Larry Hoppen, lead singer for the 70’s group, Orleans, passed away on July 24, 2012. He was 61. Orleans had a string of hits in the 70’s, none bigger than “Still The One” which hit #5 in 1976.
Their other big hit, Dance With Me charted at Number 6 in 1975.
July 16, saw the passing of rock keyboard innovator, Jon Lord. He was 71. Best known as one of the founding members of 70’s icons, Deep Purple, he also played with Whitesnake. He played on the classic song by The Kinks, “You Really Got Me“. He was on albums by David Gilmour and George Harrison. He virtually created the riffs used to this day by keyboardists in all types of popular music.
In my life, Deep Purple was one of the bands that formed my musical tastes. Machine Head is still an album that makes me perk up and listen. I will never forget Smoke On The Water or Highway Star, which are very much a part of the soundtrack of my life. The band in heaven just got a bit better.
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You like the Motown sound? Bob Babbitt, bass player extraordinaire, was likely responsible for that. He passed away on July 16, leaving behind a huge legacy and body of work. He played bass for Motown’s studio band, The Funk Brothers from 1966 to 1972. This would make a lot of people very familiar with his work, without realizing it. He was the bass player on such hits as Stevie Wonder’s “Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours“, Smokey Robinson’s “Tracks of My Tears” and Freda Payne‘s “Band of Gold”. He also played with such greats as Phil Collins and Jimi Hendrix. Very diverse portfolio. Here are a few tracks.
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On our arrival in Lisbon. Portugal, we were saddened to be informed that my cousin Lynn’s husband Dale had succumbed to cancer.
Keeping in mind that we are not Catholic, and neither are Dale and Lynn, we decided on an appropriate tribute (we think) in that we were in Spain and Portugal, both of which have a multitude of beautiful cathedrals. We decided we would light a candle in remembrance in each cathedral we visited. Our first candle was lit in Lisbon and we now moved into Spain.
Our travels took us to Toledo.
From Toledo, we moved on to Seville
Our next stop was a day trip to Cordoba and the world-famous Mezquita de Cordoba.
Zack Booher of the band While We’re Up was killed in a car accident on July 8, 2012. He was 22. The band is an acoustic rock duo with one indie album to their credit, “Every Moment”. Terrific duo, great song, terrible loss.
On our arrival in Lisbon. Portugal, we were saddened to be informed that my cousin Lynn’s husband Dale had succumbed to cancer. This put a damper on an otherwise exuberant day, and we would think of him and his family often during the trip. We had last seen Dale in a set of unusual circumstances in October of 2011. Lori and I had hopped a plane in Winnipeg on our way to Ottawa, where we were heading out on a fall road trip though Quebec. Amazingly, Dale and Lynn walked past us on the plane and sat directly behind us. An absolutely amazing coincidence. We spent a bit of time chatting on the plane and a bit of time in the Ottawa airport before we went our separate ways. He was a great person and will be missed terribly by all in his circles.
Keeping in mind that we are not Catholic, and neither are Dale and Lynn, we decided on an appropriate tribute ( we think) in that we were in Spain and Portugal, both of which have a multitude of beautiful cathedrals. we decided we would light a candle in remembrance in each cathedral we visited.
Our first candle was lit in the famous Sao Domingo cathedral in Lisbon, just off Rossio Square.
The music world lost Abram Wilson June 9, 2012. He passed at the age of 38 of colon cancer. Far to early. I have explored jazz, and the trumpet in particular through an introduction to Donald Byrd, and discovered Abram in my travels. Spectacular player, absolutely amazing. He was born in New Orleans and lived in London, UK. Have a listen to the cuts I have included and then dig a bit deeper, satisfaction is guaranteed,
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June 7, 2012 saw the passing of former Fleetwood Mac guitarist, Bob Welch. Another great one lost. He committed suicide at the age of 66. In addition to his time with the band, he had a successful solo career. Here are a couple of those solo hits in his honor.
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Andy Hamilton, a sensational jazz sax player, passed away on June 3 at the age of 94. Originally from Jamaica, he stowed away on a banana boat and travelled to the UK. He paid his dues ( a 14 day jail term for this transgression) and left jail to pursue his music. This guy was the real deal as you will hear in the 2 clips I have inserted here. Wow, wow, wow!!!!
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Here he is playing his song, “Orocabessa” in 2007 at the age of 89.
June 1 saw the passing of American jazz saxophonist, Faruq Z. Bey . He was best known for his time with Griot Galaxy, a free jazz band from the 1970’s and 80’s. In the mid 80’s, he was forced to leave the band after a bike accident that left him in a coma for some time. He returned to playing in the mid 90’s. I have posted a couple of videos here in tribute to this outstanding musician. The first is with his band “The Northwood Improvisers”. The second is with the Griot Galaxy. Love Jazz.
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