Gone Too Early

[We're the Stripes]

Jeff Buckley

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtS0rwQK_pI

Elliott Smith

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afeAUndotas

 

[Norman Potting]

Phil Lynott - the man for whom the phrase "cool as f***" was invented surely?

 

[Don Quixote]

George Harrison

 

[1066familyman]

The world of reggae is sadly littered with greats that have gone far too early. I could go on & on, but probably the most influential & youngest that immediately come to my mind are:

Slim Smith - 25 yrs old
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Hugh Mundell - 21 yrs old
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Tenor Saw - 22 yrs old
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Garnett Silk - 28 yrs old
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[DBL]

Vicente

 

[Woodchip]

Freddie Mercury
Janis Joplin
Jimmi Hendrix
Kurt Cobain
Jeff Buckley
Richey Edwards (aka Richey Manic)

On a slightly different note... Ayrton Senna, Jim Clark, Roland Ratzenberger

 

[Seagull kimchi]

Sandy Denny
Nick Drake

 

[Alex Alex Dawson oo! oo!]

Brian Jones
Roger (Syd) Barrett - musically anyway

 

[Buzzer]

Presley? He was an overweight cabaret performer when he died - way, way past his best. You could also argue that Jim Morrison was on the downward slope too and, call it heresy, John Lennon too.

Of course, they all died young but if you're referring to creative powers not sure that many of those would count.

Sams Dad is right: Cooke, Redding and Gaye are much better candidates all dying near the peak of the powers.

I'd add:
Bessie Smith
Robert Johnston
Hank Williams
Buddy Holly
Eddie Cochran
Janis Joplin
Jacques Brel
and Bob Marley - IMHO, the saddest of all

I wouldn't argue with any of those. I'd add Elliott Smith, Mama Cass, Karen Carpenter, Jeff (and Tim) Buckley, Lowell George and there's probably tons more. Amy Winehouse and any of 'That Stupid Club' as Cobain's mother referred to the dead 27 year olds.

However, I will take you to task for the character assassination of Elvis. If he was washed up when he died then so was Marvin Gaye. They were both at a nadir in their careers when they shuffled off this mortal coil but to deny that Elvis died far too young is churlish. Same goes for Jim Morrison (he was only 27 ffs!) I am absolutely certain that if they had survived they would have found a new audience and been re-invigorated as so many other top musicians are.

Take for instance Johnny Cash. I've got some albums of his that are extremely dodgy esp the 1980s Columbia Records era and the early 90s Mercury Records era. If he had died at that time I am sure the same could be said of Cash that he was a washed up star peddling mawkish church songs and twee Nashville country but thank God that he rose above all that to create, in his later years, a brand new audience and some of his greatest music. I am sure that Elvis would have had the same fortune.

Lennon is an interesting one and I think had started to show with his last 2 albums before he died that he had broken away finally from the Beatles once and for all and had started to enjoy making music again.

 

[Buzzer]

Sandy Denny
Nick Drake

Great shouts.

 

[FamilyGuy]

Harry Chapin

Mama Cass

Jimi Hendrix

Sam Cook

Otis Redding ...

 

[NMH]

Yeap - Ian Curtis - Good call. I missed them live by only a few months having weirdly been turned on to them by The Sun's coverage of his death. Saw New Order's first London show though! I remember the atmosphere was really aggressive!

I saw JD with Curtis at The Electric in London.
Quite an interesting gig, with the fitting and frothing and getting brought back onstage like James Brown.

 

[NMH]

Mark Leeman

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[Gwylan]

I wouldn't argue with any of those. I'd add Elliott Smith, Mama Cass, Karen Carpenter, Jeff (and Tim) Buckley, Lowell George and there's probably tons more. Amy Winehouse and any of 'That Stupid Club' as Cobain's mother referred to the dead 27 year olds.

However, I will take you to task for the character assassination of Elvis. If he was washed up when he died then so was Marvin Gaye. They were both at a nadir in their careers when they shuffled off this mortal coil but to deny that Elvis died far too young is churlish. Same goes for Jim Morrison (he was only 27 ffs!) I am absolutely certain that if they had survived they would have found a new audience and been re-invigorated as so many other top musicians are.

Take for instance Johnny Cash. I've got some albums of his that are extremely dodgy esp the 1980s Columbia Records era and the early 90s Mercury Records era. If he had died at that time I am sure the same could be said of Cash that he was a washed up star peddling mawkish church songs and twee Nashville country but thank God that he rose above all that to create, in his later years, a brand new audience and some of his greatest music. I am sure that Elvis would have had the same fortune.

Lennon is an interesting one and I think had started to show with his last 2 albums before he died that he had broken away finally from the Beatles once and for all and had started to enjoy making music again.

What if... what if?

I agree that it's hard to argue these things. Would Marvin Gaye be a washed out wreck or would he have cleaned himself up again? Substitute Jim Morrison for Gaye and you'd have the same question. I did say that you could argue these points, there's no definite answer. I do think though that Presley had been too far down the cabaret route to come back as the power he was. I did say that he died far too young, I was speaking only in terms of creative input.

But yes, people do rediscover themselves: you mention Johnny Cash. You could also say Scott Walker or Roy Orbison (another example of 'gone too early') re-emerged after a period in the doldrums.

 

[Gwylan]

The world of reggae is sadly littered with greats that have gone far too early. I could go on & on, but probably the most influential & youngest that immediately come to my mind are:

Slim Smith - 25 yrs old
[yt]3fWWZFCaSco[/yt]

Hugh Mundell - 21 yrs old
[yt]66V4SJ8OVMI[/yt]


Tenor Saw - 22 yrs old
[yt]yRCao607WH4[/yt]

Garnett Silk - 28 yrs old
[yt]CSUnJt1hFWQ[/yt]

Some good calls.

You could add Michael Smith, Dennis Brown, King Tubby, Augustus Pablo, Don Drummond and, of course, Peter Tosh to that list.

 

[Buzzer]

What if... what if?

I agree that it's hard to argue these things. Would Marvin Gaye be a washed out wreck or would he have cleaned himself up again? Substitute Jim Morrison for Gaye and you'd have the same question. I did say that you could argue these points, there's no definite answer. I do think though that Presley had been too far down the cabaret route to come back as the power he was. I did say that he died far too young, I was speaking only in terms of creative input.

But yes, people do rediscover themselves: you mention Johnny Cash. You could also say Scott Walker or Roy Orbison (another example of 'gone too early') re-emerged after a period in the doldrums.

Good points (and Scott Walker and the big O are very good examples also). Sorry if my tone seemed aggressive. I was v tired last night when I got in from Manchester.

 

[Buzzer]

The converse of this thread would be interesting also. Morrissey would have Nick Drake-like status if he had died in 1991. Rod Stewart would have been cool to name drop if he had gone too early.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Not really my thing, but surprised to see no mentions for Tupac, etc.

 

[Trufflehound]

Rod Stewart would have been cool to name drop if he had gone too early.

However, Rod Stewart is one of those who have found a new audience in later life. My 86-year-old mother-in-law is a massive fan of his Great American Songbook series. I'm pretty sure she never dashed out to buy The Killing of Georgie.


David Bowie on the other hand is a legend for the 60s and 70s (apart from Laughing Gnome) regardless of what happened later. But how bright would his star have been had his career been cut short after Scary Monsters? Or certainly long before he'd ever conceived of the godawful Tin Machine?

 

[Trufflehound]

Yeap - Ian Curtis - Good call. I missed them live by only a few months having weirdly been turned on to them by The Sun's coverage of his death. Saw New Order's first London show though! I remember the atmosphere was really aggressive!

I saw JD with Curtis at The Electric in London.
Quite an interesting gig, with the fitting and frothing and getting brought back onstage like James Brown.

I saw Peter Hook and the Light doing their 'Closer' JD tribute just two days ago. I have to say that while I'm no big fan of tribute acts, and Hooky lacks the stage charisma of Ian Curtis, it was a tremendous gig and his gruff Mancunian vocals did fit the songs and fill the hole rather well.

After finishing the album they played the exact same set (minus Atmosphere) that JD played 32 years ago, the last and only time they came here. Even more bizarrely they were supported by Dutch Factory label mates Minny Pops, who also supported JD that night and reformed specially for the occasion. 30 years on they looked like (and probably are) a bunch of middle-aged lawyers and teachers...