Archive for Singers

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J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson

Posted in Forest Lawn Memorial Park (TX) with tags , , on December 28, 2020 by Cade

bopper1October 24, 1930 – February 3, 1959

“Hellooo Baby!”

Celebrity and tragedy often go hand in hand. Sometimes, the former leads to the latter. And sometimes, the latter solidifies the former.

Jiles Perry “J.P.” Richardson was a radio personality in East Texas whose biggest claim-to-fame by the time he was 26 was successfully pulling off a 5-day on-air marathon broadcast that found him spinning some 1,821 consecutive records. Known to his audience as “The Big Bopper,” Richardson also dabbled in songwriting. His songs caught the ear of Mercury records and, in 1958, Bopper’s novelty song “Chantilly Lace” started steadily climbing the charts.

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Eddie Kendricks

Posted in Elmwood Cemetery with tags , , , on December 21, 2020 by Cade

kendricks1December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992

Eddie James Kendrick grew up singing in church in his native Alabama. Through the church choir, he met a young man named Paul Williams and the two quickly formed a doo-wop group called the Cavaliers. They moved to Cleveland, Ohio in 1957 and, shortly thereafter, to Detroit where they enjoyed some local success rebranded as the Primes1. In 1961, the Primes broke up, but Kendricks (as he was now calling himself) and Williams joined another group called the Elgins. The Elgins would soon become the Temptations.

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Selena

Posted in Seaside Memorial Park with tags , on November 30, 2020 by Cade

selena1
April 16, 1971 – March 31, 1995

Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, known simply as Selena, was a hugely successful American Latin musician and singer. Commonly referred to as “The Queen of Tejano” – the genre of music she would come to dominate and redefine – Selena was the best-selling Latin artist of the 1990’s. From a young age, she performed with her family all around her native South Texas, eventually landing a recording contract with EMI Latin.

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Glen Campbell

Posted in Campbell's Cemetery with tags , , , , , on November 23, 2020 by Cade

April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017

Glen Campbell was not the first “Rhinestone Cowboy,” but he’s arguably the most famous. At least, that’s what you might suspect judging him solely by his biggest hit.

Despite personally resonating with the titular character in the chart-topping 1975 song, Campbell was so much more than a sequined journeyman waiting for his turn in the spotlight.

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Patsy Cline

Posted in Shenandoah Memorial Park with tags , , , on November 2, 2020 by Cade

cline1September 8, 1932 – March 5, 1963

If country music has official royalty, Patsy Cline was its first queen.

Virginia Patterson Hensley knew she wanted to be a singer from the very beginning. Though she worked odd jobs in her Virginia hometown out of a need to help her family, it wasn’t long until she was aiming higher and soliciting auditions wherever and whenever she could. Following a brief illness at the age of 15 that affected her throat…and therefore her voice, Ginny realized quickly that she had been given a gift. Local radio shows and a stint with a regional country band followed and soon, her gift was being shared on television and larger radio markets.

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Whitney Houston

Posted in Fairview Cemetery with tags , on October 19, 2020 by Cade

August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012

Whitney Houston was born in Newark, New Jersey in 1963. 48 years later, she died in a bathtub in Beverly Hills. Everything that happened in between was a wild, at times spectacular ride.

One of the most successful and awarded female singers of all time, Whitney was at the top of her game immediately. Her 13x(!) Platinum self-titled debut album in 1985 and her 9x Platinum 1987 follow up generated SEVEN straight #1 hits. Each bigger than the last and every one incredibly popular with R&B AND Pop audiences. She was an instant – and formidable – superstar.

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Richard Street

Posted in Forest Lawn Cypress with tags , , , , on September 27, 2019 by Cade

street2October 5, 1942 – February 27, 2013

Richard Street was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He attended Northwestern High School with his cousin, Melvin Franklin, and another young man named Otis Williams. Along with Al Bryant and a few others, they formed the singing group that would eventually become Otis Williams and the Distants. In 1960, Williams, Franklin and Bryant left the Distants to form the Elgins…which became the Temptations. Continue reading →

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Rick James

Posted in Forest Lawn Cemetery (NY) with tags , , , on September 2, 2019 by Cade

February 1, 1948 – August 6, 2004

James Ambrose Johnson Jr. was born in Buffalo, NY. His mother worked as a dancer and numbers runner to make ends meet. Young James would often accompany her on her rounds and he was exposed to bars that featured musicians like Miles Davis and Etta James. Needless to say, he liked what he saw and it was music from there out. Well, music and drugs, but I digress. He got in trouble quite a bit as a young man, so he joined the Navy, as one does. Not finding military life to be for him, and finding himself under orders to go to Vietnam, he fled to Toronto and started performing music under the name Ricky James Matthews. Long story short, he met Neil Young, moved to Detroit, met Stevie Wonder (who encouraged him to shorten his stage name to “Ricky James”) and signed with Motown. Continue reading →

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Dennis Edwards

Posted in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery with tags , , , on August 22, 2019 by Cade

February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018

Dennis Edwards, Jr. was an R&B vocalist who rose to fame in the Motown Records machine of the 1960s Detroit scene. After a brief stint in the military, Edwards signed on retainer with Motown Records. He became the lead vocalist for the Contours, who traveled with, and opened for, the Temptations, with whom he became friends. In 1968, the Temptations fired “Classic 5” lead singer, David Ruffin, and asked Edwards to take his place. Continue reading →

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Gregory Hines

Posted in St. Volodymyr's Cemetery with tags , , , on August 18, 2019 by Cade

February 14, 1946 – August 9, 2003

Tony and Emmy award-winning dancer, singer and actor, Gregory Hines, was always on the stage. From a young age, Gregory (along with brother, Maurice, and sometimes their father) would entertain audiences in nightclubs throughout their native New York City. Especially adept at tap dancing, young Gregory eventually headed to Hollywood and found work as a musician and actor. Continue reading →

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