Died On This Date (April 8, 2011) Roger Nichols / Producer & Engineer
themusicsover Roger Nichols
September 22, 1944 – April 8, 2011
Roger Nichols was a respected producer and recording engineer who over the course of his career, accumulated seven Grammys. Most closely associated with Steely Dan, Nichols also worked with the likes of John Denver, the Beach Boys, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, Frank Zappa, and Diana Ross, to name just a few. Raised in Southern California, Nichols went to high school with Zappa with whom he made his earliest tapes. After graduating from college where he studied nuclear physics, Nichols first found work has a nuclear operator at the San Onofre nuclear power plant north of San Diego. But in the mid ’60s he moved back over to music and opened his own recording studio. In 1970, he went to work for ABC Dunhill Records where he met Walter Becker and Donald Fagen who were hired writers for the label. Within a year, Nichols was behind the board for the birth of Becker’s and Fagen’s group, Steely Dan. He would go on to engineer such landmark albums as their Pretzel Logic, Aja, Countdown To Ecstasy, and Gaucho. He earned Grammys for his work on Aja, Gaucho, Two Against Nature, FM, and John Denver’s All Aboard!. Roger Nichols was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in May of 2010, and died from it on April 8, 2011. He was 66.
Gil Robbins was a folk singer-songwriter and bassist who is best remembered as part of the influential folk group, the Highwaymen. Prior to Robbins joining the group, they had significant pop hits with “Michael Row Your Boat Ashore” and “Cottonfields.” Born in Washington state and raised in Southern California – where he was the drum major of the UCLA marching band, Robbins eventually found himself immersed in the thriving folk scene of Greenwich Village in New York City. He was a member of the Belafonte Singers (Harry Belafonte’s touring group), and the Cumberland Three. For a time, he and Tom Paxton were writing and performing partners. Robbins joined the Highwaymen in 1962 and played on five albums until they split up in 1964. He has been credited for taking the band in a more political direction. His children include actor, Tim Robbins. Gil Robbins died of prostate cancer on April 5, 2011. He was 80.
Scott Columbus is best remembered as a two-time drummer for popular American metal band, Manowar. Formed in 1980, the band eventually built a worldwide following for their raw and heavy sound that has been likened to that of Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Hawkwind. Their songs have tended to be aggressive and thematically violent, with the band dawning animal skins in concert to add to their primal image. The band was once recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records for putting on the loudest concert, and for performing the longest metal concert which clocked in at just over five hours. Columbus joined the band in 1983 but was forced to leave in 1990 to care for his ill son. He rejoined the group in 1996 and stayed on board until 2008. He made occasional concert appearances with them in recent years. Scott Columbus was 56 when he passed away on April 4, 2011. Cause of death was not immediately released.
Richard Patterson was a Canadian drummer who is perhaps best remembered for his time playing in the Esquires, a popular Ottawa band during the 1960s. Formed in 1962, the band also included Bruce Cockburn at the tail end of its run. A year after forming, the band signed with Capitol Records, making them one of the first if not THE first Canadian band to sign with a major label. Over the next few years, the band released such hit records as “Atlantis” and “So Many Other Boys.” In 1964, the band won an RPM award, which was basically a Canadian Grammy in those days. And when major recording artists of the day came to Canada, it was likely that the Esquires opened for them. Such acts included the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, and the Dave Clark Five. The band broke up in 1967, but briefly reunited in 1987. Richard Patterson, who had been suffering from a neurological disorder, passed away on April 3, 2011.
