Arnie Treffers
February 15, 1947 – August 25, 1995
Arnie Treffers was the main songwriter and lead singer of Netherlands rock band, Long Tall Ernie & the Shakers who became local favorites in the mid ’70s. The band’s sound fell somewhere between Elvis Presley and the Sweet. These days their recordings are prized by collectors around the world. Treffers died of lung cancer on August 25, 1995.
Bernard “Jack” Nitzsche
April 22, 1937 – August 25, 2000
Jack Nitzsche was a respected arranger, composer, producer and session musician who was involved in many of the greatest west coast pop recordings of the ’60s and ’70s. His first significant contribution to pop music came in 1955 when he co-wrote “Needles And Pins” with Sonny Bono. The song was a hit for Jackie DeShannon and was later recorded by the Searchers, Cher and the Ramones. By the early ’60s, Nitzsche was working as an arranger for Phil Spector, orchestrating the celebrated “wall of sound” on hits like Ike & Tina Turner’s “River Deep Mountain High.” Nitzsche was also part of the famed Wrecking Crew, a group of studio musicians that included Glen Campbell, Leon Russell, and Hal Blaine. Much like their Motown counterparts, the Funk Brothers, the Wrecking Crew were the faceless band behind many ’60s pop hits coming out of Los Angeles. They could be heard on records by the likes of the Monkees and the Beach Boys. Nitzsche also worked on classic recordings by the Rolling Stones, Neil Young, Buffalo Springfield, Graham Parker and Willy DeVille to name a few. During the ’70s, Nitzsche created the music for several motion pictures including One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Starman, 9-1/2 Weeks, and An Officer And A Gentlemen, for which won the best song Oscar for “Up Where We Belong.” Jack Nitzsche died of cardiac arrest at the age of 63.
Stacy Sutherland
May 28, 1946 – August 24, 1978
Stacy Sutherland was the original guitarist in Roky Erickson’s 13th Floor Elevators, a psychedelic garage band that burst out of Austin, Texas in 1965. Sutherland also had a hand in writing some of the band’s material. And it was Sutherland’s use of reverb and echo that inspired a generation of garage bands. When Erickson was committed to a mental institution in 1969, the band members went their separate ways with Sutherland formed his own band. Later that year, he went to prison on drug charges. Upon his release during the mid ’70s, Sutherland attempted to make another go with it, but was losing his battle with alcohol addiction. On August 24, 1978, Stacy Sutherland, age 32, was shot and killed by his wife during a domestic dispute. His death was ruled an accident.
Dwayne Goettel
February 1, 1964 – August 23, 1995
Dwayne Goettel was a one-time keyboardist for Canadian electronic industrial band, Skinny Puppy. In a band that once opened for Skinny Puppy, Goettel was asked to join the group in 1986. He quickly became a key contributor to Skinny Puppy’s music. He formed his own band, Download in the early ’90s. Goettel reportedly died of a heroin overdose while trying to kick the habit at his parents’ house Alberta. He was 31.
Steve Foley
1959 – August 23, 2008
Steve Foley was a popular Minneapolis-area drummer who played in several local bands, the most famous being the Replacements during their final days and tour. He was also a member of Tommy Stinson’s post-Mats band, Bash & Pop. Prior to his days in the Replacements, Foley and another Replacements replacement, Slim Dunlop, played with Curtis A. Steve Foley died of an accidental overdose of his prescription medicine at the age of 49. His brother, Kevin Foley, who was also in Bash & Pop, died suddenly on March 24, 2011.
Thanks to Craig Rosen Number1Albums for the assist
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