Died On This Date (April 11, 2017) John Geils / Founder Of The J. Geils Band

John Geils
February 20, 1946 – April  11, 2017

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John Geils, known professionally as J. Geils, was the founder and lead guitarist of the popular Boston blues rock band, the J. Geils Band.  From an early age, Geils was surrounded by jazz and blues music thanks to his dad’s influence.  As a child, he could work out Miles Davis’ music on the trumpet and drums. He also taught himself the by listening to the likes of Howlin’ Wolf and Muddy Waters on the radio.  When it came time for college, Geils chose Northwestern University where he played trumpet in the marching band.  He soon moved over to Worcester Polytechnic University where he met Peter Wolf, Danny Klein, Magic Dick Salwitz and Seth Justman, and the J. Geils Band was soon formed. They released their first album in 1970, but even though they received plenty of FM airplay and marveled concert audiences all over the country, it took another 12 years and 11 albums before they hit #1 with Freeze Frame.  The band have several charting singles throughout their run, including “Musta Got Lost,” “Freeze Frame,” “Love Stinks,” and most famously,  “Centerfold.”  The J. Geils Band broke up in 1985, after which, Geils began driving race cars and opened an auto restoration shop.  In 1996, he sold the shop and went on to participate in band reunions over the next two decades before retiring in 2012.  On April 11, 2017, local police paid a well-being visit on J. Geils’ home only to find him deceased at the age of 71.  Cause of death was not immediately released.

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Died On This Date (March 16, 2017) James Cotton / Blues Great

James Cotton
July 1, 1935 – March 16, 2017

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According to a press release from Alligator Records, world-renowned blues harmonica master James Cotton, whom Rolling Stone called, “One of the greats of all time, burning with brilliant virtuosity,” died on March 16, 2017 of pneumonia at St. David’s Medical Center in Austin, Texas. He was 81. His overwhelmingly powerful harmonica playing was one of the iconic sounds of the blues. He toured worldwide for over 60 years.

Born on a cotton plantation in Tunica, Mississippi on July 1, 1935, Cotton was a working musician by age nine. He learned harmonica directly from Sonny Boy Williamson II (Rice Miller), toured with Williamson and Howlin’ Wolf, and recorded for Sun Records in 1953 before spending 12 years touring and recording with Muddy Waters (starting at age 20). Cotton was featured on Muddy’s famous 1960 At Newport LP on Chess Records, including the iconic version of Got My Mojo Working, one of the classic recordings of Chicago Blues.

After his 1953 Sun sessions, Cotton didn’t record under his own name again until the mid-1960s, with tracks included in the groundbreaking Chicago/The Blues/Today! series of LPs on Vanguard. Along with Otis Spann, he cut The Blues Never Die! for Prestige.

In 1966 he formed The James Cotton Band, quickly earning a reputation as one of the most commanding and potent live blues performers in the world—a man who could literally suck the reeds out of his harmonica from the pure force of his playing. He made his initial solo albums, three for Verve and one for Vanguard, in the late 1960s.

Cotton’s blistering talent and full-throttle energy kept him in demand at concert halls all over the country. He played the Fillmore East in New York, the Fillmore West in San Francisco and every major rock and blues venue in between. During the 1970s, he cut three albums for Buddah and one for Capitol.

Cotton signed with Alligator Records in 1984, releasing two solo albums and the famed Harp Attack! with Junior Wells, Carey Bell and Billy Branch. He won a Grammy Award in 1996 for his Verve album, Deep In The Blues and recorded four albums for Telarc Records before returning to Alligator in 2010. His most recent recording was 2013’s Grammy-nominated Cotton Mouth Man.

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Died On This Date (February 4, 2016) Maurice White / Founder of Earth, Wind & Fire

Maurice White
December 19, 1941 – February 4, 2016

Maurice-WhiteMaurice White was the founder and co-lead singer of the highly influential R&B band, Earth, Wind & Fire.  Formed in Chicago in 1969, the band went on to sell over 100 million albums, making them one of the most successful bands of the 20th century.  For over four decades, the group dazzled audiences around the world thanks in part to their dynamic horn section and energetic live shows.  White was born in Memphis, Tennessee and gravitated toward music at an early age along with childhood friend, Booker T Jones.  As a teenager, White moved to Chicago where he found work as a session drummer for the legendary label, Chess Records.  He played on numerous records by the likes of Etta James, Muddy Waters, the Impressions, and Buddy Guy.   In 1966, he joined Ramsey Lewis Trio with whom he recorded nine albums and received his first Grammy for the single, “Hold It Right There.”  Three years later, he formed Earth, Wind & Fire and went on to produce most of the their albums.  In all, the group earned six Grammys along with countless other awards and accolades.  During the ’80s, White was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. Due to that, he ultimately retired from touring in 1994, but continued to oversee the band’s business side while producing their records and those by others.   His most notable successes outside of Earth, Wind & Fire were releases by the Emotions and Deniece Williams.   The stunning list of other collaborators includes Barbra Streisand, Weather Report, Neil Diamond, and Minnie Riperton.  Maurice White was 74 when he passed away on February 4, 2016.  Cause of death was not immediately released but likely attributed to his long battle with Parkinson’s.

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Died On This Date (July 16, 2014) Johnny Winter / American Blues Great

Johnny Winter
February 23, 1944 – July 16, 2014

Photo by David Plastik - Click To Order Quality Prints - Discount code: 10OFF
Photo by David Plastik – Click To Order Quality Prints – Discount code: 10OFF

Johnny Winter was an American blues musician and producer who can rightfully be called one of the architects of blues-rock.  An electric guitarist who had few equals, Winter was signed to Columbia Records in 1969 to what is believed to have been the biggest deal for a solo artist at the time. Born in Beaumont, Texas, Winter and his younger brother, Edgar Winter, took to music at an early age.  By the time he was 10, Winter was already performing with a ukulele on local television.  When he was just 15, his band, Johnny and the Jammers, released their first single, “School Day Blues.”  He released his first album, The Progressive Blues Experiment, in 1968. That was followed by Johnny Winter, his first with Columbia Records.  The following year, he released Second Winter, which included several songs that would become staples of his live shows and would enjoy recurring airplay on rock (and then classic rock) and blues stations ever since.  Over the next 40 years, Winter released critical and fan-acclaimed albums for such labels as Columbia, MCA, Alligator, and Virgin.  As a producer, Winter was recognized with three Grammys for albums he produced for Muddy Waters.  In 2003, Rolling Stone named him #63 on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.  According to Guitar Blues Scene, Johnny Winter was 70 when he passed away on July 16, 2014.  Cause of death was not immediately released.

Thanks to David Plastik of eRockPhotos for the assist.

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Died On This Date (May 30, 2012) Pete Cosey / Guitarist For Miles Davis

Pete Cosey
October 9, 1943 – May 30, 2012

Pete Casey was a legendary Chicago guitarist who is most often associated with Miles Davis with whom he played between 1973 and 1975.  But his musical footprint by no means stopped with the jazz great.  For several years, Cosey was a house guitarist for Chess Records which afforded him the opportunity to play on records by the likes of Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, and Etta James.  After he parted ways with Davis in 1975, Cosey continued working but with mostly far lower-profile artists than he had during his early years.  Pete Cosey passed away on May 30, 2012.  He was 68.

Thanks to Harold Lepidus for the assist.