Died On This Date (February 11, 2013) Rick Huxley / The Dave Clark Five
themusicsover Rick Huxley
August 5, 1942 – February 11, 2013
There was a moment during the ’60s when Rick Huxley was arguably the biggest bass player in popular music. It was the British Invasion and the band in which he played, the Dave Clark Five, was comfortably seated right behind fellow invaders, the Beatles. Formed in 1958, the band was the Fab Four’s biggest challengers during the early ’60s until the Rolling Stones roared in. With the Dave Clark Five, Huxley played on such pop music staples as “Glad All Over,” “Bits and Pieces,” and “Catch Us If You Can.” In March of 1964, the band became the second British Invasion band to perform on The Ed Sullivan Show. Their two-week run immediately followed the Beatles’ original three-week stint. The group broke up in 1970 and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Tom Hanks in 2008, with Huxley on hand to accept the honor. Other groups he played with include the Riverside Blues Boys and the Spon Valley Stompers. Rick Huxley was 72 when he passed away on February 11, 2013. Cause of death was not immediately released, though he had been battling emphysema.
Jon Cook was a rock bassist who is best remembered for his tenure in ’90s post-hardcore band, Crain. The Louisville, Kentucky band released three albums including the Steve Albini-produced Speed in 1992. The band ultimately broke up in 1996 but reunited as their pre-Crain outfit, Cerebellum in 2010. Outside of Crain, Cook played with Rodan, and Experimental Pollen, amongst others. During Cook’s teenage years, he helped out-of-town bands get booked in local clubs and played a key role in the development of Louisville’s ’90s punk scene. Jon Cook was 40 when, on February 9, 2013, he passed away following a long illness.
Reg Presley was the front man for legendary British garage band, the Troggs. Their biggest hit came with their 1966 cover of Chip Taylor’s “Wild Thing” which reached #1 on the Billboard singles chart that year. Their version came in at #257 on Rolling Stone‘s list of The Top 500 Songs of All Time. Their follow-up single, “With A Girl Like You” was nearly as popular in the UK, but failed to ignite in the US. Their three most popular singles, the two listed above along with “Love Is All Around,” sold over a million copies each. Besides the impact their “Wild Thing” continues to have on rock music to this day, the band itself can take at least partial credit for influencing the birth of punk and garage rock. As a songwriter, Presley’s biggest hit was “Love Is All Around,” which was another big hit in the UK, but barely cracked the Top 100 in the US. It did however, enjoy a new life when Wet Wet Wet topped the UK charts with it in 1994. At over 1.8 million copies sold at the time, it was the tenth biggest selling single in England. Th royalties Presley enjoyed from its sales went to fund his research on crop circles on which he wrote the 2002 book, Wild Things They Don’t Tell Us. Presley continued to tour with the Troggs up until his retirement in 2012 due to health concerns. Reg Presley was 71 when he died of cancer and a series of strokes on February 4, 2013. Troggs founding drummer, 
Known throughout the industry as “The Songwriter’s Best Friend,” John Braheny was a successful songcrafter as well as the author of to best-selling manual, The Craft and Business of Songwriting. Braheny began his career during the late ’60s as a recording artist – his only album, Some Kind of Change came out in 1970. S0me may argue that this album was the birth of the Laurel Canyon country rock scene since its “December Dream” was later popularized by Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys. In 1971, Braheny co-founded the Los Angeles Songwriters Showcase which at one point or another showcased such future greats as Stevie Nicks, Dianne Warren, Janis Ian, and 
