Died On This Date (March 20, 1988) Gil Evans / Jazz Legend

Gil Evans (Born Ian Green)
May 13, 1912 – March 20, 1988

gil Gil Evans was a respected  jazz pianist, band leader, composer and arranger who was part of an influential group of musicians that paved the way for cool jazz and jazz fusion.  Evans’ most celebrated collaborations were with Miles Davis, for whom he arranged and composed tracks on such monumental albums as Birth of the Cool, Sketches of Spain, and Miles Ahead.   During the late ’50s, Evans began releasing a string of albums that continued up to and beyond his passing.  With a keen interest in rock as well, Evans worked with some of its biggest name during the latter part of his life. That list includes the Police, Sting, the Style Council and David Bowie.  He was reportedly to collaborate with Jimi Hendrix, but Hendrix passed away before that could take place.  Gil Evans was 75 when he passed away on March 20, 1988.

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Gil Evans & Ten - Gil Evans

Died On This Date (October 11, 2008) William Claxton / Legendary Music Photographer

William Claxton
October 12, 1927 – October 11, 2008

William Claxton was a respected photographer who documented the American jazz scene of the ’50s and ’60s.  He captured some of the era’s most iconic images.  His list of subjects included Art Pepper, Gerry Mulligan, and most famously, Chet Baker.  His images of Baker casually dressed in a t-shirt were instrumental in developing the overall hip image of the musician.  Claxton is also responsible for many famous pictures of the likes of Sting, Barbra Streisand, Steve McQueen, Frank SinatraJudy Garland, Isaac Hayes, and many more.  William Claxton died of congestive heart failure just one day before his 81st birthday.

Thanks to Craig Rosen at Number1Albums

Chet Baker by William Claxton
Chet Baker by William Claxton

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Died On This Date (October 4, 2009) Mercedes Sosa / Famous Argentine Folk Singer

Mercedes Sosa
July 9, 1935 – October 4, 2009

Performing with Shakira
Performing with Shakira

Mercedes Sosa was a popular Argentine folk singer whose countless fans spanned Latin America and beyond.  She was both revered and vilified for being a voice of conscience throughout Latin America.  When she was just 15, Sosa won a local talent contest which awarded her with her first recording contract.  She went on to become one of the pioneers of the nueva cancion movement of the 1960’s.  Nueva cancion had much in common with the folk music coming out of America at the time in that it was progressive and political at times.  It is considered a foundation for Latin music’s rock en espanol.   In the late ’70s, Sosa was arrested on stage due to her leftist political beliefs and banished from her own country, so she moved to Paris.   Over the years, Sosa collaborated with the likes of Sting, Joan Baez, Shakira, and Luciano Pavarotti. She was a three-time Latin Grammy winner in the category of Best Folk Album.  Mercedes Sosa died of kidney disease and other ailments on October 4, 2009.  She was 74 years old.

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30 Años - Mercedes Sosa