Joey Ramone

popular name: Bianca Halstead

date_of_death: December 15, 2001

age: 36

cause_of_death: Auto accident caused by a drunk driver

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Halstead performed as a singer and bassist in Los Angeles punk band Butt Trumpet before departing with two other members — guitarists Blare N. Bitch and Sharon Needles — to form Betty Blowtorch. She died during a tour with Nashville Pussy outside of New Orleans when she accepted a ride with a drunk driver.

popular name: Mark Sandman

date_of_death: July 3, 1999

age: 46

cause_of_death: Heart attack

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Mark Sandman was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record label founder best remembered as the bass player and lead singer for the alt indie rock band Morphine. Sandman possessed a distinctive, deep bass-baritone voice and a mysterious demeanor as he fronted a band lacking guitars or keyboards, yet still created a unique yet accessible smoky, addictive grooves achieved with Mark's two-string bass and Dana Colley's baritone saxophone - and tales of low-register living. He was an indie rock icon and longtime fixture in the Boston/Cambridge music scene and was also a member of the blues-rock band Treat Her Right and founder of Hi-n-Dry, a recording studio and independent record label. He was highly regarded by many other bass players for his unique "slow and murky" style, with Les Claypool, Mike Watt, and Josh Homme all citing Sandman as an influence.

popular name: Mahalia Jackson

date_of_death: January 27, 1972

age: 60

cause_of_death: Post surgical complications to remove a bowel obstruction

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Known as the Queen of Gospel Music, Mahalia Jackson was an American gospel singer, widely considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century. With a career spanning 40 years, Jackson was integral to the development and spread of gospel blues in black churches throughout the U.S. During a time when racial segregation was pervasive in American society, she met considerable and unexpected success in a recording career, selling an estimated 22 million records and performing in front of integrated and secular audiences in concert halls around the world. Nationwide recognition came for Jackson in 1947 with the release of "Move On Up a Little Higher", selling two million copies and hitting the number two spot on Billboard charts, both firsts for gospel music. Jackson's recordings captured the attention of jazz fans in the U.S. and France, and she became the first gospel recording artist to tour Europe. She regularly appeared on television and radio, and performed for many presidents and heads of state. In January 1972, she received surgery to remove a bowel obstruction and died in recovery. Although news outlets had reported on her health problems and concert postponements for years, her death came as a shock to many of her fans. She received a funeral service at Greater Salem Baptist Church in Chicago where she was still a member. Fifty thousand people paid their respects, many of them lining up in the snow the night before, and her peers in gospel singing performed in her memory the next morning. The day after, Mayor Richard Daley and other politicians and celebrities gave their eulogies at the Arie Crown Theater with 6,000 in attendance. Her body was returned to New Orleans where she lay in state at Rivergate Auditorium under a military and police guard, and 60,000 people viewed her casket. She was later laid to rest at Providence Memorial Park in Metairie, Louisiana.