Died On This Date (March 22, 1996) Don Murray / The Turtles
themusicsover Don Murray
November 8, 1945 – March 22, 1996
An avid surfer, drummer Don Murray spent much of his youth surfing along the south bay area of Southern California. During high school he joined a Westchester band called the Nightriders, which included Al Nichols (guitar), Howard Kaplan (tenor sax), Chuck Portz (bass), and Glen Wilson (drums). According to Mark Volman, “The name would change again to The Crossfires with the addition of Dale Walton on Rhythm guitar and Mark Volman on sax. Dale would eventually be replaced by Tom Stanton. Jim Tucker would replace Stanton and that line-up of Nichol, Kaylan, Portz, Murray, Kaplan (Kaylan) & Volman would become the Turtles.” On January 1, 1996, Murray entered the surf for what would be his last time. Just two days later he was admitted into the hospital for a routine ulcer surgery. He died from post- operative complications two months later.
Special thanks to Mark Volman for the assist.
What You Should Own
Dave Guard was an influential American folk singer, best remembered as a founding member of the Kingston Trio. Formed in 1957, the group helped launch the folk revival of the ’60s while becoming one of the first groups to enjoy big sales on the LP format. Their first hit single, “Tom Dooley” is considered one of the most important songs of the era. Artists like Brian Wilson, Joan Baez, Lindsey Buckingham, Jimmy Buffet, and 
One of nine siblings, Mark Dinning recycled an old song written by one of his sisters (of the Dinning Sisters) and turned it into an early rock ‘n’ roll hit. That song was “Teen Angel” which is one of those classic tragedies that tells the chilling story of a young lover killed when her car is stalled on the train tracks. It went to #1 on the Billboard charts even though some stations felt it was too morbid to play. Dinning died of a heart attack at age 52.
