Category Archives: 2020

Bill Withers

For a man who made it sound so easy, Bill Withers worked hard. After leaving the Navy as a young man, he worked in factories and driving a milk truck before a chance encounter with Lou Rawls inspired him to buy a guitar. The songs he was soon producing were instantly iconic, playing alongside Carole King, Paul Simon and Stevie Wonder on every car radio and dorm room turntable throughout the 70s. By the 80s, he was discouraged by the pervasive racism of the industry and, never a seeker of the spotlight, he walked away–leaving behind a legacy of songs that will forever speak for themselves.

Adam Schlesinger

Name a bass player who has a gift for crafting unforgettable melodies, a genius for crisp arrangements and the soul of a storyteller. If you guessed Paul McCartney or Sting, you’d be close. Though Adam Schlesinger never achieved the household fame of those other guys, his songs belong in the same league. Most famous for “Stacy’s Mom,” recorded by his band Fountains of Wayne and for the equally catchy title song of the Tom Hanks film “That Thing You Do,” Schlesinger was also the unsung hero behind at least 3 different bands and a legendary composer for film and TV. Just 52 when COVID took him from us, Adam Schlesinger is gone too soon but his hooks will never quit.

Ronald “Khalis” Bell

They started as an instrumental jazz band on the New York scene in the sixties. And it was that instrumental training that gave Kool and the Gang a sound that was simultaneously tight and loose. Ronald Bell was at the heart of that sound. A self-taught player with a golden ear, he was the writer, producer and arranger behind many of the group’s timeless tunes: Jungle Boogie, Celebration, Cherish, and of course, Hollywood Swinging.

Lyle Mays

Lyle Mays was a highly accomplished pianist, composer, arranger and orchestrator. He was also co-founder of the legendary multi-Grammy Award winning Pat Metheny Group.

Wallace Roney

Wallace Roney was a lifelong student of jazz. From the age of five when he first heard Miles Davis, Roney’s path was clear. At twelve, he auditioned for Clark Terry and was soon being schooled by Dizzy Gillespie. At fifteen he sat in with Art Blakey. A few years later, Blakey hired Roney to replace Wynton Marsalis. At 23, Miles Davis gifted him a trumpet. But his true gift would always be his own. Wallace Roney—he left us too young, at 59. But his music is timeless.

Len Barry

Len Barry was a high school basketball star with the looks of a matinee idol, a sweet tenor voice and a deep appreciation for classic R&B, but for all that, Len Barry was a reluctant pop star. He joined the Philadelphia vocal group The Dovells, who had a hit in 1961 with “The Bristol Stomp.” Barry would go on to score one more top ten hit with The Dovells before launching a solo career that peaked with his 1965 song “1-2-3,” which reached #2 on the Billboard charts. Len Barry never sought the spotlight but it always seemed to find him.

Bonnie Pointer

From the streets of Oakland to a star on Hollywood Boulevard, Bonnie Pointer came a long way in a too-short life. She inspired her three sisters to unite their voices in harmony and they were soon singing backup behind the leading artists on the San Francisco scene. When the Pointer Sisters took off on their own, it was Bonnie’s eclectic taste that took them beyond classification, synthesizing Gospel, New Orleans jazz, Broadway standards, soul, pop and funk to create a sound unto itself. Bonnie also found success as a solo artist. Bonnie Pointer: born in 1950. Gone too soon at age 69 in June of 2020.

Freddy Cole

“I’m Not My Brother, I’m Me” was not just a catchy album title for Freddy Cole. Though a formidable jazz and blues song stylist in his own right, he could never avoid comparison with his older sibling, the legendary Nat “King” Cole. Nonetheless, his mellow timbre, smooth phrasing and understated piano accompaniment would have earned him fame and acclaim, no matter what his surname. Freddy Cole. Rest his soul.

Benny Mardones

Benny Mardones came to New York in the 1960s and soon made a name for himself writing songs for the likes of Brenda Lee, Tommy James and Chubby Checker. He struck gold for himself with his 1980 ballad “Into The Night” which ended up charting again in 1989. Benny Mardones left us in June, 2020. But his voice will go on “Into the Night” and beyond.

Bobby Comstock

Bobby Comstock was a born performer. At age seven he made his radio debut playing and singing country songs with his brother. But when rock ‘n roll broadcasts from Nashville made their way north to Ithaca, he was seventeen and smitten. Two years later, he was signed, on the charts and a regular on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. Though his records would never break into the top ten, his distinctive voice and songwriting prowess won him the friendship and admiration of everyone from BB King to Jimi Hendrix. With his 1965 hit, “I Want To Do It,” he expressed the sunny optimism that will live on as long as rock ‘n roll itself.