Category: Notable Obituaries

It’s hard to believe, but musician Will Owsley is reported to have killed himself. He was currently working as a touring guitarist for Amy Grant and had a Grammy award for his solo power pop effort “Owsley.” This was followed up by the 2003 disc, The Hard Way. It’s a real shame if he’s really gone — a talent of Will’s caliber doesn’t come along every day. Condolences to the Owsley family.

Wow. I am crushed. This is one of the giants of the genre, so I am hard pressed to think of something to say, other than he will never be forgotten. To quote Jim DeRogatis: “Alex Chilton, a legend of the Memphis music scene and one of the founding fathers of the power-pop movement, died at a hospital in New Orleans on Thursday, the victim of an apparent heart attack. He was 59 years old. Chilton’s hugely influential band Big Star was about to be celebrated at the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, partaking in a panel session and a showcase gig on Saturday. The band was experiencing the latest in a series of career resurgences, thanks to the recent reissues of its celebrated albums from the ’70s as the box set, “Keep an Eye on the Sky.” Read more of the obit here.

If you want more info on the box set and a book on Big Star check out my older post.

Here is the NY Times article about Chilton’s passing.

Lead singer for the Knack, Doug was battling cancer and was unable to make it to last year’s Charlotte Pop Fest, unfortunately the continuing battle took it’s final toll.  Let’s remember him as a part of the power pop pantheon and a hard working performer that never faded into musical obscurity. The Knack helped make the entire country aware of the power pop genre in 1979. Despite numerous come back attempts they never really got the respect they deserved  – the excellent albums they left behind deserve to be heard again and again. You will be missed Doug.

The great Eric Woolfson has passed away on Dec.2 from cancer. Eric was the creator and writer (and often lead singer) of the ten Alan Parsons Project albums. Since then, he has written five stage musicals (Dancing Shadows, POE, Gambler, Gaudi and Freudiana) which have been performed world-wide. A quick bio is here. His talent continued way beyond the heyday of APP. Hear the genius that was released this past April.