but the songs live on forever

August 2010

Disc Jockey Hip Hop Musician

Died On This Date (August 27, 1987) Scott La Rock / Boogie Down Productions

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Scott “La Rock” Sterling
March 2, 1962 – August 27, 1987

larockjpgScott “La Rock” Sterling was a social worker and DJ when he met rapper KRS-One in 1986.  The two along with D-Nice, formed rap group Boogie Down Productions in 1986.  The group helped usher in what would later be called gansta rap with their gritty songs that married dancehall reggae with hip hop. Their debut hit album, Criminal Minded is considered a cornerstone of the genre.   Scott Sterling died in a hospital operating room shortly after being shot by alleged hoods in the South Bronx.  He was just 25.

What You Should Own

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By All Means Necessary - Boogie Down Productions

Composer Jazz Musician Singer

Died On This Date (August 27, 1971) Lil Armstrong / Jazz Great; Wife Of Louis Armstrong

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Lil Hardin-Armstrong
February 3, 1898 – August 27, 1971

Lil Hardin was an accomplished jazz pianist, singer, bandleader and prolific composer.  She was also Louis Armstrong’s second wife.  As a composer, she can count the following standards as her own, “Don’t Jive Me,” “Struttin’ With Some Barbecue,” “Just For A Thrill,” and “Bad Boy.”  The latter two becoming hits for Ray Charles and Ringo Starr, respectively.  Hardin performed and recorded well into the ’60s with many of jazz’s greatest names.  When Louis Armstrong passed away in July of 1971, Hardin was devastated.  Even though they had been divorced, Hardin took part in the funeral as if she were still family.  Roughly six weeks later, while performing at a televised memorial to Armstrong, Lil Hardin collapsed at the piano and died later that evening.  She was 73 years old.

 


Folk Musician Singer Songwriter

Died On This Date (August 26, 1981) Lee Hays / The Weavers

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Lee Hays
March 14, 1914 – August 26, 1981

Photo by Robert C. Malone
Photo by Robert C. Malone

No doubt effected by the lynchings he witnessed as a child, Lee Hays grew up to become a voice of the people, first as a union activist and later as a folk singer who co-founded the Weavers in 1948.  With the Weavers, Hays co-wrote such classic folk songs as “If I Had A Hammer,” “Wimoweh” and “Kisses Sweeter Than Wine.”  Because of his connections with radical groups during his days as an activist, the group was targeted as “communist sympathizers” during the McCarthy era.  In 1950, they were blacklisted, and when brought before the House Committee Of Un-American Activities, Hays pleaded the 5th when questioned about his perceived connections with communism.  No longer able to perform publicly, the Weavers disbanded in 1952.  Hays performed and recorded periodically over the years, most notably on children’s albums as part of Alan Arkin’s the Baby Sitters.  The Weavers reunited in later years for special concert events.  Lee Hays died of heart disease attributed to diabetes on August 26, 1981.  He was 67.  Thankfully, Morgana Kennedy and her team at Vanguard keep finding new ways to celebrate the wonderful music of Lee Hays and the Weavers.

What You Should Own

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Best of the Vanguard Years - The Weavers

Country Singer

Died On This Date (August 26, 2003) Wilma Burgess / Country Music Singer

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Wilma Burgess
June 11, 1939 – August 26, 2003

Wilma Burgess was a popular country singer during the late ’60s and early ’70s.  While attending college, Burgess thought a career in physical education was in her future, that is, until she heard the great Eddy Arnold sing live.  She new she could hold her own as a singer, so in 1960, she packed up and headed to Nashville on the advice of a friend to record some demos.  Within a couple of years, she had released her first record and found a believer in the highly regarded producer, Owen Bradley, who was looking for the next Patsy Cline who had recently died.  With Bradley’s help, Burgess landing a significant deal with Decca Records, and proceeded to release a series of singles that included 15 that landed on the Country charts over the next decade.  She continued to make records until she retired from recording in 1982.  A short time late, Burgess opened the Hitching Post, Nashville’s first lesbian bar.   And contrary to recent claims that Chely Wright was the first country star to come out as a lesbian, Burgess was openly gay throughout her entire career.  On August 26, 2003, Wilma Burgess died following a massive heart attack.  She was 64.

What You Should Own

Misty Blue - Wilma Burgess

Musician Producer Publishing Singer Songwriter

Died On This Date (August 26, 2009) Ellie Greenwich / Wrote Many Hits In The ’60s

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Ellie Greenwich
October 23, 1940 – August 26, 2009

ellieEllie Greenwich was a prolific songwriter, writing or co-writing some of the most enduring pop songs of the ’60s and ’70s.  Either on her own or with such songwriting partners as her one-time husband, Jeff Barry, Greenwich penned such gems as “Be My Baby” (The Ronettes), “Then He Kissed Me” (The Crystals), “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” (Darlene Love), “Hanky Panky” (Tommy James & The Shondells), “River Deep, Mountain High” (Ike & Tina Turner), and “Do Wah Diddy Diddy” (Manfred Mann).  In later years, Greenwich co-formed Tallyrand Music to publish her recent discovery, Neil Diamond.  Ellie Greenwich died of a heart attack on August 26, 2009.  She was 68 years old.

Thanks to Craig Rosen at Number1Albums for the assist



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