Died On This Date (February 7, 2015) Joe B. Mauldin / Bassist For The Crickets

Joe B. Mauldin
July 8, 1940 – February 7, 2015

At right with The Crickets
At right with The Crickets

Joe B. Mauldin is best remembered as the influential double-bassist for Buddy Holly & the Crickets. Born in Lubbock, Texas, Mauldin’s first band of note was the Four Teens, which he joined in 1955. Two years later, he joined up with Holly and the Crickets who went on to record some of the most iconic songs in the history of music, among them, “That’ll Be The Day,” “Rave On,” and “Peggy Sue.”  The Crickets have been rightfully acknowledged as a direct inspiration to many important bands to follow, including the Beatles.  After Holly died in 1959, Mauldin performed with various incarnations of the Crickets.  He also became a recording engineer, contributing to the sound of such artists as Brian Wilson, Phil Spector, and Herb Alpert.  Joe B. Mauldin died of cancer on February 7, 2015.  He was 74.

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Died On This Date (October 4, 2014) Paul Revere / Paul Revere & The Raiders

Paul Revere Dick
January 7, 1938 – October 4, 2014

paul-reverePaul Revere was the founder, keyboardist and iconic face of  late ’60s/early ’70s rock and roll band, Paul Revere & the Raiders.  Formed in Boise, Idaho in 1958 as the Downbeats (with Mark Lindsay on lead vocals), the band scored its first regional hit in 1961 with “Like, Long Hair.”  The song eventually found enough of a national audience to crack the Top 40 of the national charts.  By the mid ’60s, the group, now known as the Paul Revere & the Raiders, relocated to Los Angeles and began working with producer, Terry Melcher.  What followed was a string of future garage rock classics that positioned the band as America’s answer to the British Invasion.  Records like “Just Like Me,”  “Hungry,” “Good Thing,” and “Kicks” became radio staples throughout the second half of he 1960s.  For at least the year of 1967, the band was Columbia Records’ biggest-selling rock band.  The early ’70s found the Raiders’ style of music falling out of fashion, so they responded with 1971’s socially conscious “Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian)”, a #1 hit that went on to sell over six million copies.  The album from which it came, Indian Reservation, reached #19 on the album charts.  It was the band’s final appearance of any significance on the charts.  In 1976, Revere announced his retirement, only to return to the stage with a new Raiders lineup in 1978.  He continued to perform in front of cheering crowds along the oldies circuit until his second retirement in August of 2014.  In recent years, Paul Revere & the Raiders enjoyed a resurgence in popularity thanks to carefully curated reissues and Hall of Fame type accolades.  Paul Revere was 76 when passed away on October 4, 2014.  Cause of death was not immediately released. 

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Died On This Date (January 3, 2014) Phil Everly / The Everly Brothers

Phil Everly
January 19, 1939 – January 3, 2014

phil-everlyPhil Everly, along with his brother Don Everly, are considered the must influential vocal duo pop music has ever known.  Working together as the Everly Brothers, they created such seamless and glorious harmonies that no less than members of the Byrds, the Beatles, and the Beach Boys have preached their influence ever since.  Born in Chicago, Illinois to a musical family, Phil learned to play the guitar at an early age.  Family patriarch, Ike Everly was a respected professional musician himself, so the boys were introduced to music as a way of life while still in their childhood.  Ultimately settling in Knoxville, Tennessee, the Everly family performed as a group throughout the area for many years.  By the early ’50s, Phil and Don were working as a duo, making an early believer out of Chet Atkins who helped then secure their first recording contract with Columbia Records.  Their first single, “Keep A’ Lovin’ Me,”  performed less than spectacularly, so Columbia dropped them.  Before they knew it, Acuff-Rose Publishing snatched Phil and Don up as songwriters while Roy Acuff helped land them a deal with Cadence Records. From there, the Everly Brothers’ career skyrocketed.  Their first release for Cadence, “Bye Bye Love” shot to #2 on the pop charts, #1 on the country charts, and #5 on the R&B charts.  What followed that million-seller was a string of hits that helped define the era.  Records like “Wake Up Little Susie,” “All I Have To Do Is Dream,” and “Cathy’s Clown”  earned the duo more than $35 Million dollars by 1962 – an astonishing sum at that time.  After the British Invasion hit the U.S. in 1964, the Everly Brothers’ shine diminished as teenagers scrambled for the new sound by the likes of the Beatles, who ironically, might not have ever crossed the Atlantic if it weren’t for Phil and Don.  By the dawn of the ’70s, the Everly Brothers had split up to pursue solo careers.  Phil worked with likes of  Warren Zevon and Roy Wood, and later scored a hit with “Don’t Say You Don’t Love Me No More,” a tune he wrote and performed with actress, Sondra Locke in the Clint Eastwood hit film, Every Which Way But Loose.  In 1983, the Everly Brothers reunited for an acclaimed concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London.  The show was recorded and the subsequent album returned the duo to the charts.  Phil and Don continued to record and perform as a duo and individually well into the 2000s.  In all, they scored 35 Billboard Top 100 singles, a record that still stands to this day.  They  were also recognized with nearly every musical award you could think of including being part of the first group of ten artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.  On January 3, 2014, it was announced that Phil Everly died of pulmonary disease.  He was 74.

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Died On This Date (March 27, 2013) Gordon Stoker / Member Of Elvis Presley’s Jordanaires

Gordon Stoker
DOB Unknown – March 27, 2013

With Elvis
With Elvis

Gordon Stoker is best remembered as a member of Elvis Presley‘s backing vocalists, the Jordanaires.  He also acted as their manager.  Just 15 when he became a professional musician, Stoker eventually played piano on WSM’s Grand Ole Opry  radio program.  In 1949, he was picked up by the Jordanaires Gospel group to play piano.  Within two years, he was singing tenor in the group.  In 1956, Presley invited them to be his back up singers both live and on record.  Stoker can be heard on such records as “I Want You, I Need You, I Love You,” “I Got A Woman,” and “Heartbreak Hotel.”  The group continued on – with Stoker remaining until the time of his death – after Presley passed away in 1977.  The list of other artists that were backed by the Jordanaires on record includes Ricky Nelson, Johnny Cash, Ringo Starr, Patsy Cline, George Jones, Dolly Parton, Ween, and Kristen Chenoweth.  Gordon Stoker was 88 when he passed away on March 27, 2013.  Cause of death was not immediately released.

Thanks to Paul Bearer for the assist.



Died On This Date (March 15, 2013) Hardrock Gunter / Rockabilly Pioneer

Sidney “Hardrock” Gunter Jr.
February 27, 1925 – March 15, 2013

Hardrock-GunterHardrock Gunter was an American country singer, songwriter and guitarist whose rave-ups are considered to be the earliest examples of rock ‘n roll and rockabilly.  After playing in a few bands during his teens, Gunter took a shine to television and became a local TV personality for a bit.  In 1950, he cut his self-penned “Birmingham Bounce” which came out a year before “Rocket 88,” the song that is generally credited as being the first rock ‘n roll song ever.  More records followed, including “Sixty Minute Man” which was one of the first country songs to cross over to R&B.  Gunter continued to record and perform until he retired from music during the ’60s to get into the insurance business.  During the mid ’90s, he returned to the stage to perform at festivals and rockabilly events throughout Europe and the U.S.  Hardrock Gunter was 88 when he died of pneumonia on March 15, 2013.

What You Should Own

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