Died On This Date (October 21, 1995) Shannon Hoon / Blind Melon
themusicsover Richard Shannon Hoon
September 26, 1967 – October 21, 1995
Shannon Hoon was the lead singer of ’90s alternative rock band, Blind Melon. The band formed in Los Angeles in 1991 and were quickly awarded a recording contract with Capitol Records. Meanwhile, Hoon was raising his profile on the Los Angeles scene by befriending Axl Rose, and subsequently singing back up on Guns N Roses’ Use Your Illusion albums and making a cameo in their “Dont Cry” video. This helped spark a frenzy for Blind Melon by the time their debut self-titled album dropped in September of 1992. The album eventually became a hit thanks to the hit song “No Rain” and the video that made a pop icon out of its “Bee Girl” character. The band were now touring with the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Soundgarden and Ozzy Osbourne while Blind Melon was on it’s way to multi-platinum status. Unfortunately, Hoon’s actions were becoming more and more erratic due to his heavy drug usage. After the release of their second album, Soup, in 1995, Blind Melon once again, hit the road. Hoon had been attempting to rehab at that time, but fell beck into his bad habits while on the tour. He died of a cocaine overdose on the band’s tour bus following a show in Houston. He was 28 years old.
What You Should Own
Ronnie Van Zant was the singer and main songwriter for southern rock powerhouse, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the band he formed in 1964 with fellow high school classmates. The band slugged it out on the road in and around the southeast region of the U.S. until they got their break by getting signed to MCA Records in 1972. The following year, they released their debut album, pronounced leh-nerd skin-nerd, which included such future hits and Southern rock staples as “Gimme Three Steps,” “Tuesday’s Gone,” and of course, “Free Bird.” The hits continued to roll in and the band soon found them self touring with such bands as the Who and the Rolling Stones. By late 1977, the band was as popular as any in America, had just completed their Street Survivors album, and were in the middle of what was to be their biggest tour yet. But then one of popular music’s worst tragedies struck. On October 20, 1977, while flying between shows in Greenville, South Carolina and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, their small chartered plane experienced engine trouble causing it to crash outside of Gillsburg, Mississippi. Dead on impact were band members, Ronnie Van Zant (29), 