Nominations for a poll: worst tragedies in pop music history

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Thought about doing a morbid poll, but could only think of a few big tragedies off the top of my head. Throw out some others, and I'll do a poll of the top 30 or so.

My nominations:
22 December 1985 - Death of D. Boon
3 February 1959 - Deaths of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper
10 December 1967 - Death of Otis Redding
1 June 1973 - Paralyzation of Robert Wyatt
8 December 1980 - murder of John Lennon

unicorn poop evaluator (WmC), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:46 (sixteen years ago)

there's too many tragedies in rock n roll to count

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:47 (sixteen years ago)

Death of Duane Allman
Rape and murder of Mia Zapata
Murder of Sam Cooke

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:48 (sixteen years ago)

Zapp and Roger shoot and kill each other

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:48 (sixteen years ago)

Murder of Marvin Gaye

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:48 (sixteen years ago)

^^^by his preacher father

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:49 (sixteen years ago)

shit fell on curtis mayfield

suggestzybandias (jim), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:49 (sixteen years ago)

Bobby Fuller commits suicide

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:49 (sixteen years ago)

Ian Curtis commits suicide

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:49 (sixteen years ago)

hmmm, yes, this may be bigger than a poll thread can handle

unicorn poop evaluator (WmC), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:51 (sixteen years ago)

Arcade Fire release 2nd album.

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:51 (sixteen years ago)

Cancer, religion, Danny Baker conspire to kill Bob Marley

man saves ducklings from (ledge), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:51 (sixteen years ago)

Drowning death of Dennis Wilson

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:52 (sixteen years ago)

why don't you just go with the first 50 non-joke responses? I imagine the big ones will be covered

iatee, Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:52 (sixteen years ago)

Arcade Fire form as a band

Mr. Que, Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:52 (sixteen years ago)

Drummer out of Feeder hangs himself.

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:53 (sixteen years ago)

oh man you guys really don't like the arcade fire!

iatee, Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:53 (sixteen years ago)

Nick Drake accidental death/suicide

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:54 (sixteen years ago)

Michael Hutchence's adventures with autoerotic asphyxiation

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:54 (sixteen years ago)

Brian Wilson/ Syd Barrett - marbles lost

Then in walked Barbara Castle with the Lady Eleanor (Tom D.), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:54 (sixteen years ago)

that guy walks in to the river.

suggestzybandias (jim), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:54 (sixteen years ago)

Keith Moon dies choking on his own vomit

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:54 (sixteen years ago)

maybe we could have a non-suicide division. if you want to do this seriously at all, that is

reo teabaggin (goole), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:54 (sixteen years ago)

John Bonham follows suit (or do I have that sequence backwards)

x-post

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:55 (sixteen years ago)

Badfinger

kornrulez6969, Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:55 (sixteen years ago)

Death of Brian Jones

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:55 (sixteen years ago)

Hendrix murdered by his manager allegedly

man saves ducklings from (ledge), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:55 (sixteen years ago)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/noodle_vague/cryingeagle8oq.jpg

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:55 (sixteen years ago)

Sly Stone - drug intake

Then in walked Barbara Castle with the Lady Eleanor (Tom D.), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:55 (sixteen years ago)

Chris Bell dies in car crash shortly after release of first solo single

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:56 (sixteen years ago)

Marc Bolan wraps his car around a tree

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:56 (sixteen years ago)

Kaiser Chiefs dropped by record label

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:56 (sixteen years ago)

sad and pathetic wasting away of Bob Stinson

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:56 (sixteen years ago)

Kurt Cobain blows head off (can't believe this wasn't one of the first listed tbh)

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:57 (sixteen years ago)

acquired immune deficiency syndrome

mookieproof, Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:58 (sixteen years ago)

^^^related - death of Freddie Mercury

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:59 (sixteen years ago)

just poll the 27 club

man saves ducklings from (ledge), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:59 (sixteen years ago)

Susan Boyle admitted to the Priory

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 16:59 (sixteen years ago)

Adge Cutler dies in a car crash

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:00 (sixteen years ago)

ILM re-coded with poll function

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:00 (sixteen years ago)

Animal Collective is created by/for/on the Internet.

I just wish he hadn't adopted the "ilxor" moniker (ilxor), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:01 (sixteen years ago)

Geir Hongro

Then in walked Barbara Castle with the Lady Eleanor (Tom D.), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:01 (sixteen years ago)

death of Eazy-E
Tupac murdered
Biggie murdered

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:03 (sixteen years ago)

Lady Gaga given a free pass by hipsters

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:03 (sixteen years ago)

Jam Master Jay murdered

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:03 (sixteen years ago)

Classic rock act treated with insufficient reverence by snarky anonymous message board posters

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:03 (sixteen years ago)

Tammy Terrell dying onstage in Marvin Gaye's arms is probably the most dramatic tragedy. But how I wish D. Boon lived into the Bush era.

bendy, Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:04 (sixteen years ago)

"Swallowed" inaugurates Bush era.

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:06 (sixteen years ago)

that guy from Morphine has a heart attack onstage, dies

Kitchen Paper Towel (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:08 (sixteen years ago)

You're remarkably well-informed on celebrity deaths, Shakey.

Westwood Ho (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 17:10 (sixteen years ago)

Mozart - 35
Schubert - 31
Chopin - 39

Pasta of Muppets (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 11 June 2009 21:20 (sixteen years ago)

all musicians are wasting their time then?
Pretty much, but what else are you going to do in the hours between puberty and death?

staggerlee, Thursday, 11 June 2009 22:55 (sixteen years ago)

OK..

The death of Princess Diana, which led to the issue of "Candle in the wind" with mawkish new words, which becamethe biggest selling song ever. Which means that for all the work and creativity of all music ever, none of it is as important as one popular member of the Royal Family.

Mark G, Friday, 12 June 2009 07:09 (sixteen years ago)

Michael Jackson's face

ti's girl on the outside (musically), Friday, 12 June 2009 07:12 (sixteen years ago)

Going back to Tuomas' argument, I think it's a mistake to equate loss of pleasure of potential great music due to the death of a musician with the loss of pleasure due to the death of a close friend or family member.

giving a shit when it isn't your turn to give a shit (sarahel), Friday, 12 June 2009 07:22 (sixteen years ago)

Jackie Wilson laying in a coma bed for eight years.

james k polk, Friday, 12 June 2009 07:35 (sixteen years ago)

Yes let's all go back to Tuomas' argument.

Pasta of Muppets (Noodle Vague), Friday, 12 June 2009 08:06 (sixteen years ago)

the lolz of the many outweight the lols of the few.

giving a shit when it isn't your turn to give a shit (sarahel), Friday, 12 June 2009 08:15 (sixteen years ago)

clifford brown, dead in a car crash @ 26
booker little, kidney failure @ 23

Ward Fowler, Friday, 12 June 2009 08:41 (sixteen years ago)

Think you should probably just save the poll a massive clusterfuck and cut out the suicides and ODs really.

Matt DC, Friday, 12 June 2009 08:50 (sixteen years ago)

Would you leave in the autoerotic asphyxiations?

giving a shit when it isn't your turn to give a shit (sarahel), Friday, 12 June 2009 09:20 (sixteen years ago)

Autoerotic asphyxiation is usually too funny to be a tragedy.

Matt DC, Friday, 12 June 2009 09:22 (sixteen years ago)

Has there ever been a high profile case of death by autoerotic asphyxiation that wasn't funny? I'm only aware of three and they're all hilarious.

EMPIRE STATE HYMEN (MPx4A), Friday, 12 June 2009 09:27 (sixteen years ago)

roy orbison's kids dying in a house fire? or his wife (motorcycle accident, i think?)

U2 raped goat (darraghmac), Friday, 12 June 2009 09:28 (sixteen years ago)

(Think it's probably best to stick to actual musicians here, see also Eric Clapton's son and whatever it is Tuomas is wittering on about).

Matt DC, Friday, 12 June 2009 09:38 (sixteen years ago)

Hey, the guitarist from Great White died in that fire too.

Tuomas, Friday, 12 June 2009 09:49 (sixteen years ago)

(Lennon remains most tragic though)

― Geir Hongro, Thursday, June 11, 2009 7:21 PM

Awww bless.

Matt DC, Friday, 12 June 2009 09:51 (sixteen years ago)

Kirsty MacColl getting decapitated by a speedboat in front of her family strikes me as pretty tragic

EMPIRE STATE HYMEN (MPx4A), Friday, 12 June 2009 09:56 (sixteen years ago)

also all those guys in Mayhem who shot/bludgeoned/blew up/ate each other :(

EMPIRE STATE HYMEN (MPx4A), Friday, 12 June 2009 09:56 (sixteen years ago)

/stabbed

EMPIRE STATE HYMEN (MPx4A), Friday, 12 June 2009 09:57 (sixteen years ago)

That plane crash probably wasn't the worst tragedy, but it went down in history as the first tragedy.

Glenn Miller's disappearance in 1944 would probably qualify as the first.

Django Reinhardt died early too - brain hemorrhage I believe.

Carroll Shelby Downard (Elvis Telecom), Friday, 12 June 2009 10:03 (sixteen years ago)

Robert Johnson, murdered at 27, 1938.

Enemy Insects (NickB), Friday, 12 June 2009 10:08 (sixteen years ago)

Eddie Cochrane, died in a road accident aged 21, 1960.

Enemy Insects (NickB), Friday, 12 June 2009 10:15 (sixteen years ago)

Eddie Cochran rather.

Enemy Insects (NickB), Friday, 12 June 2009 10:16 (sixteen years ago)

Sandy Denny, brain haemorrhage aged 31, 1978.

Enemy Insects (NickB), Friday, 12 June 2009 10:18 (sixteen years ago)

Bix Beiderbecke, died from "alcohol withdrawal" aged 28, 1931.

Enemy Insects (NickB), Friday, 12 June 2009 10:24 (sixteen years ago)

Mozart - 35
Schubert - 31
Chopin - 39

Defining them as "pop music" may be a bit borderline though. Particularly considering the first two didn't become really popular until after their deaths.

Geir Hongro, Friday, 12 June 2009 10:30 (sixteen years ago)

neither did diana

U2 raped goat (darraghmac), Friday, 12 June 2009 10:34 (sixteen years ago)

The Kirsty MacColl death I found to be particularly terrible, horrifying and cruel, especially considering she saved her child in the process of being ripped in half

although that fucken Pogues song pisses me off, I might vote for her

the unfished business of display names only (country matters), Friday, 12 June 2009 11:04 (sixteen years ago)

I didn't actually know she saved her child, fuck :(

Matt DC, Friday, 12 June 2009 11:16 (sixteen years ago)

Actually, listening to "Fairytale in NY" and watching the video and all, it seems pretty weird that the guy would survive the girl.

Geir Hongro, Friday, 12 June 2009 11:27 (sixteen years ago)

a speedboat to the head is one of those things that even the top doctors can't predict

U2 raped goat (darraghmac), Friday, 12 June 2009 11:33 (sixteen years ago)

xpost I always thought that also, re: Ivor Cutler and John Peel.

Mark G, Friday, 12 June 2009 11:41 (sixteen years ago)

Jeff Buckley goes for an evening swim in the Wolf River: June 4, 1997

Derelict, Friday, 12 June 2009 12:43 (sixteen years ago)

Obv I should have caffinated, and expanded the thread, before doing page searches.

Derelict, Friday, 12 June 2009 12:45 (sixteen years ago)

Actually, listening to "Fairytale in NY" and watching the video and all, it seems pretty weird that the guy would survive the girl.

they were truly the Hart Foundation of popular music

EMPIRE STATE HYMEN (MPx4A), Friday, 12 June 2009 12:59 (sixteen years ago)

"Bix Beiderbecke, died from "alcohol withdrawal" aged 28, 1931."

Whoah, holy shit.

My second vote is the assassination of the Bag.

Bill Magill, Friday, 12 June 2009 13:47 (sixteen years ago)

Who gives a shit about tragedy. Who had the coolest death? Anyone explode? Hacked to pieces?

I'm Some Guy (u s steel), Friday, 12 June 2009 13:54 (sixteen years ago)

That drummer from Toto.

nate woolls, Friday, 12 June 2009 13:58 (sixteen years ago)

'Coolest' ?

Ricky Nelson, I believe.

Mark G, Friday, 12 June 2009 14:01 (sixteen years ago)

I'm still upset about Eddie Cochran.

I'm Some Guy (u s steel), Friday, 12 June 2009 14:15 (sixteen years ago)

'Anyone explode? hacked to pieces?'

Bobby Fuller -

"Just after "I Fought The Law" became a top ten hit, Bobby Fuller was found dead in his automobile, which was parked near his Los Angeles home. The police considered the death an apparent suicide/accident, however, many people believe Fuller was murdered. The investigation was botched from the start. The crime scene was not secured and no fingerprints were obtained. A witness also claimed seeing a police officer throw a can of gasoline found at the scene into the trash. Fuller was found with multiple wounds all over his body and covered in gasoline leading many to speculate that the perpetrators fled before they could set the car on fire."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Fuller

Julio Afrokeluchie, Friday, 12 June 2009 15:47 (sixteen years ago)

jesus Bix was only 28!?!

i would never want a book's autograph (M@tt He1ges0n), Friday, 12 June 2009 15:57 (sixteen years ago)

tragedy
when your mom's in bed with your uncle fred
tragedy
when your balls get stuck to a moving truck

Julio Afrokeluchie, Friday, 12 June 2009 18:07 (sixteen years ago)

tragedy
when you need a poo and it won't come through

Pasta of Muppets (Noodle Vague), Saturday, 13 June 2009 09:41 (sixteen years ago)

Greil Marcus devised something called the "Rock Death Meter" in an old Creem (Voice?) piece, where he applied a (mostly ironic, I think) rating system based on past contributions, future contributions, and manner of death. I can't find an online link to the original piece--I think maybe Sam Cooke came out on top--but here's a link to an update by somebody else. My real answer would be somebody obvious like Cobain or Hendrix, where there was probably lots of good stuff still to come. My wiseguy answer would be the time I left an import copy of White Light/White Heat in a friend's trunk overnight and it came out looking like a sponge.

clemenza, Saturday, 13 June 2009 13:23 (sixteen years ago)

WTF @ thread.

Was going to mention sandy denny, but someone already did.

Dolly Collins, Randy California, eh.

"Bytchass of Juxberry" (Pashmina), Saturday, 13 June 2009 13:32 (sixteen years ago)

Many many years ago when I was laid up in bed with a bout of Asperger's I tried to replicate Marcus' chart for 90s rock deaths. Quickly realised it wasn't worth it. Seem to recall I shoehorned in Bill Hicks to make it more 'interesting'

if you're a pizza-loving New Yorker, it was pretty hilarious. (DJ Mencap), Saturday, 13 June 2009 14:05 (sixteen years ago)

Keith Moon's death was boringly uncool compared to the many wild things he had done previously which did not kill him.

Geir Hongro, Saturday, 13 June 2009 19:13 (sixteen years ago)

Styx's Live Debut of the enitrety of Kilroy Was Here at Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont IL. 10/20/83

Bill Magill, Monday, 15 June 2009 15:45 (fifteen years ago)


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