Richard Coughlan September 2, 1947 – December 1, 2013
Richard Coughlan was an English drummer who spent almost his entire career as the drummer for influential Canterbury scene prog rock band, Caravan. With a career that more or less started when he was 10 years old, Coughlan has been called one of rock’s longest tenured musicians. After playing in different bands during his teens, Coughlan found himself playing for the Wilde Flowers, a Canterbury progressive rock band whose members eventually went on to form either Soft Machine, or in Coughlan’s case, Caravan, the genres two most influential bands. Formed in 1968, Caravan became the first British act to sign to prestigious American label, Verve. Over the next decade or so, the band built a loyal legion of fans thanks in part to their ability to blend jazz and psychedelic rock. Also called art rock, Caravan’s sound can be credited for paving the way for the likes of Genesis, Roxy Music, David Bowie, and later, Muse and Radiohead. Caravan remained active – with different members coming and going – with Coughlan remaining in the fold until he died following a fight with pneumonia on December 1, 2013. He was 66.
Nick Babeu was the lead singer for Montreal, Canada punk band, Trigger Effect. Formed in 2003, the band built a sizable following thanks to their energetic live shows and the three albums they have released. Their most recent album, What’s Left To Eliminate? came out in early 2013. Nick Babeu passed away on November 20, 2013. Cause of death was not immediately released.
A music lover since childhood, Joel Oberstein played in three Los Angeles bands while launching his career at the Los Angeles area-based Tempo Records chain, where he eventually rose to GM. He also did stints at Atlantic Records and Right Between the Acts, an innovative company that promoted new releases between sets at concerts. Oberstein eventually hooked up with Clark Benson, an entrepreneur known for the eCrush and Ranker Websites, to form Almighty/Isis. Now known as Almighty Music Marketing, the 18-year-old company, which continues to thrive, started out specializing in listening station programs in hundreds of independent record stores. Oberstein spearheaded expansions into other areas of music marketing, including the Almighty Retail Database, and its weekly New Releases Now email blasts and website. Even in the darkest days of independent retail, Oberstein was a champion of the stores and worked tirelessly to bridge the gap between the labels and the retailers who shared his passion for discovering new music and bringing attention to unappreciated classics. Diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis four years ago, Joel Oberstein died from complications of West Nile Virus. M.S. and steroid treatments to fight the disease had weakened his immune system to the point that he was unable to fight off WNV. Oberstein was 50 when he passed away on November 1, 2013.
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Lou Reed was a Brooklyn-born singer, songwriter and musician who is as much remembered as the leader of the Velvet Underground as he is for the successful solo career that followed. Influenced early on by rock ‘n roll , jazz, and rhythm and blues, Reed learned to play the guitar by mimicking songs he heard on the radio. By the time he was in high school, Reed was already playing in a handful of bands. While attending Syracuse University during the early ’60s, he hosted a radio program that focused primarily on doo wop, free jazz and R&B. He later claimed that much of his guitar playing was influenced by jazz saxophonists like Ornette Coleman. During the mid ’60s, Reed was living in New York City where he worked as a staff writer for Pickwick Records. At one point, the label decided to form a group around Reed in an attempt to better pitch his songs. That outfit, the Primitives, included a Welsh multi-instrumentalist by the name of John Cale. The two became fast friends and began building a group that would soon become the Velvet Underground which also included Sterling Morrison and Maureen Tucker. On the behest of Andy Warhol, the group soon brought in German model and musician, Nico just in time to record their debut album, The Velvet Underground & Nico. Although the album was just moderately successful at the time, it is considered one of the most influential of the ’70s. In fact, Rolling Stone cites it at #13 of all time. White Light/White Heat followed and there would be three more until the band called it quits in 1970. Two years later, Reed resurfaced with his debut release, Lou Reed, which was more-or-less new recordings of unreleased Velvet Underground tracks. The album barely got noticed, but was thankfully followed quickly by the David Bowie and Mick Ronson produced Transformer, which reestablished Reed as one of rock music’s most important figures of the era. Songs like “Vicious,” “Satellite Of Love,” and “Walk On The Wild Side” are as influential as any that came out of the ’70s. Reed went on to record and tour through professional peaks and valleys over the next four decades which included a brief reunion of the Velvet Underground. One fact that can’t be denied about Reed, is that his name is synonymous with what would become known as protopunk, a classification of groundbreaking and often difficult to categorize musicians who many would later claim birthed punk rock – not because they were musically similar to punk rock, but because they continually challenged the norm. It must also be noted that Reed was one of the greatest poets rock music has ever known. In April of 2013, Reed received a liver transplant, and by all accounts was recovering, in fact, he later claimed on his website to be stronger than ever. On October 27, 2013 however, he passed away in his home at the age of 71. Cause of death was not immediately released.
themusicsover 
Richard Coughlan was an English drummer who spent almost his entire career as the drummer for influential Canterbury scene prog rock band, Caravan. With a career that more or less started when he was 10 years old, Coughlan has been called one of rock’s longest tenured musicians. After playing in different bands during his teens, Coughlan found himself playing for the Wilde Flowers, a Canterbury progressive rock band whose members eventually went on to form either Soft Machine, or in Coughlan’s case, Caravan, the genres two most influential bands. Formed in 1968, Caravan became the first British act to sign to prestigious American label, Verve. Over the next decade or so, the band built a loyal legion of fans thanks in part to their ability to blend jazz and psychedelic rock. Also called art rock, Caravan’s sound can be credited for paving the way for the likes of Genesis, Roxy Music, David Bowie, and later, Muse and Radiohead. Caravan remained active – with different members coming and going – with Coughlan remaining in the fold until he died following a fight with pneumonia on December 1, 2013. He was 66.
Nick Babeu was the lead singer for Montreal, Canada punk band, Trigger Effect. Formed in 2003, the band built a sizable following thanks to their energetic live shows and the three albums they have released. Their most recent album, What’s Left To Eliminate? came out in early 2013. Nick Babeu passed away on November 20, 2013. Cause of death was not immediately released.
A music lover since childhood, Joel Oberstein played in three Los Angeles bands while launching his career at the Los Angeles area-based Tempo Records chain, where he eventually rose to GM. He also did stints at Atlantic Records and Right Between the Acts, an innovative company that promoted new releases between sets at concerts. Oberstein eventually hooked up with Clark Benson, an entrepreneur known for the eCrush and Ranker Websites, to form Almighty/Isis. Now known as 
