Johann Strauss ll

popular name: Heavy D

date_of_death: November 8, 2011

age: 44

cause_of_death: Pulmonary embolism

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Heavy D was a Jamaican-born American rapper, record producer, singer and actor who was among a handful of hip-hop stars from the 1980s who successfully established a lasting career. Having created a string of infectious, party-time hits with Heavy D & the Boyz including Now That We Found Love and Mr. Big Stuff, he was able to extend his reach into the commercial mainstream through collaborations with BB King and Michael Jackson, and subsequently exhibited bankable skills as both a businessman and actor. Although he was past his commercial peak as a musician, his last album, Love Opus showed that he had not entirely run out of creative juice.

popular name: Berry Oakley

date_of_death: November 11, 1972

age: 24

cause_of_death: Fractured skull due to motorcycle accident

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Berry Oakley, an original founding member of the Allman Brothers Band and was an instrumental part of the early Allman Brothers sound, with his bass chords defining some of the band’s most popular songs like “Whipping Post”, ” “Mountain Jam”, “Les Brers”, and countless others. During his all-too-short tenure with the band Berry contributed to some of their most important records, including The Allman Brothers Band (1969), Idlewild South (1970), At Fillmore East (1971), Eat a Peach (1972), and the first two tracks of Brothers and Sisters (1973). And while the classic ABB lineup only lasted three years, Berry Oakley was ranked number 46 on Bass Player magazine's list of "The 100 Greatest Bass Players of All Time". Sadly one year after losing Duane Allman to a fatal motorcycle crash, on November 11, 1972, Berry was riding with Kim Payne (a member of the road crew) when Payne took his Triumph motorcycle into a curve too fast and hit a Macon City bus. Oakley said he was okay after the accident, declined medical treatment, and caught a ride home. Three hours later, he was rushed back to the hospital, delirious and in pain, and died of cerebral swelling caused by a fractured skull.

popular name: Alan Freed

date_of_death: January 20, 1965

age: 43

cause_of_death: Kidney failure and cirrhosis of the liver

claim_to_fame: Music

best_know_for: Alan Freed was an American disc jockey and Rock and Roll’s first great evangelist and martyr. Freed became associated with the genre on July 11, 1951, when he started hosting a radio show with the purpose of exposing white teenagers to the music. Sponsored by record retailer Leo Mintz, the show was originally called “Freeditorium,” but its host soon adopted the goofy on-air nickname “Moondog” and the show was re-titled “Moondog House.” The playlist featured what was known as “race music” before Billboard magazine renamed it “rhythm and blues” in 1949. The tunes had a heavy beat conducive to dancing but were rarely enjoyed by white audiences prior to Freed. It was not just the music that Freed introduced to the wider world. Freed also produced and promoted large traveling concerts with various acts including Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, Bill Haley and the Burnette Brothers helping to spread the importance of rock and roll music throughout North America. Sadly in the early 1960s, Freed's career was destroyed by the payola scandal that hit the broadcasting industry (even thought his fine was a mere $300). A downward spiral began with the legal fees from the scandal that forced him into bankruptcy, chain smoking, heavy drinking, unemployment, tax evasion charges and internal injuries from a car accident in 1953. Moving to Palm Springs, California Freed died alone at the young age of 43.