The Passing of Music Icons - 2016 - A tribute to those who passed | Eastern North Carolina Now

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Bobby Vee October 24, 2016

    If you are less than fifty years old you may not have heard of Bobby Vee. He was one of those singers that sang the sappy love songs of bobby socks teenagers (I confess). When I say sappy I really mean sentimental. It was a staple of the music of the late fifties and early 60's before everything got so in your face. It was also a time when girls were treated like ladies unless you wanted to get your butt kicked by her old man.

    His career got its start by a twist of fate. In 1959 the plane that Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper were on crashed killing all three along with the pilot. Bobby Vee was fifteen years old his newly formed band that was selected to fulfill the commitment for the Fargo North Dakota show. And another career was born.
    Here are three of his hits from 1961+ era.

   
    Bobby Vee - Take Good Care Of My Baby - 1961
   
    Bobby Vee - The Night Has A Thousand Eyes (1962)
   
    Bobby Vee - Come Back When You Grow Up Girl
    Bobby Vee announced publicly that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2012. He passed on October 24, 2016, from complications of the disease at the age of 73.

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Glenn Yarbrough August 11, 2016

    Some of the old folkies may remember Glenn Yarbrough as one of the original members of the folk group The Limeliters from 1959 to 1963. The folk resurgence began with The Kingston Trio in 1957 and spawned many groups including one from Clarkston, Georgia that loved and sang the songs of the folk era until Uncle Sam decided we needed to take a break. All you needed back then was a single microphone, a couple instruments and a willingness to sing your heart out.

    Glenn had a very pure tenor voice which fit perfectly with the emotional tone of those old folk songs. He sang many of Rod McKuen's songs and Rod was the king of heart string tugging songs.

    Glenn went on to a prolific solo career. He is probably most famous for his song "Baby the Rain Must Fall" which was the soundtrack of a movie staring Steve McQueen of the same name in 1965. The younger crowd would know of him by a song featured on the TV series Breaking Bad.

    In 1963,  Yarbrough, restless, left The Limeliters, and the group disbanded. An ardent sailor, he intended to spend the next decade at sea but was persuaded by his record label, RCA Victor, to record solo albums instead. He was 86 years old when he passed at his daughters home in Nashville, Tn.


   

    As an aging folkie, I would be remiss if I did not include this two-song set of the Limelighters; John Henry and Lonesome Traveler. Try as I must I could never master the key changes in the second song, but with a little Coca Cola and Rum, I gave it my best effort on the walk up trail at Stone Mountain. If the video does no load click on the youtube link in the center to go directly to YouTube.

   

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Pierre Dewey LaFontaine, Jr August 6, 2016

   His full name may not immediately stir a memory Perhaps it is the fact that most people knew him as Pete Fountain.

   I have two distinct memories of Pete.  The first was seeing him on the Lawrence Welk TV Show. My mother was a great fan of that show and we watched it weekly on our old B&W TV.  Pete started in 1957.  LW kept a tight rein on his featured performers and never let Pete break into a full Jazz rendition.  That is just as well as I was only 12 years old and jazz was way beyond my comprehension.

   The second memory was in 1966 at Georgia State University.  It was a close as I got to being a bohemian (without goatee).  I was a full-blown fan of the Ramsey Lewis Trio.  The college concert tour was still in its relative adolescents and concerts were not full stadium packing events. Pete played in a small venue and I was somewhat amazed that this was the same guy that I had seen on TV.  And as they say the rest is history.

   Pete Fountain had a long and successful life and was a staple in New Orleans.  I regret that I never made it to New Orleans to see him play.  He later played many times on the Johnny Carson Show.

   Pete passed away at the age of 86. in his home town of New Orleans. He was perhaps most famous for his rendition of "Just a Closer Walk with Thee", but my favorite is in the clip below. BE PATIENT, Jazz is not for the impatient, it takes time to weave the notes together. (5:40 minutes)

Basin Street Blues

Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman, June 13, 2016

    Chances are most people never saw Chips Moman perform, but almost every music fan have listened to his legendary production of hits for Elvis, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and the Country group Highwaymen.

   In 1969, Moman produced Presley’s album “From Elvis in Memphis” and the hit songs “In the Ghetto,” which became Presley’s first top-10 U.S. hit in four years and signified the King’s comeback; “Suspicious Minds,” and “Kentucky Rain.”

    His record production skills were responsible for Willie Nelson's "Always on My Mind". He also co-wrote Waylon Jennings "Luckenbach, Texas". Here is a link to his contributions in the music business. Rolling Stone -Chips Moman

    He passed away in Lagrange, Georgia at the age of 79 on June 13, 2016.

    I have chosen one of his songs which was co-written with Larry Butler, and won a Grammy for writing 1976. There is a lot of talent on the stage for this video.

   

B.J.Thomas

Here is a more extensive list of his work.

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Guy Clark 1941 - May 17, 2016

    If the name Guy Clark is not one you remember, you are not alone, but his legacy will last through his influence on many of the Texas and Nashville songwriters including Steve Earle, Rodney Crowell, Rosanne Cash and , Jerry Jeff Walker. Jerry Jeff Walker recorded Guy's "LA Freeway" in 1972. It is the story about a Texas country boy who went to Los Angelos to become famous but like all good country singers, he got fed up with the concrete and plastic and struck out back home.

    Guy's other most popular song was "Desperado's Waiting for the Train." It is the story of his grandmother's boyfriend who had a great influence on his life. He passed on May 17, 2016 at 74.

    Here is a younger Guy Clark telling the story and singing the song. We should all be so lucky to have made an impression so strong it's been recorded hundreds of times. If you were a little boy in the 1950's you will understand "Desperado's Waiting for a Train" deep in your inner being.

   

    Guy Clark

    A more polished version was released by the famed group "The Highwaymen" consisting of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson.

   

    Highwaymen

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Billy Paul April 24, 2016

    Billy Paul was one of the early pioneers of the Sweet Philly Soul music that originated out of Philadelphia and made popular by song writers Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff. He only had one big hit but if anyone is interested in some of his work, YouTube is full of his covers of various songs. His style was a mix of R&B, Jazz and the early beginnings of Soul. He was naturally a legend to those born in Philadelphia and has been touring continuously since the 1970s. He was 81 years old and recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

    Here he is in 1973 singing his signature Grammy hit on The Midnight Special hosted by Mac Davis.

   

Billy Paul Me and Mrs. Jones