Monte Hale (Born Buren Ely)
June 8, 1919 – March 29, 2009
Born in Ada, Oklahoma, Monte Hale was best known for his “singing cowboy” roles in many Republic Pictures westerns of the ’40s and ’50s. Prior to that, Hale made his living playing country music at local rodeos and vaudeville shows. He also co-founded the Autry Museum of Western Heritage with Gene Autry. Hale passed away after a lengthy illness at the age of 89.
Mitchell “Herb” Ellis
August 4, 1921 – March 28, 2010
Herb Ellis was a jazz guitar virtuoso who, over the course of a career that spanned some 50 years played with the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Jimmy Dorsey, Dizzy Gillespie, and Buddy Rich. His most celebrated collaborations however, were with Oscar Peterson, in whose trio he performed from 1953 to 1958. Herb Ellis died of Alzheimer’s disease on March 28, 2010. He was 88.
William Christopher Handy
November 16, 1873 – March 28, 1958
W.C. Handy was born in Florence, Alabama in a log cabin that was built by his grandfather. By the time he was a teenager he was playing both trumpet and clarinet in a band. He would become a teacher by trade and was soon writing songs that would become blues standards. His “St. Louis Blues” as recorded by Bessie Smith and Louis Armstrong is considered one of the finest songs of the era. Along with his autobiography, Handy wrote five books on the subject of music, blues and African-American life in the early 20th century. In 1943, Handy was blinded as a result of a fall from a subway platform. He passes away at the age of 84 from pneumonia. An estimated 25,000 people attended his funeral while an additional 125,000 gathered in nearby streets to pay their respects.
Freaky Tah (Born Raymond Rogers)
May 14, 1971 – March 28, 1999
Member of the 27 Club
Born Raymond Rogers, the rapper known as Freaky Tah was from Queens, New York. He worked primarily with the Lost Boyz, a chart topping and gold selling hip hop group during the mid to late ’90s. Tah was gunned down as he left a birthday party for fellow Lost Boy, Mr. Cheeks.
Arthur Crudup
August 24, 1905 – March 28, 1974
Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup was a Mississippi blues man who, even though his “That’s Alright, Mama” became one of Elvis Presley’s biggest hits, he still had to work most of his life as a laborer and moonshiner to put food on the table. And even though there are countless other covers of his tunes, he still lived in near poverty for his entire life. Besides Presley, artists like Bob Dylan, Creedance Clearwater Revival, John Lee Hooker, Wanda Jackson, Elton John, Junior Wells and the Stray Cats owe a lot more than just gratitude to Arthur Crudup who had to labor most of his life until he passed away from complications of heart disease and diabetes at 71.
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