Died On This Date (June 18, 2009) Ali Akbar Khan / Popular Indian Musician
themusicsover Ali Akbar Khan
April 14, 1922 – June 18, 2009
Ali Akbar Khan was a master of the Sarod who came to America from his native India in 1955 and along with Ravi Shankar, was instrumental in introducing Indian music to the western world. Throughout his career, Khan recorded 95 albums, was nominated for five Grammys, and scored music for many films. In 1967, he established the Ali Akbar College of Music in San Rafael, CA. Khan died of kidney failure at the age of 87.
Mick Hodgkinson was an English singer, guitarist and cult hero who, during the late ’70s, settled in Woodstock, New York, and immersed himself in the local music scene. Within no time, he formed his first band, Johnny Average and the Falcons that was made up of musicians that were in town working at the legendary Bearsville Studios. The list of artists that played with the falcons included John Sebastian and Shane Fontayne. The group would eventually become the nucleus of 
ouise Dean of Shiva was an up-and-coming British house music singer whose life was cut short by a hit-and-run driver on June 18, 1995. Shiva’s most popular song, “Freedom” reached #18 on the UK charts shortly after Dean’s death.
Hank Medress will always be remembered as the singer of American pop classic, “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” but his contributions to popular music go much deeper. As a singer or producer, he’s worked directly with such artists as Neil Sedaka, the Chiffons, the Happenings and Tony Orlando. He was also instrumental in the creation of New York Dolls singer, David Johanson’s popular 80’s alter ego, Buster Poindexter. Medress died of lung cancer on June 18, 2007 at the age of 68.
