Died On This Date (October 30, 2009) Norton Buffalo / Rock Harmonica Great

Norton Buffalo
September 28, 1951 – October 30, 2009

With Steve Miller. Photo by David Plastik – Click To Order Quality Prints – Discount code: 10OFF

Norton Buffalo was a San Francisco Bay area singer, songwriter and musician who is mostly associated with the Steve Miller Band with whom he played harmonica for over three decades.  His career started taking off during the ’70s when he first started playing with the likes of Elvin Bishop and Clover.  In the following years, he performed or recorded with a who’s who of rock, blues and country artists.  That list includes Bonnie Raitt, Commander Cody, Jerry Garcia, the Doobie Brothers, Mickey Hart, Merl Saunders, and of course, Steve Miller.  He can be heard on nearly 200 albums.  Buffalo also appeared in a few films, mostly as a musician.  Buffalo released a handful of his own albums as well.  He can be seen in 1979’s The Rose alongside Bette Midler, and Heaven’s Gate with Kris Kristofferson.  Buffalo was diagnosed with lung cancer that had spread to his brain in September of 2009.   He succumbed to the cancer on October 30, 2009 at the age of 58.

Thanks to Craig Rosen at Number1Albums for the assist.

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King of the Highway - Norton Buffalo & The Knockouts

Died On This Date (October 30, 1968) Malcolm Hale / Spanky & Our Gang

Malcolm Hale
May 17, 1941 – October 30, 1968

malcolm-hale

Member of the 27 Club

Malcolm Hale was the lead guitarist for  the ’60s folk rock band, Spanky and our Gang.  The band released their debut album, Spanky and Our Gang, in 1967.  It contained their three biggest hits, “Sunday Will Never Be The Same,” Lazy Days,” and “Making Every Minute Count.”  A little over a year after the band’s first album, Malcolm Hale, 27, died of carbon monoxide poisoning suffered when using a faulty space heater.  The band broke up shortly thereafter.

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Spanky and our Gang
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20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Spanky & Our Gang (Remastered) - Spanky & Our Gang

Died On This Date (October 29, 2008) Mike Baker / Fronted Shadow Gallery

Mike Baker
September 2, 1963 – October 29, 2008

mike-bakerMike Baker was the lead singer of ’80s progressive metal band, Shadow Gallery.  Formed in 1985 as Sorcerer, the band soon changed their name before signing to independent progressive rock label, Magna Carta Records in 1991.  Shadow Gallery, and Baker’s vocals had more in common with Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Queensryche than the pop metal bands that were more in fashion at the time.  During the late ’90s, the band formed a kinship with like-minded band, Dream Theater, whose James LaBrie sang on Shadow Gallery’s 1998 song, “I Believe.”   Mike Baker, 45, died of a heart attack on October 29, 2008.

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Carved In Stone - Shadow Gallery

Died On This Date (October 29, 2008) Mae Mercer / Popular Blues Singer

Mae Mercer
June 12, 1932 – October 29, 2008

maeMae Mercer was an actress and blues singer who spent most of her music career singing in Paris.  With a richly deep voice, she sang what Willie Dixon once called, “the real low-down blues.”  She fronted a band that included Memphis Slim for the better part of the ’60s.  Back in America during the ’70s, Mercer put her focus on acting.  She appeared in the films, Dirty Harry, The Beguiled, and Pretty Baby, and such TV shows as Mannix, and Kung Fu.  Mae Mercer, 76, passed away in her home after having been ill for some time.



Died On This Date (October 28, 2007) Porter Wagoner / Country Music Icon

Porter Wagoner
August 12, 1927 – October 28, 2007

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Porter Wagoner was a three-time Grammy award-winning country singer who was instantly recognizable thanks to his sparkly suits and towering blond coif.  Wagoner signed to RCA Records during the early ’50, and in 1955, he was hired on to perform on ABC Television’s Ozark Jubilee, broadcasting out of Springfield, MO.  Two years later, he moved to Nashville and became a member of the Grand Ol Opry.  Over the next five decades, Wagoner charted 81 singles.  Songs like “A Satisfied Mind,” “Green Grass of Home,” and “The Cold Hard Facts of Life” are some of the greatest recordings country music has ever known.  In 1960, Wagoner began starring in his own nationally syndicated television show, The Porter Wagoner Show.   The program ran for twenty years and helped launch the careers of Norma Jean, Mel Tillis, and most famously, Dolly Parton.  It was Wagoner who Parton was writing about when she penned “I Will Always Love You,” which became a massive hit for Whitney Houston almost 20 years after it was first released by Parton.  Wagoner continued to work well into the 21st century, recording and making guest appearances on television.  In 2007 he released the Marty Stuart-produced Wagonmaster, the critically acclaimed album that helped him experience a renaissance much in the same way Johnny Cash had in the mid ’90s.  That same year, Wagoner opened for the White Stripes at Madison Square Garden.   Porter Wagoner died of lung cancer at the age of 80.

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Wagonmaster - Porter Wagoner