2011

Died On This Date (June 22, 2011) Mike Waterson / Member of British Folk Group, The Watersons

Mike Waterson
January 16, 1941 – June 22, 2011

Mike Waterson was an English musician and singer-songwriter who, along with his siblings and brother-in-law performed as the popular folk group, the Watersons. Formed as a skiffle band in the early ’60s, the group moved into a more traditional folk sound as the decade moved on.  In 1965, they released Frost and Fire which was named Album of the Year by Melody Maker.  They soon became one of the most influential bands of the British folk revival.  The Watersons went on to release several more critically acclaimed albums over the next two decades (they broke up in 1968 and reformed in 1972).  Away from the group, Waterson worked solo and performed or recorded with his sister, Lal Waterson, Blue Murder, Peter Bellamy, and James Yorkston to name a few.  He continued to perform as recently as September 2010.  Mike Waterson died of cancer on June 22, 2011.  He was 70.

Thanks to Scott Miller for the assist

What You Should Own

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Frost and Fire - A Calendar of Ritual and Magical Songs - The Watersons

 

Died On This Date (June 18, 2011) Clarence Clemons / The Big Man

Clarence Clemons
January 11, 1942 – June 18, 2011

With Clarence Clemons at the taping of “Diff’rent Strokes”

Clarence Clemons was the beloved saxophone player for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.  The “Big Man” in size, music and love, Clemons was arguably Springsteen’s equal in terms of fan appreciation night after night after night whenever the E Street Band rolled into town.  He got his first saxophone as a Christmas present from his dad when he was just nine.  But as he grew older, Clemons divided his attention between his music and football – he attended college on scholarships for both.  He quickly caught the eye of the Cleveland Browns who offered him a try out, but just one day before he was supposed to show them what he could do, he was in a serious car accident which ruined any chance he might have had to play in the NFL.  By then however, he was already working as a session player in and around New Jersey.  “And then one night…” as Springsteen said so many times during his concerts, Clemons went to check out Springsteen at a club called The Student Prince.  It was late 1971, and Clemons was on a break from a gig down the street.  As Springsteen remembered it during his acceptance speech when the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, “The night I met Clarence, he got up on stage (and) a sound came out of his horn that seemed to rattle the glasses behind the bar, and threatened to blow out the back wall. … But there was something else, something that happened when we stood side by side. Some energy, some unspoken story. … He always lifted me up. Way, way up. Together we told a story of the possibilities of friendship, a story older than the ones that I was writing, and a story I could never have told without him at my side. I want to thank you, Big Man, and I love you so much.”   Clemons went on to be Springsteen’s side man for the better part of the next 40 years.  His most notable performances can be heard such Springsteen classics as “Jungleland,” “Thunder Road,” “The Promised Land,” “Badlands,” and “Prove It All Night.”  Outside of the E Street Band, Clemons released a handful of solo albums and made impressive contributions to recordings by the likes of Gary US Bonds, Aretha Franklin, Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, Ronnie Spector, Ian Hunter, and the Michael Stanley Band.  In 2012, he guested on Lady Gaga’s chart-topping Born This Way album and performed with her on American Idol, his last public appearance.   Along the way, Clemons dabbled in acting as well, guest starring in such programs and films as Diff’rent Strokes, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Human Target, and most recently, The Wire.  On June 12, 2011, just 2-1/2 weeks after his appearance on American Idol, Clarence Clemons suffered what was reported to be a serious stroke, and six days later he died as a result.  He was 69.  Longtime E Street Band mate Danny Federici died of melanoma in 2008.

Bruce Springsteen’s official comment: “It is with overwhelming sadness that we inform our friends and fans that at 7:00 tonight, Saturday, June 18, our beloved friend and bandmate, Clarence Clemons passed away. The cause was complications from his stroke of last Sunday, June 12th. Clarence lived a wonderful life. He carried within him a love of people that made them love him. He created a wondrous and extended family. He loved the saxophone, loved our fans and gave everything he had every night he stepped on stage. His loss is immeasurable and we are honored and thankful to have known him and had the opportunity to stand beside him for nearly forty years. He was my great friend, my partner, and with Clarence at my side, my band and I were able to tell a story far deeper than those simply contained in our music. His life, his memory, and his love will live on in that story and in our band.”

What You Should Own

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Born to Run (30th Anniversary Edition) [Remastered] - Bruce Springsteen

Died On This Date (June 15, 2011) Wild Man Fischer / Unconventional Singer-Songwriter

Larry “Wild Man” Fischer
November 6, 1944 – June 15, 2011

Wild Man Fischer was a cultish singer-songwriter whose unconventional music and actions could be attributed to mental illness.  He’s been called severely paranoid schizophrenic, manic depressive, and an acid casualty.  Fischer was kicked out of high school for singing in class, and at 16 was institutionalized after attacking his mother with a knife.  Upon his release the following year, he landed on the  streets of Los Angeles where he continued to sing his outlandish songs to pedestrians at just 10 cents each.  Another venue he enjoyed was Dodger Stadium where he serenaded fans while selling peanuts.  He also entered area talent shows, and it was at one of these that he caught the attention of Solomon Burke who took him on tour with him.  By the late ’60s, Fischer was hanging out along West Hollywood’s Sunset Strip where he opened for the likes of Iron Butterfly and Bo Diddley.  He was soon spotted by Frank Zappa who recorded his first album, An Evening With Wild Man Fischer in 1968.  He went on to perform with Art and Artie Barnes and recorded additional albums on his own through the ’80s.  His 1975 Go To Rhino Records was the first album ever released by the esteemed Rhino label.  Throughout his career, Fischer worked with such luminaries as Linda Ronstadt, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, Tom Waits, and oddly enough, Rosemary Clooney, with whom he dueted on 1986’s “It’s A Hard Business.”  In recent years he has performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, while making other random appearances.  He is also the subject of a recent documentary, Derailroaded: Inside The Mind Of Wild Man Fischer.  Wild Man Fischer was 66 when he passed away on June 15, 2011.  Cause of death was not immediately released, but he was reportedly suffering from heart issues.

What You Should Own

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Wild Man Fischer

Died On This Date (June 15, 2011) Mae Wheeler / Popular St. Louis Jazz Singer

Mae Wheeler
May 15, 1934 – June 15, 2011

Mae Wheeler was a popular St. Louis singer who became affectionately known over the years as “Lady Jazz.”  Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Wheeler began singing in church choirs as early as the age of 4, but  soon moved to St. Louis with her family.  As she got older, Wheeler began making a name for herself at the clubs throughout the city’s storied Gaslight Quarter of the 1960s.  Over the course of her decades-long career, Wheeler shared the stage with such luminaries as Count Basie, Mitch Miller, and Pearl Bailey.  She also released two CDs.  During the mid-’90s, Wheeler launched an annual event that would eventually become known as “The Divas Show” and which showcased local young talent while raising money for charity.  Mae Wheeler passed away on June 15, 2011 following a lengthy struggle with leukemia and colon cancer.  She was 77.



Died On This Date (June 15, 2011) Bill Johnson / Grammy Winning Art Director

Bill Johnson
DOB Unknown – June 15, 2011

Bill Johnson was a longtime art director who helped shape the image of country music packaging during the ’80s and ’90s.  He spent the better part of two decades working at CBS Records where he created artwork for such albums as Willie Nelson’s Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Rodney Crowell’s Diamonds & Dirt, the Dixie Chicks’ Wide Open Spaces, Roseanne Cash’s King’s Record Shop, and the O’Kanes’ Tired Of The Runnin’.  The Cash and O’Kanes packages each earned him Grammys.    Bill Johnson was 68 when he died of lung cancer on June 15, 2011.