Died On This Date (May 9, 2011) Dolores Fuller / Wrote A Number Of Songs For Elvis
themusicsover Dolores Fuller (Born Dolores Eble)
March 10, 1923 – May 9, 2011
Dolores Fuller is perhaps best remembered as the one-time girlfriend of notorious film maker, Ed Wood for whom she co-starred as the female lead in his cult classic, Glen or Glenda. She also had minor roles in numerous other films during the ’50s and again in the ’90s. Fuller made a more significant impact on pop music however, but oddly enough, as a songwriter. When she was going after a role in Elvis Presley’s, Blue Hawaii, the film’s producer and Fuller’s friend, Hal Wallis – who knew of her songwriting talent – put her in touch with the publishing company that provided Presley with songs. They brought her on, and it was there that she began writing such Presley classics like “Rock-A-Hula Baby,” “Spinout,” and “Do The Clam.” In all, she wrote twelve songs for the King. Fuller also penned tunes for Nat King Cole, Peggy Lee, Shelley Fabares, and Terry Stafford to name a few. In 1994, Fuller was portrayed by Sarah Jessica Parker in Tim Burton’s biopic, Ed Wood. Dolores Fuller died on May 9, 2011 following a stroke. She was 88.
Thanks to Benji Isabel for the assist.
John Walker was a the co-lead singer of the Walker Brothers, a popular California-born “British” rock band during the ’60s. Ironically, the band moved to England while British bands like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones were taking over America. As a sort of rock version of the Righteous Brothers, the band became immensely popular in England, with a fan club that once counted more members than even the Beatles’. During the early ’60s, Walker began building a name for himself throughout the hip Hollywood night spots while working with the likes of Phil Spector, the Monkees, and 
Odell Brown was a jazz organist who is best remembered for penning the 
Phoebe Snow was an American singer-songwriter who is perhaps best remembered for her 1975 hit, “Poetry Man.” Regularly exposed to music while growing up, Snow picked up the guitar at an early age. She was still in her teens when she began playing at amateur nights throughout New York’s storied Greenwich Village folk clubs. It was at one of these venues that Snow was discovered by an executive at Shelter Records who signed her and released her self-titled debut album, Phoebe Snow in July of 1974. The album included her Top 5 hit, “Poetry Man.” The album ultimately reached #4 on the Billboard album charts and earned Snow a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist, a cover of Rolling Stone, and several memorable appearances on Saturday Night Live. In 1975, Snow gave birth to her severely brain-damaged daughter Valerie, but instead of placing her in a care facility like most, she opted to care for her herself, which she did until Valerie passed away in 2007. Throughout Snow’s career, she released numerous critical and fan favorite albums and performed with a who’s who of pop royalty. That list includes Paul Simon, Linda Ronstadt, Billy Joel, Queen, and Bonnie Raitt, to name just a few. In 1997, Snow sang the Rosanne theme during the closing moments of the final episode, and years later, became perhaps the most unlikely person in history to sing at both Camp David (for President Bill Clinton), AND at Howard Stern’s wedding. On January 19, 2010, Phoebe Snow suffered a brain hemorrhage and was placed in a medically induced coma. She briefly regained consciousness but ultimately passed away on April 26, 2011. She was 58.
Poly Styrene was the lead singer and songwriter for the great British punk band, X-Ray Spex. Formed in 1976, the band, despite the fact that they initially released just five singles and one long-player, became one of the most important groups of the original punk movement. After running away from home at 15, Styrene bounced from one music festival to another until she eventually ended up at an early Sex Pistols gig which inspired her to form a punk band. The band’s first album Germ Free Adolescents is by most accounts one of the greatest punk – if not rock – albums ever made. Its “Oh Bondage, Up Yours” is widely recognized as a flash point for punk rock. After the band broke up in 1979, Styrene released a solo album Translucence which had more of a jazzy sound and reportedly inspired the likes of Everything But The Girl. She continued to release music, both solo and with a reformed version of X-Ray Spex, over the next two decades. She also lent her name and voice to various social causes throughout the years. In February 2011, it was announced that Poly Styrene was suffering from breast cancer. She was 53 years old when she died from the disease on April 25, 2011.