Blackwell, Scrapper
Music
Age 59
February 21, 1903 - October 7, 1962
New Crown Cemetery / Indianapolis / Indiana / USA / North America
Scrapper Blackwell, together with Leroy Carr are arguably the two most underrated blues musicians of the 1920s and 1930s. What is undeniable is the two together created some of the most recorded blues classics including How Long, ...
Blind Lemon Jefferson
Music
Age 36
September 24, 1893 - December 19, 1929
Blind Lemon Jefferson Memorial Cemetery (the former Wortham Black Cemetery) / Wortham / Texas / USA / North America
Neglected and ignored until recently by his own home state, Blind Lemon Jefferson is nonetheless revered internationally as a seminal figure in the history of the blues with 89 classic blues songs recorded in just 4 years time.
Bloomfield, Michael
Music
Age 37
July 28, 1943 - February 15, 1981
Hillside Memorial Park / Culver City / California / USA / North America
Michael Bloomfield was an American guitarist and composer who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrumental prowess, as he rarely sang before 1969. Respect...
Bolan, Marc
Music
Age 29
September 30, 1947 - September 16, 1977
Golders Green Crematorium / London / United Kingdom / Europe
As the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist for T Rex, Marc Bolan captivated generations with his strutting music and hyper-sexual charisma. Sporting makeup, glitter, a top hat with flowing locks of gorgeous hair, Bolan was on th...
Bonham, John
Music
Age 32
May 31, 1948 - September 25, 1980
St. Michael and All Angels Church Rushock / Droitwich / United Kingdom / Europe
John Bonham was and remains the greatest, most influential Rock Drummer of all-time and best known as the drummer for Led Zeppelin. Describing the style of John Bonham's drumming instantly conjurs up visions of the thunderous powe...
Bono, Sonny
Music
Age 62
February 16, 1935 - January 5, 1998
Desert Memorial Park / Cathedral City / California / USA / North America
Singer, songwriter, actor and entertainer Sonny Bono began his career struggling to write songs while working as a waiter, a construction worker, a truck driver and a butcher's helper. In his 20's he immersed himself in the music ...
Booker, James
Music
Age 43
December 17, 1939 - November 8, 1983
Providence Memorial Park / Metairie / Louisiana / USA / North America
Booker was a New Orleans rhythm and blues keyboardist whose unique style combined rhythm and blues with jazz standards. Musician Dr. John described Booker as "the best black, gay, one-eyed junkie piano genius New Orleans has ever ...
Boon, D.
Music
Age 27
April 1, 1958 - December 22, 1985
Green Hills Memorial Park / Rancho Palos Verdes / California / USA / North America
D. Boon was a pioneer of the punk scene in the early 1980s in Los Angeles, California. As singer, songwriter, guitarist and vocalist for the punk rock trio the Minutemen, D. Boon mixed funk, punk, metal, country and a healthy dose...
Borge, Victor
Music
Age 91
January 3, 1909 - December 23, 2000
Putnam Cemetery / Greenwich / Connecticut / USA / North America
Victor Borge was a Danish-American comedian, conductor, and pianist who achieved great popularity in radio and television in both North America and Europe. His blend of music and comedy earned him the nickname "The Clown Prince of...
Boswell, Connee
Music
Age 68
December 3, 1907 - October 11, 1976
Ferncliff Cemetery / Hartsdale / New York / USA / North America
Connee Boswell was an American jazz female vocalists, and first starting performing with her sisters as the trio The Boswell Sisters in the 1920s and 1930s. They became a highly influential singing group due to their recordings an...
Brahms, Johannes
Music
Age 63
May 7, 1833 - April 3, 1897
Der Wiener Zentralfriedhof / Simmeringer Hauptstraße 234 / Vienna / Austria / Europe
Johannes Brahms was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. Brahms composed for symphony orchestra, chamber en...
Brockie, Dave
Music
Age 50
August 30, 1963 - March 23, 2014
Hollywood Cemetery / Richmond / Virginia / United States / North America
Dave Brockie was a Canadian-American musician, songwriter, performer and mastermind / lead singer of the heavy metal band GWAR, in which he performed as Oderus Urungus. If you've never seen or heard GWAR, then imagine if KISS had ...
Broonzy, Big Bill
Music
Age 55
June 26, 1903 - August 15, 1958
Lincoln Cemetery / Blue Island / Illinois / USA / North America
Big Bill Broonzy was an American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist and was one of the few country blues musicians of the '20s and '30s to find success when the music evolved into an electric, urbanized form. From his initial ...
Brown, Clifford
Music
Age 25
October 30, 1930 - June 26, 1956
Mt. Zion Cemetery / Wilmington / Delaware / USA / North America
Clifford Brown was only 25 when he died in a car accident in 1956, yet the rich body of work he left behind sealed his reputation as one of the greatest trumpet players who ever lived. Quincy Jones even described Brown as one of t...
Brown, Les
Music
Age 88
March 14, 1912 - January 4, 2001
Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery / Los Angeles / California / USA / North America
Les Brown was an American musician, big band leader and composer best known for his nearly seven decades of work with the big band Les Brown and His Band of Renown (1938-2001). The Band of Renown began in the late 1930s, initially...
Burlison, Paul
Music
Age 74
February 4, 1929 - September 27, 2003
Hinds Chapel Cemetery / Nesbit / Mississippi / USA / North America
The Burnette brothers with lead guitarist Paul Burlison, are best remembered for their seminal rockabilly recordings for Coral in the mid-1950s. Paul, Dorsey and Johnny Burnette founded the pioneering, but largely overlooked rocka...
Burnette, Dorsey
Music
Age 46
December 28, 1932 - August 19, 1979
Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) / Glendale / California / USA / North America
The Burnette brothers, Dorsey and Johnny, are best remembered for their seminal rockabilly recordings for Coral in the mid-1950s. With lead guitarist Paul Burlison and brother Dorsey, Johnny Burnette founded the pioneering, but la...
Burnette, Johnny
Music
Age 30
March 25, 1934 - August 14, 1964
Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) / Glendale / California / USA / North America
The Burnette brothers, Dorsey and Johnny, are best remembered for their seminal rockabilly recordings for Coral in the mid-1950s. With lead guitarist Paul Burlison and brother Dorsey, Johnny Burnette founded the pioneering, but la...
Burnside, R. L.
Music
Age 78
November 23, 1926 - September 1, 2005
Free Springs C.M.E. Church / Como / Mississippi / USA / North America
R. L. Burnside was a Delta blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. He played music for much of his life but received little recognition before the early 1990s. During his resurgence in popularity he won 4 W.C. Handy Blues Awards a...
Butera, Sam
Music
Age 81
August 17, 1927 - June 3, 2009
Greenwood Cemetery / New Orleans / Louisiana / USA / North America
Sam Butera was a tenor saxophonist best noted for his collaborations with Louis Prima and Keely Smith. Butera is frequently regarded as a crossover artist who performed with equal ease in both R&B and the post-big band pop style o...