Cause of death reportedly NOT being hit by bus.

This may be of little interest to anyone but the most die-hard Beatles fans, but Neil Aspinall passed away. He was a longtime friend of the Beatles; he started as a roadie and van driver before the Beatles broke it big. Any history of the Beatles has his name all over it. He was originally friends with Pete Best, whose mother Mona played a huge role in the early days of the Beatles; Mona started a nightclub in the basement of her house where the Beatles played some of their first shows. Aspinall was living with the Bests as a lodger; he eventually ended up banging Mona, who was 20 years older. Sha-zing! Then Pete Best was kicked out of the band to make way for Ringo. Ouch. Aspinall stayed on as roadie and assistant, eventually becoming president of Apple Corps. Various people have laid claim to the “Fifth Beatle” title, and Aspinall comes as close to anyone to deserving it.

The Beatles - Get Back (rooftop 1969)

The BBC reports that Ola Brunkert, the drummer who played on most of the ABBA records, was found dead in a freak accident. A broken glass partition was found on his property, and the cause of death was bleeding to death from a cut in his neck. Yikes! Officials are presuming he fell and injured himself.

I have a love/hate relationship with ABBA. I actually read a book about them (part of an extremely ill-advised attempt to make it through the library’s music section alphabetically), and it was interesting to read how the couples came together and broke apart, and pretty much stifled all of their emotions in order to make giant meatballs of cash. But I only have peripheral exposure to their music. Some of it, I like a lot. (“Knowing Me Knowing You”? That’s the one where one of the women sexily breathes “Good days, bad days…” right? And I am not ashamed to liking “Dancing Queen.”) And some of it, not so much.

It’s fucking hard to find Abba videos that show the drummer, okay?

In not a very good way to start the week, the blind guy from Patrick Swayze’s Road House is dead. Blind from birth due to a rare form of cancer, the blind guy from Patrick Swayze’s Road House passed away Sunday at the age of 41. Though known for other things as well, the blind guy from Patrick Swayze’s Road House is best known for his role as Cody, the blind guy from Patrick Swayze’s Road House who played the guitar at the Double Deuce bar. Remember these scenes?

After Patrick Swayze beats the shit out of everyone in the bar…

Cody, Blind Singer at Double Deuce: Ladies and gentlemen… James Dalton.

and…

Dalton: So, you play pretty good for a blind white boy.

Cody, Band Singer at Double Deuce: Yeah, and I thought you’d be bigger.

Both of those are funny, because he’s blind. GET IT?! Rest in peace, Blind Guy from Patrick Swayze’s Road House. Rest in peace.

Some very sad news to report, influential musician (and the “Father of Christian Rock”) Larry Norman passed away yesterday, he was 60 years old.

Norman, a resident of Salem, rose to fame as the frontman for People!, and then later was known for his fantastic solo work. While unfortunately saddled with the “Jesus Rock” title, Norman’s music recklessly broke from the church on most all religious issues, and instead offered radical views on global politics (especially Vietnam) and his own personal strife. Never a cheerleader for the faith, Norman was a very complicated individual whose unconventional beliefs often alienated him from the church, while his religious content scared away secular music fans.

His music has influenced everyone from Paul McCartney to Pete Townshend, and was especially important to Frank Black, who often went out of his way to speak highly of Norman’s work.

MP3:
Larry Norman - I Love You

Larry Norman - I Am The Six o’ Clock News

His brother Charles wrote a nice memorial, it’s after the jump. Also, Norman’s work was about to receive it’s first proper retrospective treatment, courtesy of local label Arena Rock Recordings, it will be out on May 27th. It’s very sad that he did not live to see that.

Legendary producer Teo Macero died February 19th. He was responsible for some of Miles Davis’ greatest albums, including the magnificent In a Silent Way — which I maintain was the last jazz album to show any forward progression in the movement. (What came after that? Bitches’ Brew? A particularly enjoyable hangover, and a rock/funk album to boot. Not really jazz. Jack Johnson? Headhunters? Weather Report? Not jazz, my friends.)

What I find fascinating is that Macero was really a record producer. In a Silent Way did not follow the format of most jazz records - i.e. complete, pristine takes, essentially recorded live. In a Silent Way had bits of performances chopped up, edited, repeated, cycling back on themselves. It’s nearly undetectable at first, but Macero’s editing provides the dreamlike rush that you experience by listening to the album. It’s a gauzy, beaded curtain of music; by listening to it, you don’t absorb it—it absorbs you. NPR’s All Things Considered did a special on the album some years ago, which you can listen to here.

Meanwhile, the New York Times obit for Macero is online here.

Ugh. In continuing with the bad news today, Jim Jones, guitarist for the seminal art-rock band Pere Ubu, passed away last night.

From the Cleveland Scene:

Pere Ubu guitarist Jim Jones died late Monday night. Details have not been released, but he’d been ill for years. Health problems lead him to leave the Cleveland post-punk band in 1996, and his condition had deteriorated, though friends say he’d looked good over the last year.

I don’t own enough Pere Ubu to consider myself a fan (only about four records in their extensive catalog), but this is sad news regardless. Geez, today is turning into a little mini Black Tuesday, isn’t it?

As a send-off, here’s the Ubu performing on “Night Music”, an old TV show hosted by David Sanborn. Check the solo at about 2:30 in:

(HT: The Daily Swarm)

First Idolator reported that thirteen year old magazine No Depression is calling it quits.

Then All Hip Hop reported that label TVT is filing for Chapter 11, and while the label is claiming to not quite be done yet, I can hear the death rattle from here.

Finally, The Daily Swarm is reporting that indie rag Resonance is done as well.

I could try and make a joke in here somewhere, but really, this is just sad news all around.

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