Died On This Date (July 10, 2011) Travis Bean / Innovative Guitar Maker
themusicsover Clifford Travis Bean
August 21, 1947 – July 10, 2011
Travis Bean was a Los Angeles, California area electric guitar maker who helped revolutionize the instrument during the 1970s. In 1974, he launched Travis Bean Guitars to mass produce high-end electric guitars that had solid aluminum necks instead of the customary wood ones. Besides giving the instruments a unique tone and durability, the metal added heft and cost to the guitars, upwards of $1000 each, which was a fairly large sum at that time. Loyal fans of Bean’s guitars included Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead, Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Keith Richards and Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones, and jazz great, Stanley Jordan. Bean also constructed a similar bass guitar that was used by the likes of Bill Wyman. Bean halted production of the guitars in 1979 rather than compromise on the quality to meet lower cost demands. Over 3600 guitars and basses came off the line during the five years of production. Bean returned with another round of similar guitars and basses during the late ’90s. Travis Bean was 63 when he died on July 10, 2011 following a long battle with cancer.
Jason Mizell, who went by the stage name, Jam-Master-Jay, was a musician in and DJ for Run D.M.C., arguably the most influential rap group ever. In 2009, they would become the first hip-hop act to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. An accomplished drummer, keyboardist and bass player, Mizell performed in a handful of bands before joining up with Joseph Simmons and Darryl McDaniels to form Run D.M.C. in 1983. The group, who sold upwards of seven million albums, was positioned at number 48 in Rolling Stone’s list of the greatest musical acts of all time. They were even instrumental in bridging the gap between rap and rock. Their cover of Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way,” with guests, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, was one of the most popular songs of the era. On October 30, 2002, Jam-Master-Jay, 37, was in his recording studio when two assailants came in and shot and killed him. The murder remains unsolved.
