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André Previn

Photo by Marcel Thomas/WireImage

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André Previn, Award-Winning Conductor And Composer, Dies At 89

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Previn won 10 GRAMMY awards over the course of his long and storied career
Rachel Brodsky
GRAMMYs
Feb 28, 2019 - 1:00 pm

GRAMMY-winning composer and conductor André Previn has died. He was 89 years old. Previn's manager Linda Petrikova confirmed the news to NPR on Thursday.

A composer, conductor and pianist, Previn famously directed the Los Angeles Philharmonic from 1985 to 1989. Over the course of his career, he was nominated for 44 GRAMMYs and won four Academy Awards for "My Fair Lady," "Irma la Douce," "Porgy and Bess" and "Gigi."

"André Previn was a multitalented composer, conductor, and pianist who achieved supreme success across the jazz, pop, and classical music genres," said Recording Academy CEO and President Neil Portnow in a statement. 

"During his versatile eight-decade career, André earned 44 GRAMMY nominations and 10 GRAMMY Awards, and was recognized by the Recording Academy with the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010 for his creative contributions to the field of recording.

He earned his first GRAMMY at the inaugural GRAMMY Awards in 1958 for Best Soundtrack Album, Dramatic Picture Score Or Original Cast for Gigi. His eclectic approach to creating music and ability to effortlessly combine genres will continue to be celebrated by our industry. André was an incomparable talent, and his legacy will live on through his countless compositions."
 

The Cox Family

The Cox Family

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Willard Cox, Of GRAMMY-Winning Bluegrass Group The Cox Family, Has Died At 82

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The local bluegrass/gospel heroes were beloved for the vocal harmony they delivered while performing both hymns and original songs
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Nov 8, 2019 - 11:47 am

Willard Cox, the father of GRAMMY-winning bluegrass/gospel/country group The Cox Family, has passed away at the age of 82. The sad news was shared on Bluegrass Today on Nov. 5.

The Cox Family—consisting of Willard, his late wife Marie, and their four children; Evelyn, Lynn, Sidney and Suzanne—began performing together in 1972. They first saw regional fame in the South, as they toured across their homestate, Louisiana, as well as Texas, Mississippi and Arkansas. The local bluegrass heroes were beloved for the vocal harmony they delivered while performing both hymns and original songs.

In 1993, they worked with 27-time GRAMMY winner Alison Krauss, who produced their album Everybody's Reaching Out For Someone. The following year, Krauss and The Cox Family released a collaborative gospel album, I Know Who Holds Tomorrow, which earned a win for Best Southern Gospel, Country Gospel Or Bluegrass Gospel Album at the 37th GRAMMY Awards.

The family's acclaim began to spread across the country, and in 2000, they were invited to work on the soundtrack for the Golden Globe-winning Coen Brothers film, Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? Krauss also performed on the soundtrack, which won all of them the coveted Album Of The Year at the 44th GRAMMY Awards.

The Cox Family's song on the soundtrack, "I Am Weary (Let Me Rest)," is one of their most popular on streaming services and helped them reach international audiences. On the deluxe edition of the album, they had two more songs; "Keep On The Sunny Side" and and "In The Highway."

Unfortunately, not long after the family finished working on the iconic soundtrack, Willard and Marie were seriously hurt in a car accident, leaving Willard with a severe spine injury. Despite the challenges, the family performed a limited number of shows with Willard in a wheelchair. Marie also fought breast cancer for several years and passed away in 2009.

The Cox Family's final album, Gone Like The Cotton, was released in 2015. 

Willard's funeral service is taking place today in Minden, La. The surviving family shared a kind message on the obituary: "The Family wishes to thank you all the thoughts and prayers shown during this time so far! Please continue to keep us in your prayers in the next few days as we celebrate his life!"

Alison Krauss On Her Many GRAMMY Wins, Working With Robert Plant & The Importance Of "Daydream Time"

Paul Barrere

Photo: Frans Schellekens/Redferns/Getty Images

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Paul Barrere, Little Feat Guitarist & Songwriter, Dies At 71

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Starting with 1973's seminal album 'Dixie Chicken,' Barrere's funky guitar playing helped shape the band's unmistakable groove
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Oct 28, 2019 - 4:48 pm

Little Feat guitarist Paul Barrere died on Oct. 26 due to complications of medical issues. The band announced the sad news on their website, sending well wishes to his surviving family and to his many fans, who were "his extending family." He was 71 years old.

Barrere attending high school with Little Feat founder Lowell George, and even auditioned for the band on bass in 1969. Three years later, he'd join on guitar, and his first recording with the band was their seminal 1973 album, Dixie Chicken. In all, he played in Little Feat for 47 years and influenced countless artists and guitarists in the worlds of rock and jam music over the last five decades.

As a songwriter, Barrere also made significant contributions to the band, writing or co-writing a number of songs including “All That You Dream,” “Old Folks Boogie,” “Time Loves A Hero” and “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now.”

Barrere and Little Feat were nominated for the GRAMMY for Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal for "Let It Roll" at the 31st GRAMMY Awards in 1988. Outside of Little Feat, Barrere also recorded with artists such as Taj Mahal, Jack Bruce and Carly Simon. 

In 1994, Barrere was diagnosed with Hepetits C, and in 2015 he was diagnosed with liver cancer. He was forced to miss Little Feat's 50th Anniversary tour this summer, which landed in Huntington, N.Y., on the evening of his death, where the band payed tribute to their longtime bandmate.

"As the song he sang so many times put it, he was always “Willin’,' but it was not meant to be," his bandmates wrote. "Paul, sail on to the next place in your journey with our abiding love for a life always dedicated to the muse and the music.  We are grateful for the time we have shared."

Fellow guitar greats such as Warren Haynes and Bonnie Raitt reacted to the sad news and paid tribute to Barrere on social media. Barrere leaves a lasting legacy in the music world in the music he made, the musicians he influenced and the lives he touched.

GRAMMY-Winning Producer & Engineer Ed Cherney Dies At 69

 

 

 

Nick Tosches

Nick Tosches in 1997

Photo: Louis MONIER/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images

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Music Journalist Nick Tosches Dead At 69

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The bold writer was known as one of the trio of "Noise Boys," writing for publications including the Rolling Stone, Creem and Vanity Fair during his illustrious career
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Oct 21, 2019 - 1:33 pm

Music journalist and biographer Nick Tosches passed away yesterday, Oct. 20, at age 69, The New York Times reports. He profiled the likes of Debbie Harry, Dean Martin and Jerry Lee Lewis, wrote for publications including Rolling Stone, Creem and Vanity Fair and published several biographies and novels over the course of his career.

Known as one of the three "Noise Boys," along with fellow unorthodox music writers Richard Meltzer and Lester Bangs, Tosches was fascinated with celebrity and the shadows it creates. As The Times notes, his 1992 book on Martin, "Dino: Living High in the Dirty Business of Dreams," was "one of his most attention-getting biographies."

"Recordings, movies, radio, television: He would cast his presence over them all, a mob-culture Renaissance man," he wrote of Martin in "Dino." "And he would come to know, as few ever would, how dirty the business of dreams could be."

"I would describe Dean as a noble character in an ignoble racket in an ignoble age," Tosches told The New York Times back in 1992. "Life is a racket. Writing is a racket. Sincerity is a racket. Everything's a racket."

He had fun while he was at it—at times, he would write reviews for non-existent albums, or without listening to them. His infamous review of Black Sabbath's 1970 album Paranoid didn't really talk about the music, but instead Satanism and Charles Manson. It was rumored that he didn't listen to the album before writing the review. According to Variety, he hacked his online biography to mark his death at 2021, because it was the anniversary of Dante's death in 1321.

His books also include 1982's "Hellfire: The Jerry Lee Lewis Story," 2000's "Nick Tosches Reader," which collects the first three decades of his work and 2002's "In The Hand Of Dante," a novel about author Dante and a protagonist named Nick Tosches.

Black Sabbath On Their Legacy: "We've Already Influenced A Lot Of Bands" | GRAMMY Salute To Music Legends

The Chambers Brothers (L-R: Joe, Lester, Willie & George)

Photo: Larry Hulst/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
 

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Psych-Rock Pioneer George "Pops" Chambers Dead At 88

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The bassist and singer was a member of the Los Angeles psych-soul group The Chambers Brothers, best known for their 1968 Top 10 hit, "Time Has Come Today"
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Oct 14, 2019 - 1:34 pm

George "Pops" Chambers, the singer and bassist of Los Angeles psych-rock outfit The Chambers Brothers, passed away Fri., Oct. 12 at 88. The death was announced on the official Facebook page for the pioneering '60s/'70s group with a short message and link to their song "Heaven."

"To all our fans, friends and loved ones, I was informed this morning at about 5:00 am, that my brother George, known as 'Pops' Chambers has passed. We thank you for all your years of Love Peace and Happiness," the post read.

George Chambers and his younger brothers Lester, Joe and Willie, originally active in their Baptist church choir in Mississippi, formed their aptly named group after relocating to L.A. in the mid-'50s. Spending the first few years performing as a gospel group, the soon began expanding their sound and found a home in the local folk scene, and was invited to perform at the iconic Newport Folk Festival in 1965.

Channeling the moods of the times, The Chambers Brothers incorporated electric instruments, expanded to add Brian Keenan on drums and embraced a groovy psych rock sound. As Rolling Stone notes, after adding Keenan, they became one of the few interracial musical groups at the time, as well as "staples" of the local music scene for a full decade.

With the sprawling acid/psych rock track "Time Has Come Today," the group saw their first Top 10 hit in 1968. While it was technically the shorter single cut of the song that charted, the full album version (from 1967's The Time Has Come) clocks in at 11 minutes, with spooky laughs and screams piercing the funky guitar and bass licks.

The group remained an active part of the burgeoning L.A. psych rock scene until the mid-'70s, when they split up. Each member remained active in music, with George returning to his gospel music roots and eventually leading his local church. The Chamber Brothers also reunited on stage several times over the years.

George Clinton: "The Funk Is Just Beginning" | GRAMMY Salute To Music Legends