December 6, 2011 – The Music's Over

Died On This Date (December 6, 2011) Barbara Orbison / Widow Of Roy Orbison

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Barbara Orbison (Born Barbara Jakobs)
1951 – December 6, 2011

Barbara Orbison is best remembered as the longtime wife of rock ‘n roll pioneer, Roy Orbison. She was also a successful entrepreneur, producer and music publisher. Born in Germany, Barbara Jakobs was just 17 when on July 21, 1968, she met her future husband when he was on tour in Leeds, England. Although Roy was nearly twice her age, the pair married the following year. The couple raised three sons and stayed together until Roy passed away in 1988. During the ’80s, Barbara managed Roy’s career and was instrumental in the revival of his career, serving as Executive Producer for the popular television concert special, Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night, which featured among others, Bruce Springsteen, k.d. lang, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, and Jackson Browne performing alongside Roy. After Roy died, Barbara took over his business dealings and successfully kept his music and image alive for generations to come. Barbara also owned Still Working Music, a publishing company in Nashville, and was very active in philanthropic causes. Barbara Orbison was 60 when she passed away on December 6, 2011 – 23 years to the day after Roy passed away. Cause of death was attributed to cancer.

Country R&B Singer Songwriter

Died On This DAte (December 6, 2011) Dobie Gray / Soul & Country Singer-Songwriter

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Dobie Gray
July 26, 1940 – December 6, 2011

Dobie Gray was an American soul (and later, country) singer and songwriter who, over a career that started in 1960, released hits like “The In Crowd” and “Drift Away,” which sold over a million copies and remains a staple on radio. Born into a family of Texas sharecroppers, Gray was exposed to gospel music at an early age thanks to an uncle who was a Baptist minister. By the early ’60s, he was living in Los Angeles where he met Sonny Bono who connected him with his first label, Stripe Records. It wasn’t long until Gray was putting out a string of hits like “Look At Me,” “See You At The Go-Go,” and of course, “The In Crowd” and “Drift Away.” The latter has been also recorded by such luminaries as Rod Stewart, Roy Orbison, the Neville Brothers, and Humble Pie. When he wasn’t making records, Gray worked as an actor – he spent over two years as part of the Los Angeles cast of Hair. During the mid ’70s, Gray moved to Nashville where he wrote songs that were recorded by the likes of Charley Pride, George Jones, Ray Charles and Don Williams. He also released a handful of moderately successful records at that time. During the mid ’80s, Gray signed with Capitol Records and released a few country records that performed fairly well on the country charts. Dobie Gray was 71 when he passed away in his sleep on December 6, 2011. Cause of death was not immediately released, though he had been ill.