Died On This Date (October 16, 1990) Art Blakey / Jazz Great
themusicsover Art Blakey
October 11, 1919 – October 16, 1990
Art Blakey was a drummer and band leader whose Jazz Messengers, a band he led for an astonishing thirty years, was the onetime home of such future legends as Horace Silver, Lou Donaldson, Donald Byrd, Lee Morgan and Freddie Hubbard. His funky hard bop would become a major influence on all idioms of jazz to come. The artists he worked with outside of the messengers reads like a who’s who of jazz history. Art Blakey died of natural causes at the age of 71 but not before recording dozens of albums.
What You Should Own
Jud Strunk was an American singer-songwriter who flirted with success during the 1970’s. He recorded several records through the course of his career, one of which, “The Biggest Parakeets in Town” continues to get airplay on Dr. Demento’s syndicated radio program. His biggest hit came in 1974 with the release of “A Daisy a Day,” which landed in the Top 20 of Billboard’s pop and country charts. Though his name might not have been a household one, he was a semi-regular guest on such television programs as Laugh-In and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. A licensed pilot, Jud Strunk suffered a heart attack while taking off in his small plane on October 15, 1981. The plane crashed, instantly killing Strunk, age 45, and his passenger.
A self-taught musician whose first banjo was made of a frying pan and raccoon skin, Gus Cannon was one of the first popular jug band artists of the ’20s. He was so talented, he reportedly could play the banjo AND the jug at the same time. By 1914, he had his own band, Cannon’s Jug Stompers and was touring with medicine shows. He made his first recordings for Paramount Records in 1927, with Blind Blake providing back up. His most famous song of that era was perhaps, “Walk Right In,” which was made into a hit by the Rooftop Singers in 1962. Although his records were well received and he was growing in popularity outside of his later home of Memphis, Cannon stopped recording in 1930. He and his band, however, continued to be one of he biggest draws along Beale Street. Cannon was all but retired by the late ’30s, but made a comeback in time for the blues and folk revival of the early ’60s. During this later part of his career, he toured coffeehouses with 
Cole Porter was on of America’s most beloved composers and lyricists. His popular scores include Kiss Me Kate and Anything Goes while his iconic catalog of songs includes “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “Night and Day,” and “I Get a Kick Out of You.” The greatest stars in the world have performed his songs on stage and screen. That list includes 
Frankie Venom was the lead singer of Ontario, Canada punk band, Teenage Head which he helped form while still in high school. Formed in 1975, the band was one of Canada’s first wave of punk, and was often called “Canada’s Ramones.” The band signed to Epic Records and released their first album Teenage Head, in 1979. By the time their second album came out in 1980, the band were bonafied stars across Canada and beginning to break through in the U.S. It was not unusual for their concerts to break out into riots by the end. ’80s movie fans may recognize the band from their appearance in the Michael J. Fox film, Class of 1984. In 2003, they teamed up with Marky Ramone to re-record a collection of their old songs entitled Teenage Head with Marky Ramone. 51-year-old Frankie Venom died of throat cancer on October 15, 2008.