Who died this year?

[skywatch]

I know, it seems morbid. But there are some amazing people who should not be forgotten. Only today I learned of two, and one other off the top of my mind, whom I loved dearly. Who do you know or love who is no longer able to contribute to this strange human carnival?

Lemmy Kilmister - Motorhead and Hawkwind - died today of cancer at age 70
(Like Keith Richards, he seemed immune to the long years of rough treatment. Or maybe not.)

Ellsworth Kelly - minimalist painter, died today at age 92
- One of the more important abstract impressionists, noted for field paintings with complex subtle shifts when you look very close.

Daevid Allen - passed on March 13, 2015 at age 77
- he was a friend and inspiration to me, one of the founders of psychedelic rock. With Terry Riley he invented tape loop delay systems in the early '60s (later Eno & Fripp used the technique and called it "Frippertronics") and his band Soft Machine was headlining concerts in the UK with Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix as opening acts. His band Gong was like the Grateful Dead of Europe in the early '70s, and he always embraced a chaotic free spirit and punk DIY shamanic hippy discordant anarchist optimism.

Ernst Fuchs also died in November. He was born in 1930 and became an important figure in spiritual and visionary art, founder of the Vienna school of Fantastic Realism - which was sometimes erotic and disturbing as well. His images always resonated strongly with me. (I'm a weirdo, of course, so you shouldn't be too surprised when you see his images.)

There are others who should be remembered. Who are yours?

[BlackNomad]

[BlackNomad]

BB King's passing was actually quite hard to accept for me.

[BlackNomad]

"If the world were perfect, it wouldn’t be."
(Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra)

[deCompression]

R.I.P. my friend !

Thank you for this many years of excellent music !

[BlackNomad]

"Very basic music - loud, fast, city, raucous, arrogant, paranoid, speed-freak rock n roll.
It will be so loud that if we move in next door to you, your lawn will die"
I was really-really surprised when I discovered very intelligent, gentle, sensitive,
honest, straight forward, "no-bull sh*t" man... It's been a fun ride, R.I.P. Lemmy!

[Raza]

Scott Weiland, the lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver.

[skywatch]

Scott Weiland, the lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver.

Yeah, that was way too young.

[skywatch]

"If the world were perfect, it wouldn’t be."
(Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra)

A friend of mine got to know Yogi Berra a bit, as he lived in the same Palm Springs retirement community as my friend's mother. People used to hang out with him secretly hoping he would drop one of those beautiful phrases, and he sorta resented that. Apparently he was very intelligent and gentle, and his mind just had a brilliant way of shortcutting through language.

[Jeannie]

Leonard Nimoy.

My mother.

Jeannie