Died On This Date (August 26, 2011) Liz Meyer / Contemporary Bluegrass Singer-Songwriter
themusicsover Liz Meyer
March 7, 1952 – August 26, 2011
Liz Meyer was an American born guitarist, singer, and songwriter who ultimately settled in the Netherlands and became one of the Europe’s most respected bluegrass artists. Born and raised in Washington DC, Meyer moved to the Netherlands in 1985. Over the course of her career, she released numerous albums and had her songs recorded by the likes of Del McCoury, Emmylou Harris, and Laurie Lewis. She was a tireless champion of the European bluegrass scene and produced upwards of 30 albums for others over the years. Her most recent album, The Storm features some of bluegrass and folk’s biggest names – Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Emmylou Harris, and Stuart Duncan to name a few. Liz Meyer was 59 when she died on August 26, 2011, after a long battle with cancer.
Esther Gordy Edwards was a pioneering businesswoman who is perhaps best remembered as an executive at her younger brother, Berry Gordy’s Motown Records. After graduating from Howard University in the mid ’40s, Edwards opened Gordy Printing Company with two of her brothers with whom she later started Ber-Berry Co-Op along with her husband (then Michigan state Representative, George Edwards) as a way to provide loans for family members. It was with an $800 loan from the lender that brother Berry launched Motown. Edwards soon joined the label’s management team and took charge of booking tours and artist management among other duties. Within the label, Edwards was affectionately referred to as the “Mother of Motown” due to her nurturing and encouragement, particularly of some of the younger artists. On occasion, she served as a strict chaperone on the their early Motortown Revue tours. Edwards eventually became the Senior Vice President and CEO of the Motown. She later served on the boards of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce and a local bank. During the mid ’80s, Edwards took over the day-to-day of Hitsville, USA – the Motown museum, which houses the original Motown studios among other priceless artifacts. Esther Gordy Edwards was 91 when she passed away peacefully in her home on August 24, 2011.
Jerry Leiber along with partner, Mike Stoller was arguably the greatest pop songwriting team of the second half of the 20th century if not all time. Originally from Baltimore, Maryland, Leiber moved to Los Angeles where he met Stoller in 1950 while the pair were still in high school. Leiber, a record store clerk, and Stoller, a pianist quickly realized that they shared a love of the blues and rhythm & blues music and immediately began collaborating on songs. Within the next few years, their creations were becoming hits for singers of jazz, blues, R&B and rock ‘n roll alike. The list of their early hit songs includes “Hard Times” by