Died On This Date (February 22, 1976) Florence Ballard / The Supremes
themusicsover Florence Ballard
June 310, 1943 – February 22, 1976
Florence Ballard was a founding member of influential Motown singing group, the Supremes. Born and raised in Detroit, Ballard began singing in local groups while still a teenager. In 1959, she successfully auditioned for a female vocal group called the Primettes who, after a few personnel changes eventually signed with Motown Records as the Supremes, with the most successful formation of the group including Ballard, Diana Ross and Mary Wilson. Over the next eight years with the Supremes, Ballard sang on nearly a dozen #1 hits and helped the women become one of the most influential female groups in history. In the spring of 1967, Ballard left the group and launched a solo career, but it failed to bring her back into the spotlight. Personal and financial problems plagued Florence Ballard during the final years of her life, and on February 22, 1976, she died of cardiac arrest. She was 32.
What You Should Own
Ty Longley was born in northwest Pennsylvania. In 2001, he joined metal band, Great White, one of the top rock acts of the ’80s, as they were beginning to mount a comeback for the new millennium. Unfortunately, their return to the national headlines was caused by a tragic event that claimed Longley’s life. While on stage at The Station club in West Warwick, Rhode Island, on February 20, 2003, the band’s pyrotechnics accidentally set off a fire that quickly consumed the venue. In all, 100 people perished in the fire, including 31-year-old Ty Longley.
Kelly Groucutt is best remembered as a bassist and occasional lead singer for popular English rock band, Electric Light Orchestra. He played in the group from 1974 to 1983, the band’s most successful period. His talents can be heard on such classic albums as Face The Music, A New World Record, and Out Of The Blue. Groucutt released his only solo album in 1982. It included some help from a few ELO band mates. He left ELO in 1983, but participated in spin-off groups during subsequent years. Kelly Groucutt was 63 when he passed away on February 19, 2009. His death was the result of a heart attack he had suffered the previous day.
Snooks Eaglin was a popular New Orleans R&B performer who, due to a set list that drew from upwards of 2500 songs, was sometimes called “the human jukebox.” And to the dismay of his backing band, in most cases he performed without a written set list, preferring to just play what felt right in the moment. Even though he was blind since infancy, Eaglin learned to play the guitar at a very young age. When he was just 11, he won a local radio talent competition and within three years, he left school to make his living as a musician. By the mid ’50s, he was playing in the great Allen Toussaint’s band, the Flamingos. In 1958, Eaglin became the subject of several recordings by musicologist, Dr. Harry Oster. Many of these sides were later released on the Folkways label. Eaglin signed with Imperial Records in 1960 and released a series of records that were more in the tradition of New Orleans R&B than the more blues styled Oster recordings. He continued recording through the ’90s and was a common fixture at the New Orleans Jazzfest for many years. Snooks Eaglin was 73 when he suffered a fatal heart attack on February 18, 2009.