Songwriter

Died On This Date (March 12, 2010) Lesley Duncan / British Singer-Songwriter

Lesley Duncan
August 12, 1943 – March 12, 2010

lesley-duncanLesley Duncan was a moderately successful English folk singer during the late ’60s and ’70s.  After working on her own during the early part of her career, Duncan hooked up with Elton John in 1970 to sing a duet of her “Love Song” which appeared on his Tumbleweed Connection album.  It remains one of just a handful of songs John recorded that was penned by someone outside of his and Bernie Taupin’s creative circle.  Duncan went on to provide backing vocals on such albums as John’s Madman Across The Water, Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon and the Alan Parsons Project’s Eve.  During the ’70s, she lent her vocal talents to recordings by Dusty Springfield, among many others.  Lesley Duncan was 66 when she died on March 12, 2010 of causes believed to be related to cerebrovascular disease.

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Died On This Date (March 12, 2010) Rockie Charles / New Orleans’ “President of Soul”

Rockie Charles (Born Charles Merrick)
November 14, 1942 – March 12, 2010

Photo by Joseph A. Rosen

Rockie Charles was a beloved New Orleans R&B singer and guitarist who had been called “The President of Soul.”  Born into a musical family, Charles was schooled in reading and writing music at a very young age.  As he grew older, he generally won local talent competitions and occasionally shared the stage with the likes of Aaron Neville and Ernie K-Doe.  He formed his first band while still in high school and by the late ’60s he was playing the chitlin’ circuit, opening for some of the biggest names in R&B at the time.  Like many traditional R&B artists, Charles’ career slowed down during the ’70s as local clubs began booking disco acts, but he experienced a nice renaissance during the ’90s.  Since then, he was a popular draw throughout the region’s music festivals, and had been working on a new album at the time of his death.  On March 12, 2010, Rockie Charles, 67,  died of cancer.



Died On This Date (March 10, 2009) Freddy Frogs / ’80s Rockabilly Revivalist

Freddy Frogs (Born Ferdinando Toscano)
September 21, 1942 – March 10, 2009

freddy-frogs

Freddy Frogs was a dynamic performer during the rockabilly’s revival of the ’80s, when he was popular draw at clubs throughout New York and beyond.  As was the case with most rockabilly revivalists, Frogs found his most success in the U.K. where his band, the BMT’s had a hit with “Crazy Little Mama.”  It has been reported that upon his return from England, he convinced the Stray Cats to go play the U.K., which ultimately sparked their successful career.  Freddy Frogs, age 66, died of a heart attack on March 10, 2009



Died On This Date (March 10, 2010) Micky Jones / Lead Singer & Guitarist For Man

Micky Jones
June 7, 1946 – March 10, 2010

Micky Jones was the founding lead singer and influential guitarist for ’70s Welsh rock band, Man.  They were one of the acts that helped popularize what became known as British “pub rock,” a back-to-basics trend in rock that was also being cultivated by the likes of Brinsley Schwarz, Graham Parker, and Dave Edmunds.   As time passed, Man’s sound grew more psychedelic, often drawing comparisons to the Grateful Dead or Quicksilver Messenger Service.  In fact, it could be argued that they were the world’s first jamband.  Though relatively unknown in the U.S., the band had several moderate hits in the U.K. and were very popular concert draws.  The original group split up in 1976, but Jones reformed a variation of it in 1980 and continued to make a solid living along the pub rock circuit through the ’90s.  In 2005, Micky Jones was diagnosed with a brain tumor, which lead him to permanently leave the group for treatment.  The cancer ultimately took his life on March 10, 2010.  He was 63.



Died On This Date (March 9, 1997) Christopher Wallace / The Notorious B.I.G.

The Notorious B.I.G. (Born Christopher Wallace)
May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997

Christopher Wallace (aka The Notorious B.I.G.; Biggie Smalls) was an east coast rapper signed to Sean “Puffy” Combs’ Bad Boy Records. Although Wallace had some run-ins with the law, his musical talent could not be denied. And just as that talent was catapulting him to the upper stratosphere of the musical world, Wallace’s reported life of crime and involvement in a festering east coast vs west coast feud, he was executed in a hail of bullets outside the Soul Train Awards in Los Angeles, CA.  Christopher Wallace was just 24 when he was allegedly assassinated during a drive-by shooting.  The crime remains unsolved and is ripe with theories involving Marion “Suge” Knight, the LAPD, the Crips and the Bloods.  Wallace was married to R&B singer, Faith Evans.

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Ready to Die - The Remaster - The Notorious B.I.G.