Don Cornelius
September 27, 1936 – February 1, 2012
Don Cornelius was the creator, writer, producer, and host of the extremely influential American dance program, Soul Train. Launched in October of 1961 after Cornelius noticed a void of nationally broadcast television shows that catered to the African-American audience, Soul Train ran until March of 2006. Cornelius hosted the program from its inception until 1993. Soul Train has been praised for influencing countless African-American kids while bringing black music into the white neighborhoods. Over the years, the show featured lip-synched performances by everyone from James Brown, Marvin Gaye and Aretha Franklin, to Michael Jackson, Ice Cube and Prince. Two popular segments of the show were the “Soul Train Scrabble Board” where two dancers tried to un-scramble letters to identify a significant person in African-American culture, and the oft-imitated “Soul Train Line” where the dancers formed two lines and then strutted their stuff with a partner down the middle. In 1987, Cornelius launched the Soul Train Awards, a nationally broadcast program that honored the year’s best artists in R&B, Soul, Jazz and Hip-Hop. The show ran until 2000. Throughout the years, Cornelius was honored and/or parodied in countless sit-coms, rap songs, and films. In the early hours of February 1, 2012, police responded to the home of Don Cornelius where they found him dead of what initially appeared to have been a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was 75.
Thanks to Bruce Kilgour at Slipped Disc Entertainment for the assist.
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Esme Barrera was an Austin, Texas music lover who became a familiar face throughout the city’s fabled music venues and just about anywhere music could be heard. Barrera worked with special needs students at a local elementary school, but still found time to work part-time at Austin’s venerable record store, Waterloo Records. She also volunteered as a counselor at a summer music camp known as Girls Rock Austin. After ringing in the New Year at a nearby club, Barrera reportedly walked home alone. At 2:45 am, her badly beaten body was discovered by a friend inside her home. She died of her injuries a short time later. Initial reports indicated that the incident may have been related to other attacks reported in the area that same day. A suspect was not immediately apprehended though composite sketches were distributed throughout the area. Barrera’s brutal death quickly spread throughout the indie rock world and condolences soon followed. Indiana singer Ted Leo tweeted “I was privileged to briefly know an inspirational person from Austin, Tx., who was murdered this NYE. Her name was Esme & she’ll be missed.” YACHT posted, “The world’s lost a shining light, music cheerleader, and great human. Our hearts go out to the friends and family of Esme Barrera. No words,” while Okkervil River tweeted info on how fans can contribute to cover funeral costs. Esme Barrera was 29 years old when she passed away.
Ed Roman was a fiercely independent Las Vegas guitar builder whose creations were lovingly played by Ted Nugent, 
Bert Schneider was an American movie producer whose credits include Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, and The Last Picture Show. His contribution to pop music was huge and came by way of The Monkees television series he created with Bob Rafelson in 1966. The weekly comedy followed the hi-jinks of a fictional rock band as they tried to build a music career in Los Angeles. The show starred Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Peter Tork, and Michael Nesmith as the band loosely based on the Beatles. The show obviously launched their music careers even though in the beginning, they contributed very little musically. Many of the program’s songs, which were showcased like music videos every week, became hits and future staples of oldies radio. They included “(Theme From) The Monkees,” “Last Train To Clarksville,” and “I’m A Believer.” The show won two Emmys in 1967 and continued on in reruns ever since. Bert Schneider was 78 when he died of natural causes on December 12, 2011.
David Astor’s contribution to popular music was the regional teen dance program he created and hosted for many years. In 1956, Portland, Maine television viewers were introduced to The Dave Astor Show: For Teenagers Only, a weekly dance program that Astor developed and hosted on WMGE. The American Bandstand type show, which aired every Saturday at 5pm, was an instant hit with the city’s youth and stayed on the air until 1971. The show featured area high school kids singing, lip-synching, and/or dancing to popular hits played by a student band – if they maintained good grades, of course. David Astor passed away on December 10, 2011. He was 92.