Died On This Date (April 23, 2012) Chris Ethridge / International Submarine Band; Flying Burrito Brothers

Chris Ethridge
1947 – April 23, 2012

Chris Ethridge was an American musician who is best remembered for playing in the International Submarine Band and the Flying Burrito Brothers.  Born in Meridian, Mississippi, Ethridge was already playing in local bands by the time he moved to Los Angeles at 17.  It was there that he joined the International Submarine Band, playing alongside with Gram Parsons.  The year was 1967, and Ethridge played on that year’s release, Safe At Home.  Parsons left ISB the following year and Ethridge followed suit.  He worked with Parsons on solo projects even co-writing several of his songs.  In 1968, Ethridge co-founded the Flying Burrito Brothers with Parsons, Chris Hillman, and Sneaky Pete Kleinow. Although Ethridge played on just the band’s first album, The Gilded Palace Of Sin before leaving in 1969, it can’t be denied that he played a role in the birth of country rock while influencing the likes of the Eagles, Wilco, and Ryan Adams.  In 1975, he participated in a reformed version of the Burrito Brothers for the recording of Flying Again.  Over the course of his career, Ethridge played on records by such acts as Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, Randy Newman, and Ry Cooder.  He also spent more than seven years playing in Willie Nelson’s live band. Chris Ethridge was 65 when he passed away on April 23, 2012. He was 65.  Cause of death was not immediately released.

Thanks to Bruce Kilgour at Slipped Disc Entertainment for the assist.

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The Gilded Palace of Sin and Burrito Deluxe - The Flying Burrito Brothers

Died On This Date (July 14, 1973) Clarence White / The Byrds, Kentucky Colonels

Clarence White
June 7, 1944 – July 14, 1973

Clarence White started his professional career as founding guitarist for the Kentucky Colonels, a progressive bluegrass outfit formed with his brothers. The Colonels were making a name for themselves in the Los Angeles area in the early ’60s, but their dreams of fame were soon derailed by the one-two punch of the British Invasion, and Bob Dylan going electric. White quickly found plenty of session working on records by the likes of the Monkees, International Submarine Band, and the Flying Burrito Brothers, after which he landed with the Byrds. His tenure with the Byrds started in 1966 with the California-country years of Gram Parsons, a perfect home for his style of playing. In the years following the Byrds break-up, White went back to session work, working with Randy Newman and Jackson Browne. He also joined a bluegrass “supergroup” called Muleskinner, playing alongside Peter Rowan, David Grisman, Bill Keith and Richard Green. Muleskinner’s contemporary sound would be the foundation of what would later be called “new grass.” Then in the early morning hours of July 14, tragedy struck. While loading gear into his car after a Kentucky Colonels reunion gig, White was struck and killed by a drunk driver. He was just 29.

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Ballad of Easy Rider - The Byrds


Died On This Date (September 19, 2008) Earl Palmer / Legendary Session Drummer

Earl Palmer
October 25, 1924 – September 19, 2008

Earl Palmer was a session drummer with a resume that reads like a who’s who of popular music.  He has been called the “most recorded drummer in history.”  Over a career that spanned over 50 years, Palmer played on hit recordings by the likes of Little Richard, Fats Domino, Frank Sinatra, Rick Nelson, Ray Charles, the Beach Boys, Neil Young, Dizzy Gillespie, Count Basie, B.B. King, Randy Newman, Bonnie Raitt, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello and many many more.   Palmer was recognized for his incomparable contribution to rock ‘n roll by being the first session musician elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.   Earl Palmer passed away in 2008 at the age of 83.