Died On This Date (January 8, 2013) Tandyn Almer / ’60s Singer-Songwriter; Wrote “Along Comes Mary”
themusicsover Tandyn Almer
July 30, 1942 – January 8, 2013
Tandyn Almer was a mysterious Minneapolis-born singer-songwriter whose biggest contribution to popular music came by way of his “Along Came Mary,” a 1966 Top Ten hit as recorded by the Association. Just a teenager when the music of John Coltrane and Miles Davis caught his ear, Almer, a future member of Mensa, decided to quit high school and move to Chicago to become a jazz musician. By the ’60s, he found himself in Los Angeles, where he set his sights on rock music. Over the next few years, he collaborated, as a songwriter or producer, with such acts as Dennis Olivieri, the Purple Gang, and the Garden Club. During the ’70s, he wrote songs for A&M Records where he co-wrote the Beach Boys‘ “Sail On Sailor,” and “Marcella.” Outside of music, Almer invented the Slave-Master water pipe which was called “the perfect bong” by at least one how-to manual. By the ’80s, Almer was all but out of the music business, and living in Washington D.C. where he wrote songs for an annual comedy review put on by Hexagon, a D.C. based non-profit organization. In recent years, Almer was reportedly in ailing health – suffering from heart and lung disease, until he passed away on January 8, 2013. He was 70.
Thanks to Harold Lepidus at Bob Dylan Examiner for the assist.
Kent Abbott was a guitarist who is best remembered for his tenure with Canadian pop punk bands, Grade and Somehow Hollow. Abbott joined Grade just after the band released what would become their final album, 2001’s Headfirst Straight To Hell. The group disbanded the following year. They have since been recognized as one of hardcore’s influential bands. Although Somehow Hollow formed in 2000, it wasn’t until the break up of Grade that Abbott committed to them full-time. They released Busted Wings And Rusted Halo on Victory Records in 2003, but called it quits in 2004. In later years, Abbott played with the .45 Goodbye. Kent Abbott was 32 when he died on January 7, 2013. Cause of death was not immediately released.
Sammy Johns was a folk and country-rock singer-songwriter who scored a major ’70s pop hit with 1975’s “Chevy Van.” Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, Johns was just nine when he picked up the guitar. By the time he was a teenager, he was fronting his own band, the Devilles. After a few records with the Devilles, Johns moved to Atlanta and signed a solo deal with General Records who released his self-titled debut in 1973. The album’s “Chevy Van” took about a year or so to catch on, but when it did, it became one of the biggest singles of the ’70s. Reaching #5 on the Billboard pop charts, the record sold more than 1 million copies in the US alone. It was later covered by Eric Church, Sammy Kershaw, and 
Mike Auldridge was a much respected master of the resophonic guitar, or as it is more commonly known, the dobro. Born in Washington, DC, Auldridge began playing the guitar at the age of 13. He eventually transitioned to the dobro, but didn’t began playing music full-time until he was around 40, when the Washington Star-News closed its doors. He had had been earning his living as a graphic artist for the paper. In 1971, Auldridge co-founded the Seldom Scene with a handful of musicians he jammed with each week. The band, much to the chagrin of traditionalists, married bluegrass with jazz, folk, and rock. By doing so, they were pioneers of progressive bluegrass, or what they called “acid grass,” which has been popularized by such jam bands as String Cheese Incident. As an in-demand session player, Auldridge played on records by 
Fontella Bass was a beloved R&B singer who is best remembered for her hugely popular hit of 1965, “Rescue Me.” Born into a music family – her mother was Martha Bass of the Clara Ward Singers – Bass began playing piano and singing in the church choir at a very young age. By the time she was nine, she was accompanying her mother on tours of the U.S. As a teenager, Bass began earning her living by singing in local clubs and such. Having grown up on St. Louis, Bass cut a several early records there, with some being produced by 