwriters to join the Great Gig in the Sky. Catch up on every year of Rest in Playlist back to 2016 on Spotify and RadicalRuss.com. For Rest in Playlist, I’m “Radical” Russ Belville reminding you to seize the day, it may be your last.
