Elvin Shepherd

AKA:
Shep
Birth Name:
Elvin J. Shepherd
Birth Date:
May 28, 1923
Birth Place:
Alexandria, Virginia
Death Date:
June 2, 1995
Place of Death:
Buffalo, New York
Age:
72
Cause of Death:
Undisclosed
Cemetery Name:
Forest Lawn Cemetery
Claim to Fame:
Music
Elvin "Shep" Shepherd was a legendary saxophonist whose career spanned half a century. He traveled with such big name bands as Buck Clayton, Bill Doggett, Billy Ekstine, Erskin Hawkins, Lucky Milinder, and Nat Towles. During his storied career he also accompanied such artists as Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, Ray Price, Della Reese, and Dakota Staton.

Fun fact: Drafted into the military at the age of 18, Shep went off to camp Pickett, Virginia for basic training where he made the acquaintance of members in an Army band and started sitting in with them on officers club jobs. Shep was on a troop train headed for Camp Barkley, in Ailene, Texas and made a stop in St Louis for a 5-6 hour layover. Shep and some of the guys made for place called the Hawaiian Club to hear a new band with a promising young, but unknown trumpeter named Miles Davis, and Shep recalls, “I gave him some tips on playing the trumpet”.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Forest Lawn Cemetery

1411 Delaware Ave

Buffalo, New York, 14209

USA

North America

Map:

Grave Location:

Section 36, Lot 31-N 2/3, Space: 2

Grave Location Description

Behind the mausoleum about 100 feet from the road, even with the back-side glass doors to the mausoleum

Grave Location GPS

42.92832937,-78.85753384

Photos:

[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]

FAQ's

Elvin Shepherd was born on May 28, 1923.

Elvin Shepherd was born in Alexandria, Virginia.

Elvin Shepherd died on June 2, 1995.

Elvin Shepherd died in Buffalo, New York.

Elvin Shepherd was 72.

The cause of death was Undisclosed.

Elvin Shepherd's grave is in Forest Lawn Cemetery

Read More About Elvin Shepherd:

Videos Featuring Elvin Shepherd:

Watch YouTube video titled Elvin Shepherd plays the sax solo on the Bill Doggett 1964 track
Elvin Shepherd plays the sax solo on the Bill Doggett 1964 track "Fatso"
Watch YouTube video titled Elvin Shepherd plays the sax on the Bill Doggett 1964 track
Elvin Shepherd plays the sax on the Bill Doggett 1964 track "Mudcat"

See More:

The Greatest Unknown Guitar Player

popular name: The Greatest Unknown Guitar Player

date_of_death: August 14, 1988

age: 48

cause_of_death: Suicide - hanging (disputed)

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Roy Buchanan was an blues guitarist and a pioneer of the Telecaster sound, Buchanan worked as a sideman and as a solo artist, with two gold albums early in his career and two later solo albums that made it to the Billboard chart. Guitar Player praised him as having one of the "50 Greatest Tones of All Time." Sweet Dreams, released in 1972, remains the finest moment in the career of the man who was damned with the accolade ‘the guitarist’s guitarist’. Lauded by the likes of Jeff Beck, Gary Moore (who covered the blues-rock thriller The Messiah Will Come Again) and, more recently, Joe Bonamassa, Buchanan never attained any real fame or fortune during his lifetime. These days he’s as infamous for apparently turning down an offer to join the Rolling Stones and his mysterious death in a Virginia jail cell in 1988 as he is for his music. Yet Buchanan’s legacy as a guitarist punches way above that of many of the rock stars who held him in such high regard.

Johnnie Ray

popular name: Johnnie Ray

date_of_death: February 24, 1990

age: 63

cause_of_death: Hepatic encephalopathy resulting from liver failure

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: In the early 1950s, Johnnie Ray was arguably the biggest musical star in the world. His emotional singing and sexually suggestive performances earned him the titles "The Prince of Wails," "The Cry Guy," and "The Million Dollar Teardrop," and put him at the top of the music charts. From Sydney to Chicago to London, teenage riots erupted wherever Ray performed. Sadly his songs seemed hopelessly dated after "Rock Around The Clock" came out, let alone "Hound Dog" or "Maybelline." If that wasn't bad enough, an ear surgery in 1958 robbed him of even more of his hearing.

Professor Longhair

popular name: Professor Longhair

date_of_death: January 30, 1980

age: 61

cause_of_death: Heart attack

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Professor Longhair (or "Fess" for short) was a Louisiana born singer and pianist who performed New Orleans blues. He was active in two distinct periods, first in the heyday of early rhythm and blues and later in the resurgence of interest in traditional jazz after the founding of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in 1970. His piano style has been described as "instantly recognizable, combining rumba, mambo, and calypso". During his career Professor Longhair had only one national commercial hit, "Bald Head", in 1950, under the name Roy Byrd and His Blues Jumpers. He also recorded his favorites, "Tipitina" and "Go to the Mardi Gras". He lacked crossover appeal among white and wide audiences. Yet, he is regarded as being a musician who was highly influential for other prominent musicians such as Fats Domino, Allen Toussaint and Dr. John. Upon his death, he was laid to rest at Mount Olivet Cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Back to Top