Music Obituaries: March 2016

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Here are the people in and around the world of music who had the curtain close on their lives in the month of March. GAYLE MCCORMICK (died March 1, lung cancer, age 67): the vocalist in a 60's band called Smith, who had a hit with the song "Baby It's You." JACOB SANDERS (died March 2, drowned in boating accident, age 24): bassist in the popular Kentucky-based band Velcro Pygmies. JOEY FEEK (died March 4, cervical cancer, age 40): half of the husband-and-wife traditional country duo Joey + Rory, her battle with cancer was publicly chronicled in the family blog, putting a face on cervical cancer. Their album Hymns That We Love was the #1 country album on the Billboard charts when she died. AARON HUFFMAN (died March 6, respiratory failure, age 43): bassist in the grunge band Harvey Danger. LANA MEISNER (died March 7, accidental shooting, age 63): wife of original Eagles bassist Randy Meisner. RON JACOBS (died March 8, illness, age 78): radio personality who is best-known as being the co-creator of Casey Kasem's American Top 40 program. SIR GEORGE MARTIN (died March 8, natural causes, age 90): the "fifth Beatle" who produced their legendary recordings, he also worked with acts ranging from actor Peter Sellers to Sir Elton John. JOHN MORTHLAND (died March 8, illness, age 68): journalist who worked extensively for Rolling Stone and Creem magazines. JON ENGLISH (died March 9, complications from surgery, age 66): Australian singer and actor who was best-known for his long running role in the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar. CLARE MACINTYRE-ROSS (died March 9, complications of a stroke, age 72): a woman who never meant to be famous, she was Harry Chapin's one-time girlfriend who later became "Sue," the passenger and former love of a cab driver in Chapin's classic song "Taxi." NANA VASCONCELOS (died March 9, lung cancer, age 71): Grammy-award winning Brazilian jazz percussionist. ERNESTINE ANDERSON (died March 10, natural causes, age 87): Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist who worked with Quincy Jones and Lionel Hampton, among many others. KEITH EMERSON (died March 10, suicide by gunshot, age 71): the keyboardist in the legendary "prog-rock" band Emerson, Lake & Palmer. GOGI GRANT (died March 10, natural causes, age 91): pop singer best known for his massive hit rendition of "The Wayward Wind." BEN EDMONDS (died March 11, pancreatic cancer, age 65): Detroit-based journalist (Creem) and author (Marvin Gaye's biography), he was also credited with discovering Mink DeVille. LOUIS MEYERS (died March 11, heart attack, age 60): the co-founder of the legendary music conference South By Southwest (SXSW), he died just as the 2016 SXSW was beginning. TIM CRETSINGER (died March 14, throat cancer, age 61): the founder of the Groovefest music festival held annually in Utah. LEE ANDREWS (died March 16, unknown cause, age 79): leader of the 50s doo-wop group Lee Andrews & the Hearts and father of Questlove, the drummer for the Roots (Jimmy Fallon's house band). FRANK SINATRA JR. (died March 16, heart attack, age 72): the son of "Ol' Blue Eyes," Sinatra Jr. carried on his father's legacy, performing many of the elder Sinatra's biggest hits in concert. He was scheduled to play at the Peabody Auditorium in Daytona Beach when he was stricken. STEVE YOUNG (died March 17, complications of a brain injury suffered in a fall, age 73): 70s "underground country" singer/songwriter whose best-known composition, "Seven Bridges Road," was a 1980 hit for the Eagles and has been covered by countless others. JAMES JAMERSON JR. (died March 23, illness, age 58): a session bass player and member of the one-hit wonder disco band Chanson, who did "Don't Hold Back" in 1979. DAVID BAKER (died March 26, natural causes, age 84): respected professor of jazz at Indiana University who also wrote several books and articles on jazz. ROSS SHAPIRO (died March 27, illness, age 52): lead singer for the indie rock band the Glands. PATTY DUKE (died March 29, sepsis from a ruptured intestine, age 69): the Academy Award-winning (The Miracle Worker) actress had two top 20 songs, including "Don't Just Stand There," in 1965. ANDY "THUNDERCLAP" NEWMAN (died March 30, unknown cause, age 73): British session piano player whose namesake band Thunderclap Newman had one hit, "Something in the Air," in 1970. Farewell, and thank you for the music. Here's Patty Duke singing her top ten hit "Don't Just Stand There":