Tag: R.I.P. (1-10 of 52)

May 20 2013 12:38 PM ET

Singer and producer Romanthony, best known for Daft Punk's 'One More Time,' has died

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Singer, DJ, and house music producer Anthony Moore, who went by the stage name Romanthony, passed away last week at his home in Austin at the age of 46. His family confirmed his passing today, and said the cause was kidney disease.

Though he released four albums of his own, Romanthony is best known as the voice behind Daft Punk’s “One More Time.” Though it was completed in 1998, the track wasn’t released as a single until 2000, and later appeared on Daft Punk’s 2001 album Discovery. (Moore also provided vocals for the album’s closing track, “Too Long.”)

Moore also operated his own label, Black Male Records, through which he released his albums and singles. His music was nominally all filed under the “house” genre, but it was hardly confined to it, also reaching into techno, funk, hip-hop, and beyond.

Listen to “One More Time” and Romanthony’s solo release “Make This Love Right (Tronic Dub)” below:

READ FULL STORY »

Mar 18 2013 05:10 PM ET

Jason Molina of Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co. dies at 39

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Image Credit: Jordi Vidal/Redferns

Jason Molina, the musician behind beloved indie-rock outfits Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co., died from organ failure on Saturday at his home in Indianapolis. He was 39.

Molina’s death, Chunklet reports, was caused by years of alcohol abuse, which the musician had been dealing with publicly. Molina’s last few years included numerous stints in rehab centers in America and England, and Pitchfork reports that his family members had set up a fund in 2011 for fans wanting to contribute to his medical costs.

In May of last year, Molina posted a statement on Magnolia Electric Co.’s website acknowledging his struggle but letting fans know that he was improving. It was his last public comment about his health:

Treatment is good, getting to deal with a lot of things that even the music didn’t want to. I have not given up because you, my friends have not given up on me. I do still need your support however that takes shape, good vibes are worth more than you might think.

Molina released his most recent album in 2012, the  solo effort Autumn Bird Songs. His body of work includes more than two decades of music created under various names — most of it released on his longtime label, Secretly Canadian.

The label issued an emotional statement on its website; you can read it in full below:

READ FULL STORY »

Aug 30 2012 04:46 PM ET

Chris Lighty, manager of stars like Mariah Carey, LL Cool J, and Diddy, has died at 44

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Chris Lighty, the hip-hop impresario and manager of the likes of Busta Rhymes, 50 Cent, and Diddy, has died. He was 44 years old.

According to a report in the New York Daily News, Lighty took his own life in his Bronx apartment this morning following an argument with his ex-wife. Though details remain scarce, authorities do know that he and his wife divorced last year, and that he may have owed as much as $5 million to the IRS in unpaid taxes.

At the turn of the century, being managed by Lighty and his Violator Entertainment shingle was a prestigious get — some of the biggest names in the music industry came under his guidance, including Mariah Carey, Missy Elliott, LL Cool J, Nas, and Ja Rule.

He began his career under the tutelage of Lyor Cohen and Russell Simmons as Rush Management in the late ’80s, later setting up Violator as one of the early multi-pronged management companies. They produced two compilations (Violator: The Album, and Violator: The Album, V2.0), which featured the likes of Q-Tip (performing his breakout solo single “Vivrant Thing”), Fat Joe, Mobb Deep, Cam’Ron, Cee-Lo, and Mase.

There was rarely a rap star from that era who didn’t come in contact with Lighty, who was known as a fair and savvy navigator of the ever-tumultuous waters of the hip-hop world, and he will undoubtedly be missed.

Read More on EW.com:
Review: Violator: The Album
Review: Violator: The Album, V2.0

Aug 1 2012 02:51 PM ET

No Use For a Name singer Tony Sly dead at 41

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Tony Sly, singer and chief songwriter for veteran California pop punk band No Use For a Name, has passed away at age 41. His cause of death has yet to be released.

In a statement posted to the band’s label’s website, Fat Wreck Chords founder and NoFX frontman Fat Mike said, “One of my dearest friends and favorite song writers has gone way too soon. Tony, you will be greatly missed.”

READ FULL STORY »

Jul 17 2012 11:38 AM ET

Funk Brothers bass player Bob Babbitt dies at 74

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Image Credit: AP/Luke Palmisano

Prominent Motown studio musician and Funk Brothers member Bob Babbitt, whose bass playing pounded through the Temptations hit “Ball of Confusion” and Marvin Gaye’s “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology),” has died. He was 74.

Babbitt died Monday of complications from brain cancer in Nashville, Tenn., where he had lived for many years, his manager David Spero said in a statement released by Universal Music, the label in which Babbitt contributed to numerous hit records.

Well-known for decades among musicians, Babbitt laid down bass lines on Stevie Wonder’s “Signed, Sealed, Delivered,” along with “The Tears of a Clown” by Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, “Inner City Blues” by Marvin Gaye, and Edwin Starr’s “War.”

“Bob was a teddy bear of a guy,” former Motown engineer Ed Wolfrum told the Detroit Free Press. “And he was an extraordinary musician — a player’s player.” READ FULL STORY »

Jul 16 2012 03:45 PM ET

Deep Purple co-founder Jon Lord dies

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Jon Lord, the keyboardist and co-founder of Deep Purple, has died. He was 71 years old, and according to reports had been receiving treatment for pancreatic cancer since last year.

As a member of Deep Purple, Lord played on all the band’s definitive hits, including their breakout cover of Billy Joe Royal’s “Hush” (Lord’s vibey organ playing gave the song its haunting psychedelic quality) and on the iconic smash “Smoke on the Water,” which he also co-wrote.

All told, Deep Purple sold over 100 million albums worldwide, and the bulk of that business was done during Lord’s first tenure with the band, which lasted from the group’s inception in 1968 until the band collectively went on hiatus in 1976. He rejoined when the group reconstituted in 1984 and retired from the group for good in 2002.

In addition to his work with Deep Purple, Lord also worked with Whitesnake and found considerable success as a classical composer, penning a handful of well-received concertos mostly during the Deep Purple hiatus in the late ’70s.

Through his keyboard work in Deep Purple, Lord is often credited as the artist who made it reasonable for hard rock bands to incorporate strings, horns, and keys into their sounds, leading to the multiplatinum hybrid sounds of bands like Def Leppard and Bon Jovi.

In honor of Lord, check out this clip of him and the rest of Deep Purple playing “Hush” on a 1968 episode of Playboy After Dark: READ FULL STORY »

May 21 2012 11:01 AM ET

Crowded House drummer Pete Jones passes away at 45

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Pete Jones, the drummer for Australian band Crowded House, passed away on Friday after a long battle with brain cancer. He was 45 years old.

“We are in mourning today for the death of Peter Jones,” the surviving band members wrote in a statement on their website. “We remember him as a warm hearted, funny and talented man, who was a valuable member of Crowded House. He played with style and spirit. We salute him and send our love and best thoughts to his family and friends.”

Formed in 1985 following the breakup of Split Enz, Crowded House scored immediate hits in their native Australia and found international success with their 1986 self-titled debut, which contained “Don’t Dream It’s Over,” the band’s biggest success.

Jones didn’t join the band until 1994, just in time for their break up. He appeared on the band’s live album Farewell to the World, recorded on the steps of the Syndey Opera House in 1996 as the band’s farewell show.

Read more on EW.com:
Bee Gees singer Robin Gibb dies at age 62
Donna Summer has died at 63
Chuck Brown, pioneer of go-go funk music, has died at 75

May 17 2012 12:58 PM ET

Donna Summer playlist: In memoriam

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Has there ever been a musical genre more maligned than disco? Along with hair metal and that random swing-dance revival, disco is often used as shorthand for empty froth that inspired terrible fashion choices and aged poorer than warm Gruyere.

But the legacy of the late Donna Summer, who passed away today at the age of 63, makes a pretty spectacular case for the greatness of her particular blend of funk, soul, R&B, and dance music. She essentially created the genre with her 1975 hit “Love to Love You,” and only elevated it from there.

Over the course of her career, Summer recorded a handful of stone-cold classics that defined the late 1970s for millions, including the memorably “Last Dance,” the smash “Hot Stuff,” the iconic “Bad Girls,” and her whimsical chart-topping hit “MacArthur Park.”

Summer probably had the best 1979 of any recording artist of the era. In addition to “Hot Stuff” and “Bad Girls,” she put three more singles in the top five: The sweet “Heaven Knows,” the epic “Dim All The Lights,” and the Barbara Streisand duet “No More Tears (Enough Is Enough).”

All told, Summer put 14 singles in the top 10, including four number one hits. Her body of work — including plenty of hits that transcended disco — is impressive, and she was moving bodies all the way through her final album Crayons in 2008 (see the adrenaline-packed gem “Stamp Your Feet”).

Give the EW playlist below a spin, and enjoy the best days of disco. READ FULL STORY »

Apr 26 2012 01:24 PM ET

The Killers' saxophonist Tommy Marth commits suicide

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Tommy Marth, a saxophonist who played on the Killers’ second and third albums, was found dead of an apparent suicide on Monday in his Las Vegas home. He was 33 years old.

Though he was never a permanent member of the band, Marth was a key component in the Killers’ evolution from dance-friendly indie pop group into something grander. On 2006′s Sam’s Town and 2008′s Day & Age, he helped to create sweeping, E Street Band-esque desert soundscapes, and also toured with the band for Day & Age.

The Killers began a hiatus following the Day & Age tour, though they are working on a new album that should be out before the end of the year.

“Last night we lost our friend Thomas Marth,” Killers frontman Brandon Flowers said in a statement released on Tuesday. “Our prayers are with his family. There’s a light missing in Las Vegas tonight. Travel well, Tommy.”

Check out the video below of Marth during a performance of the Killers’ “Joy Ride” (from Day & Age) at the 2009 V Festival in England. READ FULL STORY »

Dec 28 2011 03:19 PM ET

Former Frank Zappa sideman Jim Sherwood dies at 69

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Experimental saxophonist and original member of Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention Jim Sherwood passed away on Christmas of undetermined causes. He was 69 years old.

Nicknamed “Motorhead” for his love of automobiles, Sherwood played sax on all of Zappa’s early albums, ending his stint with the Mothers of Invention after the release of the classic 1970 album Weasels Ripped My Flesh. He met Zappa in high school, where the pair bonded over their love of old blues music, and began his stint with the Mothers of Invention as an equipment manager, only occasionally participating in the recordings (he is credited with providing “noises” on the band’s 1966 debut Freak Out!).

He joined the band as a musician full-time in 1967, ripping through saxophone and percussion parts for the seven subsequent Zappa albums before the Mothers of Invention dissolved in 1969. Sherwood stayed close to Zappa, appearing in his classic cult film 200 Motels and frequently worked with him on subsequent musical projects up until the latter’s death in 1993. Later, he made multiple appearances with the Grandmothers, a collection of musicians who played alongside Zappa at various points in his career.

Read more on EW.com:
Vaclav Havel, playwright and anti-communist revolutionary, has died at 75
Zappa Made Easy: A Discography

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