It’s always sad when our favorite musicians pass away, and in 2024 we had to do say goodbye to several artists who made a huge impact on music.
Grateful Dead fans were shocked when it was announced that bassist Phil Lesh died on Oct. 25 at 84. Lesh, who cofounded the iconic jam band with Jerry Garcia, Bobby Weir, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan and Bill Kreutzmann in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1965, co-wrote several of the band’s iconic tunes, including “Truckin'” and “Box of Rain.”
Another great loss to the music world happened on April 18 when Allman Brothers Band founding member Dickey Betts died at the age of 80.
Betts, who cofounded the group in 1969 along with brothers Duane and Gregg Allman, Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks and Jaimoe Johanson, wrote and sang lead on songs like “Ramblin’ Man,” their only top-10 hit, and “Blue Sky.” He also composed their well-known instrumentals, including “Jessica” and “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed.”
And on Nov. 3, legendary music producer Quincy Jones passed away at the age of 91. Jones was the producer behind Michael Jackson’s hit albums Off The Wall and Thriller. He was nominated for 80 Grammy Awards, of which he won 28, during his decadeslong career.
Here’s a list of many of the music figures who died in 2024, in chronological order:
Jan. 4: Actor/musician David Soul, who had a hit with “Don’t Give Up On Us,” 80
Jan. 19: Mary Weiss, lead singer of the Shangri-Las, 75
Jan. 23: Frank Farian, German record producer who founded Milli Vanilli, 82
Jan. 23: Melanie Safka, best known for her breakthrough appearance at Woodstock and her #1 hit “Brand New Key,” 76
Feb. 7: Henry Fambrough, the last surviving original member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame R&B group The Spinners, 85
March 11: Eric Carmen, best known for hits like “Hungry Eyes” and “All By Myself,” 74
April 24: Mike Pinder, keyboardist, vocalist and founding member of The Moody Blues, 82
April 30: Guitar great Duane Eddy, who had 15 top-40 singles throughout the late ’50s and early ’60s, 86
May 1: ELO keyboardist Richard Tandy, who appeared on all of ELO’s records since 1973’s ELO 2, 76
May 12: Saxophonist David Sanborn, who performed and recorded with a whole host of musicians, including David Bowie, James Taylor and Eric Clapton, 78
May 24: Iron Butterfly founder and lead vocalist Doug Ingle, who cowrote their signature song, “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida,” 78
July 22: Duke Fakir, founding member of the Four Tops, 88
July 22: John Mayall, British blues and rock musician, and mentor to Eric Clapton, who was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, 90
Aug. 13: Greg Kihn, best known for hits like “Jeopardy” and “The Breakup Song,” 75
Sept. 6: Will Jennings, writer of such songs as “Up Where We Belong” and “My Heart Will Go On,” 80
Sept. 17: JD Souther, solo artist and co-writer of many hits for the Eagles, like “Best of My Love,” “New Kid in Town,” “Heartache Tonight” and “Victim of Love,” 78
Sept. 28: Kris Kristofferson, singer, songwriter and actor, best known for such songs as “Me and Bobby McGee,” “Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down” and “Help Me Make It Through the Night,” 88
Oct. 6: Johnny Neel, a member of the Allman Brothers Band and the Dickey Betts Band, 70
Oct. 7: Cissy Houston, the mother of Whitney Houston and a singer in her own right, 91
Nov. 13:Shel Talmy, the producer who oversaw seminal early recordings by The Who and The Kinks, 87
Nov. 14: Peter Sinfield, King Crimson songwriter and lyricist, 80
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