Arnold Schoenberg

popular name: Blind Willie McTell

date_of_death: August 19, 1959

age: 61

cause_of_death: Stroke

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: “Blind Willie” McTell was one of the great blues musicians of the 1920s and 1930s who continued to play through the 1950s. Displaying an extraordinary range on the twelve-string guitar, this Atlanta-based musician recorded more than 120 titles during fourteen recording sessions. His voice was soft and expressive, and his musical tastes were influenced by southern blues, ragtime, gospel, hillbilly, and popular music. At a time when most blues musicians were poorly educated and rarely traveled, McTell was an exception. He could read and write music in Braille. McTell's influence extended over a wide variety of artists, including the Allman Brothers Band, who covered his song "Statesboro Blues", and Bob Dylan, who paid tribute to him in his 1983 song "Blind Willie McTell" and covered a number of his songs throughout his career. Blind Willie was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame in 1981.

popular name: Rory Gallagher

date_of_death: June 14, 1995

age: 47

cause_of_death: Staphylococcal infection (MRSA) following a liver transplant

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: One of Europe's great guitar players, Rory Gallagher's single-minded dedication to the blues and refusal to change his style for radio success forever relegated him to small clubs and the college tour circuit. Born in Ballyshannon, Ireland Gallagher formed his first band, Taste, in 1968. A blend of heavy metal power chords and American blues, Taste recorded several well-received on the ATCO record label. With so few Irish rock bands apart from Van Morrison and Them, Taste began to garner critical and popular acclaim touring with Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, Yes, Cream and Blind Faith before disbanding under a cloud of financial mismanagement. Gallagher continued as a solo act, touring the U.S. no less than 25 times. Voted Musician of the Year by Melody Maker magazine in 1972, Gallagher's popularity dropped considerably over the next decade. In 1994, during a small tour of Europe clubs and college gigs, Gallagher fell seriously ill in very short order and underwent a liver transplant in 1995. He died of a massive infection while still recuperating in the hospital. Upon his death, he was laid to rest in St. Oliver's Cemetery, Cork Ireland.

popular name: Gilbert Bécaud

date_of_death: December 18, 2001

age: 74

cause_of_death: Lung cancer

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Gilbert Bécaud was a French singer, composer, pianist and actor known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his energetic performances. His best-known hits are "Nathalie" and "Et maintenant", a 1961 release that became an English language hit as "What Now My Love". He remained a popular artist for nearly fifty years, identifiable in his dark blue suits, with a white shirt and "lucky tie"; blue with white polka dots. His favourite venue was the Paris Olympia under the management of Bruno Coquatrix. He debuted there in 1954 and headlined in 1955, attracting 6,000 on his first night, three times the capacity. Bécaud composed over 450 songs and sold millions of records over the years, and seemed almost never to spend an evening away from a stage - in one year he gave 249 concerts. He sang in six languages, a fact that helped his overseas tours, but was always happiest at the Olympia in Paris, where he topped the bill more than 30 times. Upon his death in 2001, he was laid to rest in Cimetière du Père Lachaise, Paris France.