Joey Ramone

popular name: Bix Beiderbecke

date_of_death: August 6, 1931

age: 28

cause_of_death: Lobar pneumonia coupled with edema of the brain and the effects of long-term alcoholism

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Bix Beiderbecke was an American jazz cornetist, pianist and composer who was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920s. As a cornet player noted for an inventive lyrical approach and purity of tone and with such clarity of sound that Eddie Condon described it like "Beiderbecke took out a silver cornet. He put it to his lips and blew a phrase. The sound came out like a girl saying yes." His solos on seminal recordings such as "Singin' the Blues" and "I'm Coming, Virginia" (both 1927) demonstrate his gift for extended improvisation that heralded the jazz ballad style. Sadly he died at the young age of 28 due primarily to his prodigious consumption of alcohol.

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: Sam Cooke

date_of_death: December 11, 1964

age: 33

cause_of_death: Homicide - gunshot wounds

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Sam Cooke's intonation was exquisitely exact. His command of pitch and texture were flawless. His skills as a vocalist were - and remain over sixty years since his untimely death - unsurpassed by the vocal royalty of his day. Neither Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin or Ray Charles could reach his status as a stylist and vocalist of widespread, enduring influence. Yet Sam Cooke - producer, songwriter, performer, label owner and supreme architect of gospel-pop crossover - will forever be remembered with a tinge of sadness and mystery.