I’m A Bereaver: Monkees Singer Davy Jones Is Dead

The Monkees in 1966: L to R: Davy Jones, Mickey Dolenz, Peter Tork, and Michael Nesmith.

By Lori Spencer

Yahoo! Music News

Davy Jones, the handsome British vocalist who melted the hearts of young girls in the 1960s, has died. Jones passed away at his Florida home Wednesday of a heart attack, according to the medical examiner’s office. He was 66.

Jones, best-known for his role in the famed TV series “The Monkees,” was the heartthrob of the band, making American teen girls swoon with his mop-top hair, big brown eyes, and megawatt smile. His fellow bandmates often teased Jones about his teen idol status and his height (he stood at only 5’3″). Monkees drummer Mickey Dolenz enjoyed jokingly introducing Jones as “Davey, the little short English one.”

His voice can be heard on some of the Monkees biggest hits. Jones took the lead on classics such as Boyce & Hart’s “Valleri,” “I Wanna Be Free,” “Daydream Believer,” (written by the Kingston Trio’s John Stewart) and “Cuddly Toy” (penned by Harry Nilsson).

Davy Jones was born Dec. 30, 1945 in Manchester, England. When he was 15…

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Fans, Friends and Family Say Goodbye to Etta James

 

Cover of the Etta James classic 1963 live album, "Rocks the House" (Chess Records)

By Lori Spencer

Yahoo! News

 

Private funeral services for four-time Grammy Award winner Etta James were held Saturday in Los Angeles. James died January 20 after a two-year battle with leukemia at age 73.

A public viewing Friday at Inglewood Cemetery drew hundreds of her fans. While the sound of her classic records wafted through the parking lot, mourners waited in line for hours to pass by the open casket. James was laid to rest in a simple black suit with gold embroidery, still looking every bit the diva.

Stevie Wonder, Christina Aguilera, and other celebrities came to pay their final respects. Stevie Wonder performed four songs, including…

 

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Johnny Otis and Etta James: Reunited at Last

 

 

 

By Lori Spencer

Yahoo! News

* A longer, in-depth version of this obituary appeared in This Can’t Be Happening! and OpEdNews

 

From their first meeting in 1953, the fates of Johnny Otis and Etta James seemed almost magically entwined.
Spunky little Jamesetta Hawkins, then 14 years old, was overheard rehearsing a song with her girl group The Creolettes in a San Francisco hotel bathroom. Outside the door, Johnny Otis’ ears perked up. “I knew instantly when I heard Etta sing in that bathroom audition that she would be a star,” he said decades later. “I heard the raw talent she possessed before she had developed.”

Johnny Otis – already famous for hits like “Harlem Nocturne,” “Castin’ My Spell on You,” and “Willie and the Hand Jive” – was also known as a radio disc jockey and a keen talent scout. His other discoveries included Big Mama Thornton, Johnny “Guitar” Watson, Little Richard,…

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