Let us celebrate the memory of singer, guitarist and songwriter Jeffrey Lee Pierce, who would have turned 65 today, if he hadn’t passed away in 1996 at the age of 38. He was the frontman in the American band The Gun Club, who played a mix of punk, garage rock and country. The Gun Club could be quite shambolic at times, but when they got it together, they were very good. Jeffrey Lee Pierce also did a small handful of solo albums, and to celebrate his memory I’ve chosen a track from his solo debut Wildweed, the long and epic song The Midnight Promise.
I did see Jeffrey Lee Pierce live once in the mid 1980’s, during his tour for the album above. It was rumoured that he was pretty wasted around that time, but the concert turned out good. During the encore, Tom Verlaine of Television entered the stage, and they did Wild Thing together. Good memory.
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21 years ago today John Entwistle of The Who passed away at the age of 57. As the bass player in what may well be the best rhythm section ever in rock, he doesn’t need any further introduction. To celebrate his memory, here is John Entwistle. along with the rest of The Who, singing (and playing bass of course) his own song My Wife.
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Happy Birthday to Ian Paice, who is turning 75 today. As the drummer in Deep Purple, he needs no further introduction. It’s sometimes discussed whether John Bonhan or Keith Moon is the greatest drummer ever. I would like to include Ian Paice in that debate. Here is Deep Purple with The Mule.
Ian Paice has been the drummer in Deep Purple since 1968, and today he is the only original member of the band. He has played on all of their albums and all of their live appearances!
Little Eva would have turned 80 today, if she hadn’t passed away in 2003 at the age of 59. She was one of the many female singers who appeared in the early 1960’s. She only had one big hit, but what a great song it was. So to celebrate Little Eva’s memory, here it is, The Loco-Motion.
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Let us celebrate the memory of American singer and guitarist Lowell George, who passed away on this date in 1979, only 34 years old. Starting out in Frank Zappa’s M____rs of Invention, he then went on to co-found Little Feat, the band from where he is best known. Little Feat had quite a bit of success in the 1970’s, with their rough mix of blues, funk, southern rock and soul. To celebrate Lowell George’s memory, here is Little Feat with Long Distance Love.
The Scorpions - Alien Nation
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The Doors - People Are Strange
On this date 52 years ago Jim Morrison died, joining the infamous Club 27.
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Happy Birthday to Robbie Robertson, who is turning 80 today! As the guitarist and main songwriter in the iconic Canadian/American band The Band (no pun intended), he needs no further introduction. Let’s just celebrate his birthday, with The Band and the song The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.
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Henry Thomas - Going Up the Country (1928)
Something a little different from me today, a bit of music history.
If you recognize this song, you are of course correct. It is the same song Canned Heat had great success with at the Woodstock festival over 40 years later. Well almost, Canned Heat changed the lyrics ,and credited the song to themselves, which they rightfully have been criticized for. Henry Thomas on the other hand, never got his due credit while still alive. Although there is some uncertainty about what happened to him, it is assumed he passed away sometime around 1930. Thanks to YouTube, at least his memory has gotten some recognition today. As we speak, this video has over 565 000 views there. May that number keep growing!
Let us celebrate the memory of American singer and songwriter Steve Young, who would have turned 81 today, if he hadn’t passed away in 2016 at the age of 73. He is for the most part unknown to the general public, so I’d like to draw some attention towards him here. On the other hand, he was highly respected among his fellow musicians. His best known song Seven Bridges Road has even been covered by artists like The Eagles, Joan Baez and Dolly Parton. To celebrate Steve Young’s memory, here is one of his own versions of that song.
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ZZ Top - Blue Jeans Blues (live)
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Happy Birthday to American singer and songwriter Butch Hancock, who is turning 78 today. Yet another fine musician who’s mostly unknown to the general public, but highly respected by his peers in music. Several of his songs have been recorded by Emmylou Harris. Butch Hancock has deliberatly kept a low profile. His albums have been released on small labels, while he has been doing other things in between. Of course that is a big part of the reason that this great songwriter still is relatively unknown. Let us give him a cheer on his birthday, with the song If You Were A Bluebird.
If I was a highway / I’d stretch along side you / I’d help you pass byways / That had dissatisfied you / If I was a highway / I’d be stretching, I’d be fetching you home
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Iron Maiden - The Trooper ( live)
and a cover version from a lady on Harp
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Let us celebrate the memory of Roky Erickson, who would have turned 76 today, if he hadn’t passed away in 2019 at the age of 71. Starting out with The 13th Floor Elevators in the mid-1960’s. Their song You’re Gonna Miss Me has later become a staple in the canon of songs from the garage/psych era. Unfortunateley the music world then lost this huge talent for the remaining decades of the 1900’s.
Due to personal problems, Roky only made and recorded a few songs during those years, which were compiled on a few albums and a handful of singles in the 1970’s, 80’s and 90’s. Luckily, with help from his brother and friends, Roky was able to return to a better life the early 2000’s. He then spent the rest of his life touring, recording and getting his due recognition and praise.
To celebrate Roky Erickson’s memory, here is the song Creature With the Atom Brain.
Sorry about the rather long rant today, but Roky Erickson to me is such an underappreciated artist. What could have been if mental illness hadn’t riddled his uniqe talent for such a long period of his life? If you are not familiar with Rocky Erickson and like the song posted here, I urge you to check out more.
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Sorry, but I’ve never heard of this musician. However, you are absolutely right that his music is really good. I’ll make a note of Roky Erickson and listen to more of his songs on YouTube. 
The 13th Floor Elevators - You’re Gonna Miss Me
One more for Roky Erickson.
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He is a big favourite of mine, and I’m glad to hear you like it. Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top was a friend of Roky, and there are some live clips on YouTube with the two of them together.
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