Died On This Date (May 25, 2005) Domenic Troiano / Respected Rock Guitarist
themusicsover Domenic Troiano
January 17, 1946 – May 25, 2005
Born in Italy, but a citizen of Canada since 1955, Domenic Troiano was an in-demand rock guitarist who played with such greats as Ronnie Hawkins, the James Gang, and the Guess Who. Forming his own band in the late ’70s, Troiano had a hit with “We All Need Love,” which was actually more disco than rock. As a session player, he worked on recordings by Joe Cocker, Long John Baldry and James Cotton. Domenic Troiano died of prostate cancer at the age of 59.
Gene Clark is perhaps best known as a founding member of folk rock group, the Byrds. Clark’s early career was mainly devoted to performing in traditional folk groups in and around Kansas City. But after hearing the Beatles in 1964, he decided he needed to rock, so he moved to Los Angeles. Upon arriving in L.A., Clark joined up with Roger McGuinn, David Crosby and later Chris Hillman and 
Jay Bennett was an exceptional, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer most famously known for his years in Wilco. Prior to Wilco, Bennett helped found Titanic Love Affair in the early ’90s. He joined Wilco in 1994 and stayed with the group until a less-than-amicable split in 2001. After Wilco, Bennett released a handful of studio albums while appearing on several as an in-demand studio musician. He also produced albums by the likes of Blues Traveler. In May of 2009, Bennett filed a lawsuit against Jeff Tweedy of Wilco claiming, according to Paste Magazine, “Tweedy owes Bennett ‘damages of at least $50,000’ for his time in the band, including his less-than-favorable depiction in the 2002 Wilco documentary, I Am Trying to Break Your Heart.” Jay Bennett passed away of an accidental overdose from a prescription painkiller on May 23, 2009 . He was just 45.
Slava Giebel was the guitarist for German metal band, StrydegoR. The band formed in 2005. Giebel was killed in a car accident just a couple of weeks before the release of the band’s debut album.
Jimmy Fernandez was the bassist for alterna-metal band, the God Machine. Though formed in San Diego in the early ’90s, the God Machine spent most of their career living in the UK where they had moderate success. Alternative Press called their second album, One Last Laugh In A Place Of Dying one of the “90 Best Albums Of The ’90s.” While recording their third album, Fernandez fell into a coma and later died of what was thought to be a brain tumor. The remaining members of the band decided the couldn’t go on without Fernandez.