I stopped writing this year because life got in the way, but in retrospect, there would have been too many "Vale" posts to write.
Here's a fairly thorough list of the entertainers we lost in 2016:
- Robert Stigwood (artist manager for Bee Gees, Eric Clapton, et al)
- David Bowie
- Glenn Frey (guitarist/vocalist/songwriter for the Eagles)
- Alan Rickman (notable for the character "Professor Snape" in the Harry Potter franchise)
- Bryce Rohde (Aussie Jazz Pianist)
- Paul Kantner (Guitarist in the Jefferson Airplane)
- Maurice White (Vocalist from Earth, Wind and Fire)
- Vanity (of Prince-associated project Vanity 6)
- Harper Lee (author of the classic "To Kill a Mockingbird")
- Sir George Martin (producer of many great records, including all of the Beatles catalog)
- Jon English (Australian Rock star and theatre actor)
- Keith Emerson (keyboardist of the Nice and Emerson Lake and Palmer)
- Frank Sinatra Jnr (son of the late crooner Frank Sinatra)
- Steve Young (outlaw Country singer)
- Phife Dawg (rapper from A Tribe Called Quest)
- Dennis Davis (drummer with David Bowie and Stevie Wonder)
- Merle Haggard (Outlaw country singer)
- Pete Zorn (multi-instrumentalist with Steeleye Span and Richard Thompson, among others)
- Prince
- Billy Paul (American soul singer, whose biggest hit was "Me and Mrs Jones")
- Muhummad Ali (boxer and media figure)
- Mac Cocker (Triple J broadcasting pioneer and father of Jarvis Cocker from Pulp)
- Bernie Worrell (keyboard wizard with Parliament/Funkadelic and Talking Heads)
- Mac Rice (writer of "Mustang Sally" and Staple Singers' "Respect Yourself")
- Bud Spencer (a favourite actor of mine, in films like "They Call me Trinity")
- Scotty Moore (guitarist on all the early Elvis Presley records)
- Alan Vega (founder of post-punk band Suicide)
- Sandy Pearlman (manager of Blue Oyster Cult and founder of online download service E-Music)
- Viola Beach (British band, all members of which died in a car accident)
- Ronnie Corbett (British Comedian)
- Rudy Van Gelder (producer of the some of the finest jazz records of the 20th century)
- Prince Buster (Jamaican Reggae pioneer)
- Buckwheat Zydeco (accordionist and Zydeco musician)
- Ross Higgins (his most famous work was as Ted Bullpit in "Kingswood Country")
- Fergus Miller, aka Bored Nothing (Australian indie Musician)
- Mode Allison (American jazz pianist)
- Milt Okun (producer for Warner Bros Records in the 1960s and 1970s)
- Sharon Jones (American Soul Singer)
- Hugh McDonald (songwriter and violinist in Redgum)
- Florence Henderson (best known for her role as Carol Brady in "The Brady Bunch")
- Ray Columbus (NZ singer in Ray Columbus and the Invaders, famous for their original hit "She's a Mod" in 1964)
- Wayne Duncan (Daddy Cool)
- Ross Hannaford (Daddy Cool)
- Leonard Cohen
- Greg Lake (bassist in Emerson Lake and Palmer, King Crimson)
- Alan Thicke (American actor)
- Rick Parfitt (rhythm guitarist in Status Quo)
- George Michael (founder of WHAM! and solo artist)
- Carrie Fisher (best known for her role as Princess Leia in the "Star Wars" franchise)
- Debbie Reynolds (mother of Carrie Fisher, actress)
Wow. We will miss each and every one of them.
Here's hoping for a better 2017. Happy new year to you all.
