Died On This Date (August 8, 2009) Michael Viner / ’70s Producer & Label Head
themusicsover Michael Viner
1944 – August 8, 2009
Although Michael Viner is likely best remembered as a pioneer in the audio books industry, he did make a significant mark on music as well. Viner was a record producer and label executive during the ’70s. While at MGM Records, Viner signed the likes of Debby Boone. As a producer, he worked with Sammy Davis Jr. on his biggest hit, “Candy Man,” and produced the Incredible Bongo Band’s minor hit, “Apache.” That song would become one of the foundations of rap and hip-hop, being sampled by the likes of Moby and LL Cool J. Viner passed away of cancer at the age of 65.
Jack Parnell was an English jazz drummer, pianist and bandleader who began playing is instruments at the age of five. During WWII, he played in the RAF band. He composed many television theme songs throughout his career, and in 1973, he became the first British musician to win an Emmy for his work on a Barbra Streisand special. Over the course of his career, Parnell played with the likes of 
Esther Phillips was one of the premier female R&B singers of the 1950s. It was R&B impresario 
Roberto Cantoral was a Mexican singer-songwriter who, over the course of some 60 professional years, scored several hit records including “El Reloj” and “El Triste.” Many of his songs are considered standards of Spanish language music. As a songwriter, it has been reported that upwards of 1000 artists have covered his songs. That list includes Joan Baez, Linda Ronstadt, Luis Miguel, and Placido Domingo. In later years, he composed music for popular telenovelas. Roberto Cantoral was 75 when he died following a massive heart attack on a flight from Brownsville, Texas to Mexico City. The plane made an emergency landing in Toluca, Mexico where he was pronounced dead.
