Died On This Date (May 4, 1987) Paul Butterfield / Blues Great
themusicsover Paul Butterfield
December 17, 1942 – May 4, 1987
Paul Butterfield was a harmonica player and singer who was an integral part of the growth of blues rock. He was also part of the Chicago scene of the early ’60s that introduced the blues to middle class white kids. He was also one of the few “blues” artists that performed at Woodstock. In his early days, Butterfield, along with friend Elvin Bishop, played with the likes of Muddy Waters, Junior Wells and Howlin’ Wolf. He spent the next two decades performing and recording with various versions of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. In the early ’80s, Butterfield was diagnosed with peritonitis, a serious and painful inflammation of the intestines which would dog him for the rest of his life, and unfortunately, he developed an addiction to herion to help with the pain. His drug use eventually bankrupted him and ultimately took his life when he died of what was ruled an accidentaly overdose on May 4th, 1987. He was 44 years old.
What You Should Own
Roy Carrier was an accomplished accordion player and singer who was part of a musical family that was highly influential to world of Zydeco and Cajun music. He was considered to be one of the last living original Zydeco greats of the 50’s and ’60s. Over a career that began when he was just ten years old, Carrier and his bands drew large crowds at festivals and clubs across the country and beyond. In 1980, he opened the Offshore Lounge (named so since he earned his living on the offshore oil rigs along the Louisiana coast.) The club soon became a beacon for up-and-coming zydeco musicians to jam with, or just learn from the area’s best. During the late ’80s, Carrier said goodbye to the oil business to focus on his music career full time. He began making records in 1987. On May 4, 2010, Roy Carrier lost his battle with lung cancer. He was 63.
Simon Wilde was the bassist for Rabid, and then briefly for the Vancouver punk band, D.O.A. Formed in 1978, D.O.A., along with Minor Threat, Black Flag and Bad Brains came to be known as the flash point of hardcore punk. Wilde died as a result of a brain tumor on May 4, 1991
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