Died On This Date (March 16, 2005) Jakson Spires / Blackfoot
themusicsover Jakson Spires
DOB Unknown – March 16, 2005
Jakson Spires was the founding drummer for Southern rock’s Blackfoot. Formed in 1970, the band had a handful of hit albums during the late ’70s and early ’80s. Blackfoot went from being the house band at a Gainesville, Florida topless bar in 1970 to opening for the Who in 1979. Spires either wrote or co-wrote almost every song in the band’s catalog, including hits, “Highway Song” and “Fly Away.” As a session player, he recorded with the likes of Phil Lynott and Willie Dixon. Jackson Spires died of a brain aneurysm on March 16, 2005.
What You Should Own
As lead singer and songwriter for Molly Hatchet, Danny Joe Brown helped the Southern Rock band achieve success with such hits as “Flirtin’ With Disaster” and “Satified Man.” After an early stint in the US Coast Guard, Brown helped form the band which would be named after a 17th Century prostitute who earned her name by chopping off the heads of her johns. Diabetes started to take its toll on Brown so he was forced to retire from the band in 1980. He had a massive stroke in 1998 and passed away from renal failure due to the diabetes on this date in 2005.
Frank O’Keefe was and early bassist for southern rock band, the Outlaws. Although the band was riding high on a string of what would eventually become classic rock staples, O’Keefe decided to leave the band after suffering a broken neck from a fall in July, 1976. The trials of a hectic life on the road also helped in that decision. That neck injury lead to his reliance on pain medication for the rest of his life. On February 26, 1995, O’Keefe’s lifeless body was found by his roommate in his Clearwater, FL home. He apparently died as a result of drug and alcohol abuse.
