Joey Ramone

popular name: Frank Alamo

date_of_death: October 11, 2012

age: 70

cause_of_death: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Frank Alamo was a French singer who achieved his greatest success in the 1960s. With his boy-next-door image and plaintive voice, the yéyé singer Frank Alamo was an engaging "idole des jeunes" – teenage idol – and a constant presence in the French charts between 1963 and 1969. His hit records included "Biche ô ma Biche" ("Sweets for My Sweet"), "Je veux prendre ta main" ("I Want to Hold Your Hand"), and "Je me bats pour gagner" ("A Hard Day's Night"). In all, he released 30 singles over a five-year period in the early and mid-1960s, including some original songs. Alamo retired from the music business when he married in 1969, becoming a photographer and later a manager in the automobile industry. In 1983, he was chasing a beautiful blonde girl who was driving a funny car, she brought him to a factory and there Frank Alamo bought not a single car but the whole plant: the Dallas jeep company. He sold it in 1996 in order to give further singing performances however he never able to capture his original success. He died just one day before his 71st birthday.

popular name: Lou Rawls

date_of_death: January 6, 2006

age: 72

cause_of_death: Lung cancer that spread to his brain

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Lou Rawls, the velvet-voiced singer who started as a church choir boy and went on to record the classic tune "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine," was one of the great synthesisers of American popular music. He applied his velvet baritone voice with effortless elasticity to gospel, blues, jazz, soul and middle-of-the-road pop, ensuring his success across the decades. Lou Rawls's final performance was during a telethon honoring Stevie Wonder in September 2005, months before entering the hospital and after having been diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year. He performed "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" and "It Was A Very Good Year" as a tribute to Frank Sinatra. All told, Rawls released more than 60 albums, sold more than 40 million records, and had numerous charting singles. He worked as a film, television, and voice actor. He was also a three-time Grammy-winner, all for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.

popular name: Bobby Troup

date_of_death: February 7, 1999

age: 80

cause_of_death: Heart attack

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Bobby Troup was a jazz pianist, singer, songwriter and actor. As a composer he has written "Daddy," "Snooty Little Cutie," "Baby, Baby All the Time," and the jazz classic "Route 66." As an actor he is probably best remembered as Dr. Joe Early playing opposite his wife torch singer Julie London on the TV drama Emergency. He also made guest appearances on the popular TV shows Mannix, Dragnet, Perry Mason and playing musician Tommy Dorsey in the film The Gene Krupa Story (1959).