Died On This Date (December 15, 2011) Bob Brookmeyer / Notable Jazz Trombonist
themusicsover Bob Brookmeyer
December 19, 1929 – December 15, 2011
Bob Brookmeyer was an American jazz musician, arranger and composer who is most often remembered for his contributions to Gerry Mulligan’s Quartet during the late ’50s. He went on to work with the likes of Jimmy Giuffre, Clark Terry, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis. In later years, Brookmeyer taught jazz composition at the New England Conservator of Music. In 2006, he released Spirit Music which was nominated for a Grammy. Bob Brookmeyer was 81 when he passed away on December 15, 2011.
Thanks to Henk de Bruin at 2+ Printing for the assist.
What You Should Own
Ed Roman was a fiercely independent Las Vegas guitar builder whose creations were lovingly played by Ted Nugent, 
Nicholas Bliss was a Chicago area jazz trumpeter who came to some prominence during the 1970s. Born in Iowa, Bliss moved with his family to Chicago when he was just seven years old. He took up the trumpet during high school and was awarded a scholarship to De Paul University to study music. Before long, Bliss was making a name for himself throughout the nightclubs of Chicago. During the ’70s, he led a Dixieland band at the city’s storied private prohibition styled speakeasy, the Gaslight Club. It has been reported that the nightclub was Hugh Hefner’s inspiration for his Playboy Clubs. Bliss performed at the Gaslight Club for many years and also acted as its talent booker for a time. When the nightclub added locations in Paris, Los Angeles, New York, and Washington DC, he oversaw the musicians at those locales as well. After retiring from performing, Bliss became president of the local musicians union, serving from 1977 to 1982. Nicholas Bliss died of kidney failure on December 13, 2011. He was 90.
Dustin Hengst was the drummer for the popular Boston-area pop-punk band, Damone. Formed in 2001, Damone quickly built a local following that was hungry for their skate punk attitude and crunchy guitars. Within a couple of year, the band was signed to RCA Records and was sharing the stage with the likes of the Ataris and the Juliana Theory. They released their well-received debut, From The Attic in 2003. They were eventually let go by RCA but bounced back with their solid Island/Def Jam release of Out Here All Night in 2006. Hengst left the group in 2008. He also played behind the band, Bleu. On December 9, 2011, Dustin Hengst, 39, died in a Texas hospital where he had reportedly been struggling with health related issues for a few weeks. Cause of death was not immediately released.
