Rolling Obituary Thread 2023

Alan Arkin with 2 songs in this clip with his group The Tarriers. The first song would later be covered by the late late great Harry Belafonte D -O.
Check out the second song in this clip Alan singing Choucoune in Haitian Creole. pic.twitter.com/MROt3OEsx8

— Christopher Fusaro (@FusaCmee) June 30, 2023

Arkin had another folk group called the Baby Sitters with Lee Hays and others, I have some tunes on an old Folkways comp

The Russian Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming was one of my late father's favorite movies... RIP

Simon (Marshall Brickman, 1980) is unbelievably unique and hilarious

Arkin was one of the few male celebs who came off well in a #metoo story, telling Morgan Freeman to stop harassing a woman on set.

Yeah, I think Arkin came up in the folky/social justice scene of the 50's, which may have contained some creeps, but he wasn't one of them

In his best pissed off George Aaronow voice

Apparently Lord Creator but not a lot of confirmation

Appears agreed, RIP

Arl Kim also a founding member of the Compass Players (to become second city) IIRC.

Arkin

Everyone at BT Sport is saddened to hear the news of the passing of Darren Drozdov, professionally known to WWE fans as Droz.

1969-2023

RIP pic.twitter.com/A2100uRGYZ

— WWE on BT Sport (@btsportwwe) June 30, 2023

Aw man, RIP Droz. A guy who suffered a career-ending (and life threatening injury) but kept positive somehow.

;_; RIP

RIP Alan King!

*ARKIN!

I meant Arkin.

Alan King is dead, too.

Oh ffs Rick Froberg (Hot Snakes, Drive Like Jehu)

RIP Rick Froberg seriously one of the best voices in rock and roll, in two of my favorite bands of all time, and an incredible visual artist :(

— mike caulo 🥤 sipsman (@sippycupyall) July 2, 2023

Reis's insta post: https://www.instagram.com/p/CuLPOActkfs/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

fuck.

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2023-07-01/rick-froberg-drive-like-jehu-hot-snakes-singer-dies

55. Fuck.

totally stunned. what the hell? he's younger than me!

Dunno his music but he was a talented illustrator. RIP

Dee-jay Dick Biondi:

First American disc jockey to play The Beatles, a full year before they came to the States. His Friday Night 50s Party on WJMK opened a huge world for me. RIP https://t.co/wshSFaWT1J

— McKie's Disc Jockey Show Lounge (@mckiesdjlounge) July 2, 2023

Apparently DC musician Mitch Parker has passed away. He was in Government Issue, Crippled Pilgrims, Tone, and Jets of NW (w/Neil Hagerty). I met him briefly thru work & he was super cool. RIP. This compilation is great: https://t.co/0uDlbELgQ0

— Marc Masters 🌵 (@Marcissist) July 2, 2023

I was just listening to crippled pilgrims yesterday - I owned their LP back in the mid 80s and that recent comp has been a great chance to appreciate them again. RIP.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/arts/music/coco-lee-dead.html

Chinese-American singer Coco Lee, died by suicide. I didn't love her music but she was inescapable if you grew up in Asia in the late 90s/early 00s. Sad to hear she hadn't been doing well

Simon DK from DiY ☹️

Faith is saddened to hear of the passing of Simon DK from the UK’s pioneering Nottingham-based DiY crew.

More than any other soundsystem, DiY bridged the gap between the free party scene and underground clubs, their nights were a byword for the true acid house spirit. pic.twitter.com/ABHSPH014g

— Faith Fanzine (@FaithFanzine) July 7, 2023

Hungarian pianist Jeno Jando, 71, who recorded massive swathes of the classical repertoire for the budget priced Naxos label. Always a reliable guide and sometimes much more than that - e.g. his recordings of Bartok and Brahms chamber music are wonderful.

Mikala Jones, 44

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/jul/11/mikala-jones-surfer-death-accident-indonesia

Milan Kundera, 94.

I just read his essay «The Tragedy of Central Europe» the other day. RIP.

RIP. One of the reasons I first moved to Prague, and not completely a coincidence that my oldest is called Milan (though he isn't named after him)

Aw. I was into Kundera 30 years ago... laughter and forgetting / unbearable lightness were big then in my circle.

"It's abut chicks, right?"

Es muss sein.

Upon reflection I don't think I got as much out of those books as I should have. So much of the context is specifically Czech, specifically Eastern European, specifically Cold War-tastic, specific to a certain philosophical tradition. If you tried to view them just as human stories you would fail.

That's my memory anyway.

Oh wow I had no idea Kundera was still alive; like, it had never even occurred to me to check. RIP

One of the reasons I first moved to Prague

Was your experience similar to mine in that most locals seemed dismissive or outright hostile towards Kundera?

oh yeah, nobody had the slightest interest in him, not even literary types.

I think he had more influence on the psychogeography of the place for me, that and Too Loud A Solitude and Kafka's The Castle.

New wave: Bob Segarini.

https://www.torontomike.com/2023/07/bob-segarni-dead-at-77/

Proto new-age San Diego mystic Wilburn Burnette, along with his brother, in rather mysterious circumstances:

https://timesofsandiego.com/crime/2023/07/10/brothers-ages-84-and-76-found-dead-in-blossom-valley-home-near-lakeside-identified/

Burchette's work is well worth the seeking out:

https://masterwilburnburchette.bandcamp.com/music

Will also relatedly recommend Bill Perrine's new book:

https://billingsgate.bigcartel.com/product/book-alien-territory-radical-experimental-irrelevant-music-in-1970s-san-diego-by-bill-perrine

I’ve just heard the very sad news that George Armstrong aka Alan Humphries passed away yesterday. RIP George. A true Grange Hill legend xxxx pic.twitter.com/6uGoeUWQ8x

— Grange Hill (@hill_grange) July 12, 2023

Former Rolling Stones and Grateful Dead tour manager Sam Cutler.

https://www.noise11.com/news/former-rolling-stones-tour-manager-sam-cutler-has-died-aged-80-20230714

Sam was the first to utter the famous Stones concert intro, “Ladies and Gentlemen, the Greatest Rock and Roll Band in the World…The Rolling Stones!”. Sam told A Current Affair in Australia, “Mick walked offstage and gave me a dirty look and said ‘I want to speak to you’ and he said ‘we don’t want you to call us the greatest rock’n’roll band in the world it’s embarrassing’.”

Also Mick: "Copywrite that phrase! NOW!"

Film critic Derek Malcolm https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/jul/16/derek-malcolm-longtime-guardian-film-critic-dies-aged-91

Jane Birkin https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-66216417

Right at that age, for my generation, where you think, wow, too young and then you think 76, not really that young I guess.

My first 'crush' thanks to that milk advert with John Junkin!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGVrL0OBHBg

RIP Derek Malcolm btw - I wish you'd stayed at the Guardian longer

RIP Derek and Jane

RIP Jane B

Aw, Jane. I first saw her in Daddy Nostalgie and went to see it twice so I could spend another hour in her presence.