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

    The singer -- full name Prince Rogers Nelson -- had a medical emergency on April 15th that forced his private jet to make an emergency landing in Illinois. But he appeared at a concert the next day to assure his fans he was okay. His people told TMZ he was battling the flu. Prior to his most recent appearance however, Prince had cancelled two shows due to health concerns. He was found non responsive at his home studio and paramedics were unable to revive him. He was 57 years old.

    Prince was a prolific songwriter and performer. I never saw the movie but Purple Rain is one of his most famous offerings. There was also a video which featured a girl playing a wicked guitar riff. The song was "Kiss". I later learned that "the music video is directed by Rebecca Blake. In the plot of the video, Prince appears in a half shirt and leather jacket and then all shirtless and performs dance choreography in a hall. He is accompanied by the veiled dancer Monique Manning wearing black lingerie and aviator sunglasses while Revolution member Wendy Melvoin sits playing guitar". Wiki Link to Kiss the song

    This very talented and creative artist had a knack for the risqué song titles and lyrics and often abbreviated his works with cryptic shorthand. While I was not a big fan, it was probably due to my generational taste in music but his death has taken the eighties generation by surprise and is another passing in 2016 that illustrates that our time here is not promised.In a battle with Warner Brothers over his song rights, he changed his name to a symbol. He became a joke and was derided as The Artist formerly know as Prince. However, his name change was a rebellion against the onerous contract with Warner Brothers who had copyrighted the name "Prince". The symbol made it very difficult for WB to market his music. "Prince compared his contractual obligations to slavery, and began performing with the word "SLAVE" on his cheek. He saw his own name as a part of his contractual entrapment". I have found a new found respect for this rebellious kid. Like Merle, he did not take any $H!t from anybody.

    The first verse of one of his songs may be his self penned epitaph.

    The original Kiss video and almost all of the videos have been pulled from Youtube as the legal eagles take over his estate.

   I had to do some research for the Prince portion of this Icon article. His gender bending persona and in your face sexual performances were a bit outside of my generational biases, but I happily found that he was a dedicated lover of music and an accomplished musician. He also was an anti-drug performer (though the details of his death are still not known) and apparently a very generous philanthropist often giving enormously without press release or fanfare. I may have to revisit his music legacy if for no other reason than to temper my personal biases in this ever changing world. (Bobby Tony)

One of the better quotes I have seen on the passing of Icons this year is:

"Dear Lord, if you will just return us David Bowie, Glen Frye, Merle Haggard and Prince, I will gladly give you the five remaining Presidential Candidates. AMEN"

    (I apologize for some of the repeats of Merle's videos. It should be obvious that he is one of my all time favorite singer / songwriters. Bobby Tony)

    "A week ago dad told us he was gonna pass on his birthday, and he wasn't wrong. A hour ago he took his last breath surrounded by family and friends. He loved everything about life and he loved that everyone of you gave him a chance with his music. He wasn't just a country singer.. He was the best country singer that ever lived". Posted on Merle's Facebook page by his son Ben 4/6/2016

    If music is the soundtrack of your life and you have had a few bumps in the road, then Merle may have a song that marks some of the low times. But then again you may have some reason to be optimistic. Merle Haggard has been on my playlist since I bought my first Sony Walkman.

    Through all the ups and downs of my life, I always felt that he could take the human condition and convert it into a country ballad that I wish I could have written and sang.

    Many will say that country music is depressing and about bad memories, but I always say that if you ain't got no skin in the game it's a boring ride to the grave. I admit that I probably burnt the candle at both ends, sometimes with a blowtorch and sometimes with just an ember. Merle's songs describe both sides of life.

    Merle was and will always be the common man's mirror for life and living through the mountains and valleys. Others put on a better concert show and many used extravagant sets to impress the audience but old Merle just came out and sang, and that made all the difference to me.

    If you want to feel sorry for yourself, here is a song for you.

   

    If you have ever looked around and thought, the world was going to hell in a hand basket, here another one for you. The best of the free life is still yet to come.

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    If you have ever been so much in love that you wish it would never end but did, here is one for you.

    Merle has been sick for most of the past year with several cancellations of concerts. But he kept trying to schedule and play. I don't know if this is a result of finances or just the pull of the road and audience. He has suffered several bouts with pneumonia and could not seem to recover. He finally succumbed on his birthday April 6, 2016, he was 79 years old. He was still burning the candle at both ends up until this last bout with double pneumonia. Now the Silver Wings are taking him away. RIP Merle.

    He died of a massive heart attack while on tour in Daytona

Frank Sinatra Jr - Dead at 72 RIP

Beach, Florida. Being the son of one the most famous singers in history is not an easy life. He had a career which basically was a nostalgia tour of his father. He looked like a reincarnated Frank Sr. and had the voice and mannerism of his father.

    Older folks will remember he was kidnapped in 1963 and his father paid a $240,000 ransom. Some said it was a hoax or publicity stunt but the FBI pursued, captured, and convicted the kidnappers.

    He never was able to distance himself from Frank Sr. and finally settled into an act that basically was a tribute to his father's career. That is not a bad gig if you can get it. Here is a video of him singing a couple of his dad's songs.