Singer

Died On This Date (December 22, 1985) D. Boon / The Minutemen

Dennes “D.” Boon
April 1, 1958 – December 22, 1985

d-boon

Member of the 27 Club

D. Boon was the founder, lead singer, guitarist and primary lyricist for Southern California punk band, the Minutemen. Formed in 1980, the trio included bassist Mike Watt and George Hurley on drums.  Though mostly underground, their influence on alternative rock can not be denied, particularly on bands like Sublime.  The band recorded four albums and eight EPs for SST Records, helping bring the label international acclaim.  In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine selected Boon as the 89th greatest guitarist of all time and included the Minutemen’s Double Nickels on The Dime on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.  On December 22, 1985, Boon was laying in the back of the band’s tour van when they got in an accident along an Arizona highway.  Because he wasn’t wearing a seat belt, Boon was thrown from the van and was killed instantly at the age of 27.

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Double Nickels On the Dime - Minutemen

Died On This Date (December 22, 1939) Ma Rainey / Blues Icon

Gertrude “Ma” Rainey
September, 1882 or April 26, 1886 – December 22, 1939

Called the Mother of the Blues, Ma Rainey was one of it’s earliest stars as well as one of it’s first generation to record.  She was a direct influence on Bessie Smith and no doubt, countless more.   She began her music career as a vaudeville performer at just 14.  Several years later, Smith joined that same troupe as a dancer and soon learned to sing the blues from Rainey.  In 1923, Rainey made her first recording, and over the next five years, she recorded more than 100 songs, including “C.C. Rider” (better known as “See See Rider”), “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” and “Bo Weevil Blues.”  Over the years, she was backed by such musicians as Louis Armstrong, Coleman Hawkins, and Fletcher Henderson.   With the music of blues’ first generation falling out of favor by the early ’30s, Rainey retired to run a couple of theaters in her hometown in 1932.  On December 22, 1939, Ma Rainey died of a heart attack.

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Ma Rainey

Died On This Date (December 22, 2003) Dave Dudley / Country Singer

Dave Dudley (Born David Pedruska)
May 3, 1928 – December 22, 2003

Dave Dudley was a popular country singer who is best remembered for his truck-driving themed records.  Beginning with his 1961 charting record,  “Maybe I Do,” Dudley released a string of hits throughout the next two decades.  His best known songs were “Truck Drivin’ Son-of-a-Gun,” “Six Days On The Road,” and “The Pool Shark.”  Dudley’s record sales waned during the ’80s, but he continued to be a popular concert draw.  He also accepted an invitation to join the Nashville Teamsters Truck Drivers Union around that time.  On December 22, 2003, Dave Dudley died of a heart attack at the age of 75.

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Trucker Classics - Dave Dudley

Died On This Date (December 21, 1992) Albert King / Blues Guitar Great

Albert King
April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992

Albert King was a singer and electric guitarists who is considered one of the all-time greats of the blues.  What distinguished him from the others is that he was left-handed but played a right-handed guitar upside-down.  He also prefered to play what is called a “flying V” guitar that is usually played by metal guitarists.  King scored a few minor hits during the early days of his career, but after signing with Stax Records in 1966, he found himself being backed by Booker T. and the MGs on what would become numerous influential records.  His hits included “Crosscut Saw” and “Born Under a Bad Sign,” which has since become a blues standard.  King has been cited as a direct influence on the likes of Gary Moore, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Joe Walsh, and Stevie Ray Vaughan.  Albert King died of a heart attack on December 21, 1992.  He was 69 years old.

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In Session (With Stevie Ray Vaughan) [Remastered] - Albert King

Died On This Date (December 20, 2009) Brittany Murphy / Actress & Pop Singer

Brittany Murphy
November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009

Brittany Murphy is best remembered as a young American actress who appeared in such films as Girl Interrupted, Riding In Cars With Boys, and 8 Mile, opposite Eminem.  But she also had a bit of a music career as well.  By the time she was nine, Murphy landed a singing role in Les Miserables, and at 14, she was co-starring in the short-lived sit-com, Drexell’s Class.   In June of 2006, Murphy was invited to sing lead on dance producer Paul Oakenfold’s 2006 hit, “Faster Kill Pussycat.”  The frenetic single was a smash, topping the Billboard Dance Singles chart as well as reaching the top 10 on the UK charts.  She can also be heard singing Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Boogie Wonderland” and Queen’s “Somebody To Love” in the hit animated film, Happy Feet that same year.  Murphy also devoted her time to entertaining American soldiers as part of at least one USO tour.  On December 20, 2009, Brittany Murphy, 32, reportedly went into cardiac arrest in the shower of her Los Angeles home and was pronounced dead-on-arrival at Cedars Sinai Medical Center.