James McLaren
1978 – August 6, 2012
James McLaren was a beloved Welsh music journalist and most recently, assistant producer at BBC Wales. He also managed and edited the Welsh Music Foundation’s monthly newsletter, Sound Nation, where he enthusiastically covered the Welsh music scene. James McLaren was killed in an automobile accident on the M48 Motorway in Wales. He was 34.
Thanks to Paul Bearer for the assist.
Vince Lovegrove
1948 – March 24, 2012
Vince Lovegrove was a famous Australian artist manager, television producer, journalist, and one-time pop star himself. As a singer, Lovegrove performed with several Perth bands during the early ’60s. In 1966, he founded the Valentines in which he sang co-lead with future AC/DC front man, Bon Scott. In fact, it was Lovegrove who ultimately introduced Scott to the other members of AC/DC who of course, went on to become a rock and roll dynasty. The Valentines scored several Australian hits before disbanding in 1970. Lovegrove went on to become a pop music journalist, writing for such magazines as Go-Set and Immedia!. As a manager, Lovegrove, at one point or another, oversaw the careers of AC/DC, Cold Chisel, Jimmy Barnes, and the Divinyls. During the mid ’80s, Lovegrove’s wife, Suzi Sidewinder, was diagnosed with HIV. Prior to this knowledge, Suzi passed the virus along to their then-unborn son, Troy Sidewinder, while he was in her womb. Suzi died of AIDS in 1987, while Troy passed away from it in 1993. Lovegrove forged on as an HIV awareness activist, educating people that the virus was much more than a “gay disease.” He made two very personal and critically acclaimed documentaries on the subject, Suzi’s Story, and A Kid Called Troy. Lovegrove continued writing and performing well into the 2000s. Vince Lovegrove was killed in an automobile accident on March 24, 2012. He was 64.
Thanks to Henk de Bruin at 2+ Printing for the assist.
Patsi Bale Cox
DOB Unknown – November 5, 2011
Patsy Bale Cox was a Nashville music journalist and author who penned the popular book, The Garth Factor: The Career Behind Country’s Big Boom, that examined the success of country icon, Garth Brooks. Born in Kansas, Cox settled in Nashville in 1983 and started out doing freelance work while editing bios and such for Capitol and Polygram Records. She eventually became a popular writer of autobiographies in the “as told to” role. Her two such books with Ralph Emery were best sellers. Over the course of her career, Cox wrote books about such music greats as Pat Benatar, Tanya Tucker, Wynonna Judd, Tony Orlando, and Loretta Lynn. As reported by CMT, Patsi Bale Cox died of emphysema on November 5, 2011. She was 66.
Thanks to Craig Rosen at Number 1 Albums for the assist.
Dan Sicko
DOB Unknown – August 28, 2011
Dan Sicko was a respected music journalist and author whose work has appeared in such magazines as Rolling Stone, Alternative Press, Urb, and Wired. A tireless advocate for techno music, Sicko also lectured on the subject at UCLA and the University of Michigan, among others. In 1999, he published Techno Rebels: The Renegades of Electronic Funk, which introduced many to the influential Detroit techno scene of the ’80s. Dan Sicko was 42 when he died from complications of ocular melanoma.
Tom Hibbert
May 28, 1952 – August 28, 2011
Tom Hibbert was an English journalist who found fame for his sometimes less than flattering pieces on rock musicians throughout the ’80s and ’90s. After dropping out of Leeds University during the ’70s, Hibbert played in a handful of local bands before giving up his rock star dreams and moving on to a life in journalism. Over the course of his career, he wrote music and pop culture columns for the New Music News, Q, and Smash Hits where he ridiculed the likes of Paul McCartney, Johnny Rotten, and David Bowie. Perhaps his biggest moment came in 1987, when Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher employed Hibbert to interview her in an attempt to appeal to young voters. The plan backfired as the interview revealed such decidedly non-hip nuggets as her favorite singer being Cliff Richard, and song being “How Much is That Doggie in the Window.” Hibbert spent the last decade of his life in ill health and ultimately died from complications of diabetes on August 28, 2011. He was 59.
Thanks to Kelly Wilson at New Releases Now! for the assist.
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