Died On This Date (June 27, 2002) Timothy White / Music Journalist

Timothy White
January 25, 1952 – June 27, 2002

Timothy White was a respected but at times controversial music journalist who started as an AP writer but went on to be editor of the Crawdaddy! the ’70s, senior editor of Rolling Stone in the ’80s, and finally, editor-in-chief of Billboard in the ’90s.   He also wrote a handful of popular music biographies, his subjects being the Beach Boys, James Taylor and Bob Marley.  But White wasn’t above being written ABOUT as evident by the Eminem lyric, “Let me recite ’til Timothy White, pickets outside the Interscope offices every night.”  Although in apparent good health, White died of a heart attack while riding the elevator at his office on June 27, 2002.

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Died On This Date (May 18, 1999) Augustus Pablo / Reggae Great

Augustus Pablo (Born Horace Swaby)
June 21, 1953 – May 18, 1999

Augustus Pablo was a popular reggae musician and producer who was unique in that his instrument of choice was the melodica, or “blow-organ,” which was up until the late ’60s, primarily used to teach music to school children.  Pablo began making records in 1971, with one of his earliest, “East Of The River Nile,” being a minor hit.    By the end of the decade, he released numerous hits and collaborated with the likes of Bob Marley, Horace Andy, King Tubby, and Hugh Mundell.   Throughout the last two decades of his life, Pablo recorded less, but produced more hits by the likes of Junior Delgado.  He also continued to be a popular concert draw around the world.  Augustus Pablo was 44 years old when he passed away on May 18, 1999.  He died as the result of a collapsed lung brought on by a nerve disorder he had suffered from for quite some time.

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Died On This Date (May 11, 1981) Bob Marley / Reggae Icon

Bob Marley
February 6, 1945 – May 11, 1981

Bob Marley was a Jamaican musician and singer-songwriter who is widely recognized for bringing reggae music to the rest of the world.  He is arguable the most beloved performer of reggae.  His greatest hits album, Legend, is the biggest selling reggae album of all times, selling a staggering 20 million copies.  in 1963, producer Coxsone Dodd discovered Marley in a group that also included Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer.  They would soon become the Wailers.  Over the next several years, Marley would release a string of albums that would help define a sound and movement.  Those classic albums included Catch A Fire, Burnin’, Rastaman Vibration, and of course, Exudus.  In July of 1977, Marley was diagnosed with a form of malenoma in his big toe.  Citing his Rastafarian belief that the body most remain whole, Marley refused to receive any form of surgical treatment.  Instead, he sought more controversial and holistic forms of treatment, but the cancer had already progressed too far.  Bob Marley passed away in a Miami hospital at the age of 36.

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Died On This Date (May 5, 2004) Coxsone Dodd / Legendary Reggae Producer

Clement “Coxsone” Dodd
January 26, 1932 – May 5, 2004

coxsoneCoxsone Dodd was the pioneering Jamaican DJ and producer that many credit for early development of reggae and ska.  Dodd’s career in music began at an early age when he would spin records at this parents’ store.   He grew that into a popular sound system business, employing the likes of Lee “Scratch” Perry an U-Roy to run the sound systems.  Having spent some time in the United States, Dodd featured early American R&B records, first introducing many Jamaicans to the music.   Realizing that he couldn’t keep up with the local demand for new music with imports from the States, Dodd decided to start his own record label and shortly thereafter, open his Studio One recording studio.  Over the next two decades, Dodd would produce and release some of reggae’s greatest songs and albums from such artists as Bob Marley, Burning Spear, Sugar Minott, Ras Michael and Horace Andy.  To many, he was to reggae what Berry Gordy was to R&B, and his “studio one sound” would become the blueprint for ska and rocksteady.  Dodd died of a heart attack at the age of 74.

Died On This Date (January 20, 2010) Lyn Tait / Influential Reggae Guitarist

Lyn Taitt
June 22, 1934 – January 20, 2010

Lyn Taitt was a reggae guitarist best known for his work on rocksteady recordings.  As a child, Taitt first learned to play the steel drum, but by his mid teens he switched over to guitar.  His style was percussive and inventive, making him one of the first stand-outs of ska and rocksteady.  Over the course of his career, he played on hundreds of records, and worked with producers like the great Joe Gibbs and Coxsone Dodd.  His guitar work has graced records by the likes of Lee Scratch Perry, Bob Marley, Desmond Dekker and Ken Boothe.  In 1968, he moved to Canada where he stayed an active part of the Montreal reggae scene well into the 21st century.  Lyn Tait died of cancer on January 10, 2010.  He was 75.

Thanks to Craig Rosen at Number 1 Albums for the assist.

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