Died On This Date (January 1, 2010) Lhasa de Sela / Acclaimed Mexican American Singer

Lhasa de Sela
September 27, 1972 – January 1, 2010

Lhasa de Sela was an acclaimed Mexican American folk singer songwriter who although born in New York and raised in Mexico, spent most of her adult life split between Canada and France.  That multi-National background mixed beautifully throughout her music.   De Sela released her first album, La Llorona, in 1997, and though sung completely in Spanish, it incorporated elements of South American, Mexican, Eastern European gypsy and alternative rock.  Embraced by fans and critics alike, the album won her a Best Global Artist Juno award in 1998.  That album was followed by The Living Road in 2003 and Lhasa in 2009.  Her albums have sold in excess of 1 million copies combined.  In 2005, the BBC World Music Awards named her the Best Artist of the Americas.  Lhasa de Sela died of breast cancer on January 1, 2010.

Thanks to Lellie Capwell for assist.

Died On This Date (January 1, 1984) Alexis Korner / Founding Father Of British Blues

Alexis Korner
April 19, 1928 – January 1, 1984

Alexis Korner has been rightfully called the “Founding Father of British Blues.”  In 1955, Korner and fellow blues enthusiast and musician Cyril Davies opened the London Blues and Barrelhouse Club so there would be a place in town for American blues artists to play.  It would be the first exposure to American blues music that many young Londoners ever  had.  Korner and Bond soon formed Blues Incorporated, an electric band whose ever-changing roster included Charlie Watts, Ginger Baker, Long John Baldry, Graham Bond, and Jack Bruce.  Future greats like Rod Stewart, Mick Jagger, John Mayall, and Jimmy Page and Brian Jones were all fans and occasionally sat in with the band.  By 1966, Blues Incorporated was over and Korner moved over to British television where he was an entertainment news correspondent for a children’s program.  The ’70s and ’80s found Korner working in a few different jazz- and blues-centric groups.  He died of lung cancer on January 1, 1984 at the age of 55.

Died On This Date (January 1, 2009) Walter Haynes / Legendary Steel Guitarist

Walter Haynes
December 14, 1928 – January 1, 2009

walterWalter Haynes was a highly respected steel guitarist and songwriter who played on records by the likes of  Patsy Cline, JJ Cale, the Everly Brothers, Little Jimmy Dickens and Del Reeves with whom he co-wrote “Girl on the Billboard, a #1 hit for Reeves.  As a producer, he worked with Bill Monroe and Marty Robbins, among others. Haynes was 80 when he passed away on January 1, 2009.