MUSICIANS WHO DIED IN FEBRUARY 2020
MUSICIANS WHO DIED IN FEBRUARY 2020
FEBRUARY 1
ANDY GILL (64) / ENGLISH MUSICIAN AND RECORD PRODUCER. A FOUNDING MEMBER AND THE LEAD GUITARIST OF THE ENGLISH POST-PUNK BAND GANG OF FOUR. THEY FORMED IN LEEDS IN 1976 AND RELEASED ENTERTAINMENT!, THEIR DEBUT ALBUM IN 1979. IT WAS LISTED AS THE FIFTH BEST PUNK ALBUM EVER BY THE ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE. GILL CO-PRODUCED THE RECORDINGS AND CO-DESIGNED THE COVER (WITH SINGER JON KING). GANG OF FOUR MADE TEN STUDIO ALBUMS, TWO LIVE ONES AND THREE COMPILATIONS, INCLUDING THE PEEL SESSIONS(1990). ALTHOUGH STARTED AS A PUNK BAND, THEIR USE OF FUNK, PUNK, DANCE MUSIC, REGGAE AND DUB MADE THEM A LEADING POST-PUNK GROUP. ANDY GILL PRODUCED ALL ALBUMS BY GANG OF FOUR, BUT HE ALSO PRODUCED LOTS OF OTHER GROUPS, AMONG THEM THE STRANGLERS, KILLING JOKE, THERAPY?, RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, THE JESUS LIZARD, FUTUREHEADS AND EVEN MICHAEL HUTCHENCE.
FEBRUARY 2
IVAN KRÁL (71) / CZECH-BORN AMERICAN COMPOSER, RECORD PRODUCER, BASS PLAYER, FILMMAKER, SINGER-SONGWRITER INTERESTED IN PUNK, ROCK, JAZZ, COUNTRY, SOUL, FILM MUSIC. WHEN HE WAS 16 HIS COMPOSITION "PIEROT" RECORDED WITH HIS BAND SAZE, ENTERED TOP TEN IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA. IN 1966 EMIGRATED FROM CZECHOSLOVAKIA TO THE US WITH DIPLOMAT PARENTS. HIS FIRST BAND LUGER OFTEN PLAYED MAX'S KANSAS CITY AND ONCE SUPPORTED KISS IN 1973. LATER KRAL PLAYED WITH SHAUN CASSIDY, BLONDIE (CO-FOUNDER), PATTI SMITH, IGGY POP. HE HELPED PATTI SMITH COMPOSE TWO SONGS ON HER DEBUT ALBUM HORSES (1975) AND ON RADIO ETHIOPIA (1976), THE SECOND ONE, HE CO-COMPOSED FOUR TUNES, CONTIBUTING TO EASTER (1978) AND WAVE (1979) AS WELL. HIS "DANCING BAREFOOT" FROM WAVE WAS LISTED IN THE ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE AS ONE OF THE GREATEST SONGS OF ALL TIME AND COVERED BY AT LEAST TWENTY PERFORMERS AS DIVERSE AS THE CELIBATE RIFLES, ALLISON MOORER, PEARL JAM, JOHNETTE NAPOLITANO, CLAN OF XYMOX, SIMPLE MINDS OR U2. DID DIFFERENT JOBS INCLUDING BEING A DRIVER FOR JOHN LENNON AND YOKO ONO. WAS AUDITIONED FOR GRAND FUNK RAILROAD AND PETER FRAMPTON. IVAN KRALL ALSO STARTED FILMING ROCK SHOWS IN 1968 AND THEN DOCUMENTED THE GROWING PUNK SCENE AT REHEARSALS, CBGB, THE BOTTOM LINE. HIS 1976 DIY FILM (WITH AMOS POE) THE BLANK GENERATION, PRESENTED THE BIRTH OF PUNK AND THE STILL UNSIGNED ACTS LIKE THE RAMONES, TELEVISION, NEW YORK DOLLS, BLONDIE, TALKING HEADS, JOHNNY THUNDERS AND THE HEARTBREAKERS, LIZZY MERCIER DESCLOUX, JAYNE COUNTY. KRAL RECORDED 16 SOLO ALBUMS, IS ON 12 WITH PATTI SMITH PLUS HE RECORDED WITH IGGY POP, JOHN CALE, TÉLÉPHONE, JOHN WAITE, NOEL REDDING AND WITH HIS OWN BAND EASTERN BLOC. HE PLAYED GUITAR ON IGGY POP'S 1980 ALBUM SOLDIER AND IN 1981 CO-WROTE WITH POP ALL THE SONGS FOR HIS NEXT ALBUM PARTY, WHICH INCLUDED THE POST-PUNK HIT SINGLE BANG BANG, IN 1987 COVERED BY DAVID BOWIE ON HIS NEVER LET ME DOWN ALBUM. IN 2011 KRAL DIRECTED THE FILM IGGY AND THE STOOGES LIVE AT ACADEMY OF MUSIC NEW YORK CITY USING SILENT FOOTAGE FROM 1973. IN 1995 AND 1998 HE WAS AWARDED GRAMMYS FOR ROCK PRODUCER. IN 1993 RETURNED TO PRAGUE.
FEBRUARY 10
LYLE MAYS (66) / AMERICAN JAZZ PIANIST AND COMPOSER, PLAYED SYNTHESIZERS, ELECTRIC GUITAR AND TRUMPET. A KEY MEMBER OF THE PAT METHENY GROUP FORMED IN 1977. ALONGSIDE METHENY, MAYS WAS THE ONLY PERMANENT MEMBER THROUGH THE BAND'S HISTORY. THEY CO-WROTE AND ARRANGED MOST OF THE GROUP'S MATERIAL.THEY RELEASED ELEVEN STUDIO ALBUMS AND TWO LIVE ONES. THEIR SECOND ALBUM AMERICAN GARAGE (1979) PEAKED AT #1 ON THE BILLBOARD JAZZ CHART, LIVE TRAVELS BECAME VERY POPULAR AMONG FANS AND THEIR LAST ONE THE WAY UP WAS NUMBER ONE IN POLAND (AND ONLY 117 IN BRITAIN). THIS ALBUM AND IMAGINARY DAY WENT GOLD IN POLAND AND SPEAKING OF NOW WENT PLATINUM ALSO IN POLAND. IN 1980 PAT METHENY AND LYLE MAYS RECORDED AS FALLS WICHITA, SO FALLS WICHITA FALLS (RELEASED IN 1981) #1 ON THE BILLBOARD JAZZ CHART AGAIN. THEY WON ELEVEN GRAMMY AWARDS AND MAYS HAS BEEN NOMINATED FOR FOUR MORE ON HIS OWN (INCL. LAB 75, THE FIRST GRAMMY NOMINATION FOR A STUDENT GROUP). HE ALSO MADE FIVE SOLO ALBUMS, THE SELF-TITLED FIRST OF WHICH WAS #1 ON THE BILLBOARD JAZZ ALBUM LIST. BEFORE JOINING PAT METHENY GROUP, LYLE MAYS TOURED WITH THE WOODY HERMAN BIG BAND FOR LESS THAN A YEAR. HIS GREATEST, LIFETIME INFLUENCE WAS PIANIST BILL EVANS. LYLE MAYS WORKED AS A SIDEMAN WITH JONI MITCHELL, BOBBY McFERRIN, EARTH WIND AND FIRE, WOODY HERMAN (LIVE IN WARSAW 1976), TOOTS THIELEMANS, STEVE SWALLOW, RICKIE LEE JONES, EBERHARD WEBER, PAUL McCANDLESS AND OTHERS.
FEBRUARY 11
JOSEPH SHABALALA (78) / SOUTH AFRICAN SINGER, MUSICIAN, COMPOSER AND MUSICAL DIRECTOR. FOUNDER LEADER AND MUSICAL DIRECTOR OF THE FAMOUS VOCAL ENSEMBLE LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO.
FEBRUARY 18
JON CHRISTENSEN (76) / NORWEGIAN JAZZ DRUMMER. IN THE 1960's WORKED WITH JAZZ GIANT GEORGE RUSSELL. THEN IN THE 1980'S WITH ARILD ANDERSEN IN MASQUALERO. BUT THE REAL FAME CAME WHEN CHRISTENSEN WAS A PART OF KEITH JARRETT EUROPEAN QUARTET WITH JAN GARBAREK AND PALLE DANIELSON. THEY MADE FIVE ALBUMS FOR ECM: BELONGING (1974), MY SONG (1977), PERSONAL MOUNTAINS (1979), NUDE ANTS (1979), SLEEPER (1979). ECM WAS HIS MAIN LABEL. ALSO RECORDED WITH CHARLES LLOYD, BOBO STENSON, JOHN ABERCROMBIE, ENRICO RAVA, LEE KONITZ, PHIL WOODS, PONY POINDEXTER, LEO WRIGHT, RADKA TONEFF, KARIN KROG, MIROSLAV VITOUS, STEVE KUHN, MIKE NOCK, RALPH TOWNER, TERJE RYPDAL, PALLE MIKKELBORG, L. SHANKAR, EBERHARD WEBER, JAN ERIK KONGSHAUG (WHO DIED THREE MONTHS AGO), HERBERT JOOS (WHO DIED TWO MONTHS AGO), DINO SALUZZI, TOMASZ STAŃKO AND MANY OTHERS.
FEBRUARY 25
DAVID ROBACK (61) / AMERICAN GUITARIST AND SONGWRITER. FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE ALTERNATIVE ROCK DUO MAZZY STAR. IN THE MID-1970's WITH BROTHER STEVEN ROBACK FORMED THE UNCONSCIOUS WHICH INCLUDED SUSANNA HOFFS, FUTURE PUNK ROCKER AND THE LEAD SINGER AND GUITARIST OF THE BANGLES. IN 1981 ROBACK STARTED RAIN PARADE (INITIALLY CALLED THE SIDEWALKS), A BAND THAT WAS PART OF THE PAISLEY UNDERGROUND SCENE IN LOS ANGELES. WHEN ROBACK LEFT THE RAIN PARADE, HE FORMED CLAY ALLISON, LATER RENAMED TO OPAL. THE BAND ALSO INCLUDED KENDRA SMITH (DREAM SYNDICATE) ON BASS AND KEITH MITCHELL ON DRUMS. AFTER TWO EPs AND A STUDIO ALBUM HAPPY NIGHTMARE BABY (SST, 1987) SMITH LEFT AND WAS REPLACED BY SINGER SONGWRITER HOPE SANDOVAL AND THE BAND SOON CHANGED THE NAME TO MAZZY STAR IN 1989. THEY MADE FOUR ALBUMS. THE SECOND OF THEM SO TONIGHT THAT I MIGHT SEE WENT PLATINUM AND INCLUDED THEIR GREATEST HIT FADE INTO YOU. ROBACK ALSO PRODUCED BETH ORTON AND MOVED TO NORWAY WHERE HE MADE EXPERIMENTAL MUSIC. DAVID ROBACK INFLUENCED SOME YOUNGER ARTISTS LIKE LANA DEL REY, TAYLOR SWIFT AND ANDY BELL (RIDE, OASIS AND BEADY EYE).
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