I always feel a little pang of regret when I’ve learned of the passing of the latest one of the musicians who died this year. Much of my life is defined by live music. I was literally raised in a bass drum case as my playpen while my dad, a professional drummer, toured with country with acts like Orville Couch.
I began playing stand-up bass at ten years old, leading to playing academically, militarily, and professionally through age 35. So, it is with much honor and respect that in 2016 I began curating playlists of musicians who died this year. Click the heading link for the Spotify playlist, featuring the notable artists listed, and many more musicians who died this year.
[06 Oct 2020] Eddie Van Halen (American guitarist)
[02 Oct 2020] Cookie Monsta (American dubstep DJ), 31
[29 Sep 2020] Mac Davis (American country singer), 78
[29 Sep 2020] Helen Reddy (Australian-American singer), 78
[23 Sep 2020] W. S. Holland (American drummer for The Tennessee Three), 85
[21 Sep 2020] Tommy DeVito (American musician and singer for The Four Seasons), 92, COVID-19
[21 Sep 2020] Roy Head (American singer), 79
[19 Sep 2020] Dave Kusworth (English musician for Jacobites), 60
[18 Sep 2020] Pamela Hutchinson (American singer for The Emotions), 61
[16 Sep 2020] Roy C (American southern soul singer-songwriter), 81
[14 Sep 2020] Al Kasha (American songwriter), 83
[14 Sep 2020] Peter Starkie (Australian rock guitarist for Skyhooks), 72, fall
[12 Sep 2020] Edna Wright (American R&B singer for Honey Cone), 76
[11 Sep 2020] Toots Hibbert (Jamaican singer for Toots and the Maytals), 77, Coronavirus
[09 Sep 2020] Ronald Bell (American saxophonist for Kool & the Gang), 68
[08 Sep 2020] Simeon Coxe (American musician for Silver Apples), 82
[06 Sep 2020] Bruce Williamson (American singer for The Temptations), 49, Coronavirus
[04 Sep 2020] Gary Peacock (American jazz double-bassist for Gary Peacock Trio), 85
[04 Sep 2020] Lucille Starr (Canadian singer), 82
[01 Sep 2020] Ian Mitchell (Irish bassist for Bay City Rollers), 62
[01 Sep 2020] Erick Morillo (American DJ for Reel 2 Real, music producer and record label owner), 49
[31 Aug 2020] Mark Colby (American saxophonist), 71, cancer
[31 Aug 2020] John Meyer ( Australian slide guitarist for Rose Tattoo), 67
[27 Aug 2020] Mike Noga (Australian rock multi-instrumentalist for The Drones), 43
[25 Aug 2020] Gerry McGhee (Scottish singer for Brighton Rock), 58, cancer
[25 Aug 2020] Steve Sample Sr (American bandleader and arranger for Million Dollar Band), 90
[24 Aug 2020] Riley Gale (American trash metal singer for Power Trip), 34
[23 Aug 2020] Charli Persip (American jazz drummer), 91
[22 Aug 2020] Walter Lure (American guitarist for The Heartbreakers), 71, lung and liver cancer
[22 Aug 2020] D.J. Rogers (American soul singer and producer), 72
[20 Aug 2020] Justin Townes Earle (American singer-songwriter), 38
[20 Aug 2020] Frankie Banali (American drummer for Quiet Riot), 68, pancreatic cancer
[19 Aug 2020] Todd Nance (American drummer for Widespread Panic), 57
[19 Aug 2020] Lou Ragland (American R&B singer for Ink Spots), 78
[18 Aug 2020] Steve Gulley (American bluegrass singer-songwriter), 57, pancreatic cancer
[18 Aug 2020] Sean Pentecost (Australian metal drummer for Superheist)
[18 Aug 2020] Roger Quigley (English singer and songwriter), 51
[18 Aug 2020] Jack Sherman (American guitarist for Red Hot Chili Peppers), 64
[14 Aug 2020] Pete Way English rock bass guitarist for UFO), 69, injuries sustained in accident
[11 Aug 2020] Trini Lopez (American singer), 83, Coronavirus
[08 Aug 2020] Salome Bey (American-born Canadian singer), 86
[06 Aug 2020] Wayne Fontana (English singer for The Mindbenders), 74, cancer
[06 Aug 2020] Vern Rumsey (American recording engineer and bassist for Unwound, Fitz of Depression), 47
[05 Aug 2020] Jan Savage (American guitarist for The Seeds), 77
[04 Aug 2020] Tony Costanza (American metal drummer for Machine Head), 52
[04 Aug 2020] FBG Duck (American rapper), 26, shot
[02 Aug 2020] Leon Fleisher (American pianist), 92, cancer
[02 Aug 2020] Steve Holland (American guitarist for Molly Hatchet), 66
[01 Aug 2020] Wilford Brimley (American actor and singer), 85
[29 Jul 2020] Malik B (American rapper for The Roots), 47
[27 Jul 2020] Denise Johnson (English singer for Primal Scream), 56
[25 Jul 2020] Peter Green (English rock singer-songwriter and guitarist for Fleetwood Mac), 73
[24 Jul 2020] Regis Philbin (American singer, entertainer and television personality), 88, heart attack
[21 Jul 2020] Annie Ross (British-American jazz singer and songwriter for Lambert, Hendricks & Ross), 89, emphysema and heart disease
[18 Jul 2020] Martha Flores (Cuban singer), 91, pancreatic cancer
[16 Jul 2020] Ken Chinn (Canadian punk rock vocalist for SNFU), 57
[16 Jul 2020] Jamie Oldaker (American drummer for Eric Clapton), 68
[12 Jul 2020] Rod Bernard (American singer), 79
[12 Jul 2020] Judy Dyble (British singer-songwriter for Fairport Convention), 71, lung cancer
[11 Jul 2020] Lil Marlo (American rapper), 30, shot
[06 Jul 2020] Charlie Daniels (American country singer-songwriter and musician), 83, hemorrhagic stroke
[05 Jul 2020] Cleveland Eaton (American jazz bassist), 80
[03 Jul 2020] J. Marvin Brown (American soul singer for The Softones), 66
[29 Jun 2020] Stepa J. Groggs (American rapper for Injury Reserve), 32
[29 Jun 2020] Johnny Mandel (American composer), 94
[29 Jun 2020] Benny Mardones (American singer-songwriter), 73, Parkinson’s disease
[29 Jun 2020] Willie Wright (American soul singer), 80
[27 Jun 2020] Pete Carr (American guitarist for LeBlanc and Carr), 70
[27 Jun 2020] Freddy Cole (American jazz singer and pianist), 88, complications from cardiovascular disease
[27 Jun 2020] Tom Finn (American musician for The Left Banke), 71
[24 Jun 2020] Bris (American rapper), 24, shot
[26 Jun 2020] Charles Lawton Jiles (American songwriter and musician for Buck Owens), 90
[19 Jun 2020] Tray Savage (American rapper), 26, shot
[18 Jun 2020] Hux Brown (Jamaican guitarist for Toots and the Maytals), 75
[18 Jun 2020] Vera Lynn (British singer), 103
[14 Jun 2020] Keith Tippett (British jazz pianist for King Crimson), 72
[12 Jun 2020] Ricky Valance (Welsh singer), 84, dementia
[09 Jun 2020] Paul Chapman (Welsh rock guitarist for UFO), 66
[08 Jun 2020] Bonnie Pointer (American singer for The Pointer Sisters), 69, cardiac arrest
[07 Jun 2020] Frank Bey (American blues singer), 74
[05 Jun 2020] Rupert Hine (English musician for Quantum Jump), 72, cancer
[04 Jun 2020] Steve Priest (British bassist and singer for The Sweet), 72
[01 Jun 2020] Joey Image (American drummer for Misfits), 63, liver cancer
[25 May 2020] George Floyd aka Big Floyd (African-American security guard and former rapper for Screwed Up Click), 46, killed by police during an arrest
[24 May 2020] Al Rex (American bassist for Bill Haley & His Comets), 91
[22 May 2020] KJ Balla (American rapper), 23, shot
[22 May 2020] Steve Hanford (American punk rock drummer for Poison Idea), 50, heart attack
[22 May 2020] Mory Kanté (Guinean singer and kora player), 70
[17 May 2020] Sean Tyla (English singer-songwriter and musician for Ducks Deluxe), 73
[17 May 2020] Lucky Peterson (American blues singer and musician), 55
[16 May 2020] Donn Trenner (American jazz pianist), 93
[15 May 2020] Fred Willard (American comedian), 86
[15 May 2020] Phil May (English singer for The Pretty Things), 75, hip surgery
[14 May 2020] Joey Giambra (American jazz musician, playwright and actor), 86, Coronavirus
[14 May 2020] Jorge Santana (Mexican guitarist for Malo, Santana), 68
[13 May 2020] Yoshio (Mexican singer), 70, Coronavirus
[12 May 2020] Renée Claude (Canadian actress and singer), 80, Coronavirus
[11 May 2020] Jean Nichol (Canadian singer), 75, cancer
[10 May 2020] Betty Wright (American soul and R&B singer), 66
[09 May 2020] Little Richard (American rock and roll pianist and singer), 87, bone cancer
[07 May 2020] İbrahim Gökçek (Turkish bass player for Grup Yorum), 41, suicide by starvation
[06 May 2020] Brian Howe (English rock singer for Bad Company), 66, heart attack
[05 May 2020] Sweet Pea Atkinson (American singer for Was (Not Was)), 74, heart attack
[06 May 2020] Florian Schneider (German electronic musician for Kraftwerk), 73, cancer
[05 May 2020] Kiing Shooter (American rapper), 24, Coronavirus
[05 May 2020] Alfred “Uganda” Roberts (American percussionist for Professor Longhair), 77, lung cancer
[03 May 2020] Dave Greenfield (English keyboardist for The Stranglers), 71, Coronavirus
[03 May 2020] Bob Lander (Swedish rock musician for The Spotnicks), 78
[02 May 2020] Cady Groves (American singer-songwriter), 30
[02 May 2020] Richie Cole (American jazz saxophonist), 72
[29 Apr 2020] Stezo (American rapper), 51, heart complications
[28 Apr 2020] McKenzie Bell (American guitarist for He Is Legend), 24
[28 Apr 2020] Bobby Lewis (American singer), 95
[27 Apr 2020] Troy Sneed (American gospel singer), 52, Coronavirus
[27 Apr 2020] Scott Taylor (British guitarist for Then Jerico), 58, brain tumor
[27 Apr 2020] Young Jessie (American R&B singer for The Flairs, The Coasters), 83
[26 Apr 2020] Big Al Carson (American blues singer), 66, heart attack
[24 Apr 2020] Hamilton Bohannon (American percussionist, songwriter and record producer), 78
[24 Apr 2020] Harold Reid (American Country singer and songwriter for The Statler Brothers), 80, kidney failure
[24 Apr 2020] Mike Huckaby (American deep house and trance deejay)
[23 Apr 2020] Fred the Godson (American DJ and rapper), 35, Coronavirus
[22 Apr 2020] Bootsie Barnes (American jazz saxophonist), 82, Coronavirus
[21 Apr 2020] Derek Jones (American rock guitarist for Falling in Reverse), 35
[20 Apr 2020] Ebow Graham (UK rapper for Foreign Beggars), 41
[17 Apr 2020] Matthew Seligman (English new wave bassist for The Soft Boys), 64, Coronavirus
[17 Apr 2020] Giuseppi Logan (American jazz musician), 84, Coronavirus
[17 Apr 2020] Henry Grimes (American jazz musician), 84
[15 Apr 2020] Eddie Cooley (American songwriter and singer for Eddie Cooley & the Dimples), 87
[15 Apr 2020] Gary McSpadden (American gospel singer for Oak Ridge Boys), 77, pancreatic cancer
[10 Apr 2020] Jymie Merritt (American jazz bassist for The Jazz Messengers), 93, liver cancer
[10 Apr 2020] Big George Brock (American blues musician), 87
[09 Apr 2020] Richard Teitelbaum (American electronic music composer), 80, stroke
[08 Apr 2020] Chynna Rogers (American rap artist), 25, drug overdose
[07 Apr 2020] Steve Farmer (American songwriter and musician for The Amboy Dukes), 71
[07 Apr 2020] Eddy Davis (American jazz musician for Woody Allen), 80, Coronavirus
[07 Apr 2020] John Prine (American singer-songwriter), 73, Coronavirus
[06 Apr 2020] Black the Ripper (British MC and rapper), 32
[04 Apr 2020] Alex Harvey (American singer and songwriter), 73
[03 Apr 2020] Tweedy Bird Loc (American rapper), 52
[03 Apr 2020] Vaughan Mason (American music producer and songwriter for Vaughan Mason & Crew), 69
[01 Apr 2020] Bucky Pizzarelli (American jazz guitarist), 94, Coronavirus
[01 Apr 2020] Adam Schlesinger (American musician for Fountains of Wayne), 52, Coronavirus
[01 Apr 2020] Cristina (American singer), 61, Coronavirus
[31 Mar 2020] Wallace Roney (American jazz trumpeter), 59, Coronavirus
[30 Mar 2020] Bill Withers (American singer-songwriter), 81, heart disease
[29 Mar 2020] Joe Diffie (American country music singer-songwriter), 61, Coronavirus
[29 Mar 2020] Alan Merrill (American musician for Arrows), 69, Coronavirus
[28 Mar 2020] Jan Howard (American country singer and songwriter), 91
[27 Mar 2020] Bob Andy (Jamaican reggae singer for The Paragons), 75
[27 Mar 2020] Delroy Washington (British-Jamaican reggae singer), 67
[25 Mar 2020] Landon Spradlin (American musician), 66, Coronavirus
[24 Mar 2020] Bill Rieflin (American rock drummer for King Crimson, Ministry, R.E.M.), 59, cancer
[23 Mar 2020] Tres Warren (American singer and guitarist for Psychic Ills), 41
[22 Mar 2020] Mike Longo (American jazz pianist), 83, Coronavirus
[22 Mar 2020] Eric Weissberg (American folk musician), 80, Alzheimer’s disease
[20 Mar 2020] Kenny Rogers (American singer and songwriter), 81
[20 Mar 2020] Jerry Slick (American rock drummer for The Great Society), 80
[19 Mar 2020] Black N Mild (American bounce music deejay), 44, Coronavirus
[16 Mar 2020] Jason Rainey (American guitarist for Sacred Reich), 53
[14 Mar 2020] Genesis P-Orridge (British musician for Psychic TV), 70, leukemia
[09 Mar 2020] Doug Rice (American musician), 72
[09 Mar 2020] Eric Taylor (American folk singer-songwriter), 70
[07 Mar 2020] Charlie Baty (American blues guitarist for Little Charlie & the Nightcats), 66
[06 Mar 2020] McCoy Tyner (American jazz pianist), 81
[04 Mar 2020] Barbara Martin (American singer for The Supremes), 76
[28 Feb 2020] Mike Somerville (American rock guitarist for Head East), 67
[26 Feb 2020] Nick Apollo Forte (American musician and actor), 81
[26 Feb 2020] Ray Abshire (American accordionist for Balfa Brothers), 68
[25 Feb 2020] David Roback (American guitarist and and songwriter for Mazzy Star), 61
[19 Feb 2020] Pop Smoke (American rapper), 20, shot
[17 Feb 2020] Henry Gray (American Hall of Fame blues pianist and singer), 95
[17 Feb 2020] Andrew Weatherall (English music producer, disc jockey and musician for The Sabres of Paradise), 56, pulmonary embolism
[15 Feb 2020] Cavan Grogan (Welsh rock and roll singer for Crazy Cavan and the Rhythm Rockers), 70
[14 Feb 2020] Daniel Lee Martin (American country singer), 54, suicide
[13 Feb 2020] Scott Sessions (American musician for The Movers & Shakers), 53, murdered
[13 Feb 2020] Jacob Thiele (American rock keyboardist for The Faint), 40
[12 Feb 2020] Paul English (American drummer for Willie Nelson), 87, pneumonia
[11 Feb 2020] Joseph Shabalala (South African musician for Ladysmith Black Mambazo), 78
[10 Feb 2020] Lyle Mays (American jazz pianist and composer for Pat Metheny Group), 66
[08 Feb 2020] Robert Conrad (American actor and recording artist), 84, heart failure
[07 Feb 2020] Steve Weber (American guitarist for Holy Modal Rounders), 76
[06 Feb 2020] Diego Farias (American metal guitarist for Volumes), 27
[05 Feb 2020] Kirk Douglas (American actor and one-time singer), 103
[04 Feb 2020] Buddy Cage (American pedal steel guitarist for New Riders of the Purple Sage), 73, multiple myeloma
[04 Feb 2020] Andrew Brough (New Zealand musician for Straitjacket Fits)
[02 Feb 2020] Mario Vigil (American musician and producer for Ruben Ramos and the Mexican Revolution), colon cancer
[01 Feb 2020] Josh Pappe (American bassist for Dirty Rotten Imbeciles), 53
[01 Feb 2020] Harold Beane (American guitarist for Funkadelic), 73
[01 Feb 2020] Andy Gill (English guitarist and founder of Gang of Four), 64, respiratory illness
[28 Jan 2020] Bob Nave (American jazz radio host and keyboardist for The Lemon Pipers)
[28 Jan 2020] Toni Smith (American R&B singer for The Crystals)
[27 Jan 2020] Reed Mullin (American rock drummer for Corrosion of Conformity), 53
[26 Jan 2020] Bob Shane (American singer and guitarist for The Kingston Trio), 85, pneumonia
[24 Jan 2020] Joe Payne (American heavy metal bassist and guitarist for Divine Heresy), 35
[19 Jan 2020] Robert Parker (American R&B singer), 89
[19 Jan 2020] Jimmy Heath (American jazz saxophonist for Heath Brothers), 93
[18 Jan 2020] David Olney (American singer-songwriter), 71, heart attack
[18 Jan 2020] Steve Fataar (American guitarist for The Flames)
[15 Jan 2020] Chris Darrow (American musician for Kaleidoscope and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band), 75
[14 Jan 2020] Steve Martin Caro (American singer for The Left Banke), 71
[09 Jan 2020] Bobby Comstock (American pop singer), 78
[09 Jan 2020] 5th Ward Weebie (American rapper), 42, complications from heart surgery
[07 Jan 2020] Neil Peart (Canadian Hall of Fame drummer for Rush), 67, glioblastoma
[06 Jan 2020] Martin Griffin (English drummer for Hawkwind)
[03 Jan 2020] Mikey Lawless (British bassist for Falling Red)
[03 Jan 2020] Bo Winberg (Swedish guitarist for The Spotnicks), 80
[02 Jan 2020] Lorraine Chandler (American singer and songwriter)
[01 Jan 2020] Lexii Alijai (American rapper), 21
[01 Jan 2020] Marty Grebb (American musician for The Buckinghams), 74
SOURCE: https://weheartmusic.typepad.com/blog/musicians-who-died-in-2020.html
