02/01/1948 - 08/06/2004
James Ambrose Johnson, Jr. (February 1, 1948 – August 6, 2004), better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. James was a popula...
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02/18/1936 - 03/19/2008
Philip Jones Griffiths (18 February 1936 - 19 March 2008) was a Welsh photojournalist known for his coverage of the Vietnam war.
04/25/1917 - 06/15/1996
Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917 – June 15, 1996), also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist. With a vocal range spanning three octaves (Db3 to Db6), she was noted...
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09/28/1928 - 06/03/2009
Koko Taylor sometimes spelled KoKo Taylor (September 28, 1928 – June 3, 2009) was an American blues musician, popularly known as the "Queen of the Blues." She was known primarily for her rough, powerful vocals and traditional blues...
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02/20/1967 - 04/05/1994
Kurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana.
Nirvana was labeled "the flagship band" of G...
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1926 - 08/02/2011
DeLois Barrett Campbell (1926 - August 2, 2011) was a part of the Barrett Sisters Trio along with her sisters Rodessa and Billie. She started her career in gospel music as a member of the Roberta Martin Singers.
05/21/1917 - 01/06/1993
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993 was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise
11/12/1917 - 06/16/2008
Jo Elizabeth Stafford (November 12, 1917 – July 16, 2008) was an American singer of traditional pop music and jazz standards whose career ran from the late 1930s to the early 1960s. Stafford was greatl...
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03/31/1913 - 09/23/2006
Etta Baker (March 31, 1913 – September 23, 2006) was a Piedmont blues guitarist and singer. Etta’s music ranges over a century of music styles and influences from 19th century parlor music to post-WW II electric blues.
07/20/1919 - 01/11/2008
Sir Edmund Percival Hillary, (20 July 1919 – 11 January 2008), was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist.
10/10/1917 - 02/17/1982
Thelonious Sphere Monk (October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer considered "one of the giants of American music". Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to th...
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Buddy Rich (Bernard Rich )
09/30/1917 - 04/02/1987
Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. Rich was billed as "the world's greatest drummer" and was known for his virtuosic technique, power, groove, and sp...
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02/28/1943 - 11/27/1998
Barbara Acklin was a soul singer of the 1960s and 1970s. Her biggest hit was "Love Makes a Woman" in 1968 which reached the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.
07/06/1925 - 02/09/1981
Bill Haley (July 6, 1925 – February 9, 1981) was one of the first American rock and roll musicians. He is credited by many with first popularizing this form of music in the early 1950s with his group Bill Haley & His Comets and their hit...
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Kate Smith (Kathryn Elizabeth Smith)
05/01/1907 - 06/17/1986
Kathryn Elizabeth "Kate" Smith (May 1, 1907 – June 17, 1986) was an American singer, best known for her rendition of Irving Berlin's "God Bless America". Smith had a radio, television, and recording career spanning fi...
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