Died On This Date (April 22, 2003) Felice Bryant / Wrote Many Pop Hits
themusicsover Felice Bryant
August 7, 1925 – April 22, 2003
Along with her husband Boudleaux, Felice Bryant, wrote such early pop hits as “Bye Bye Love,” “Rocky Top,” and “All I Have To Do Is Dream,” the last two being big hits for the Everly Brothers. The future Mr. & Mrs. Boudleaux met in 1945 and so began a successful songwriting partnership (and marriage) that would last some forty years. During that time, they wrote songs for a virtual who’s who of popular music. That list includes Tony Bennett, the Grateful Dead, Dean Martin, Ray Charles, Nazareth, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Elvis Costello, Simon & Garfunkel, Roy Orbison, Buddy Holly and Sarah Vaughan. Together they penned over 1500 recorded songs which obviously landed them into several songwriter halls of fame. Felice Bryant passed away from natural causes on April 22, 2003.
John Weller was probably Paul Weller’s biggest fan. Their “professional” relationship began the day John bought son, Paul his first guitar whan he was just a child. At the time, John worked as a cab driver. When Paul formed his first band, the Jam, in 1972, John could be found booking them gigs and talking them up in around their home of Surrey, England. By 1977, John was managing the band. After the Jam disbanded in 1982, John continued to guide his son’s prolific career as a member of the Style Council, and as a solo artist for the next thirty years. John Weller was in deteriorating health over the past few years, and passed away on April 22, 2009 at the age of 77.
Carl Albert was perhaps best known as a singer for San Francisco heavy metal band, Vicious Rumors. The band was formed by Geoff Thorpe in 1979, and featured Albert singing out front from 1988 to 1993. Prior to that, he fronted Villain and Ruffians. He died on April 22, 1995 as a result of a car accident.
Oklahoma singer-songwriter Bob Childers passed away on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 of emphysema and related lung disease. Childers was a the so-called godfather or Red Dirt Music, a hard to define sub-genre of country/Americana that includes elements of country, rock and folk. After touring much of the country’s dive bars and honky tonks through the ’70s, Childers released his debut album at the dawn of the ’80s. Over his career, he wrote over 1500 songs and earned accolades from no less than fellow Oklahoman, Garth Brooks who wrote a song with him. He was even invited to perform at the White House in 1982. 2004 saw the release of Restless Wind – A Tribute To The Songs of Bob Childers, a 3-CD set that included Jimmy Lafave, Cross Canadian Ragweed and The Red Dirt Rangers.
