Music Obituaries: March 2017

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I know, I'm late in posting these. I apologize. Here's the list of music and music-related individuals we lost in the month of March 2017. Tommy Page (died March 3, suicide, age 46): music performer (he had a #1 hit with "I'll Be Your Everything") and executive at Billboard magazine. Lyle Ritz (died March 3, long illness, age 87): bass player for the legendary "Wrecking Crew" session musician group. Valerie Carter (died March 4, heart attack, age 64): singer, background singer (toured with James Taylor), and songwriter (co-wrote "Love Needs a Heart" with Jackson Browne). Fred Weintraub (died March 5, Parkinson's disease, age 87): the owner of the New York folk club the Bitter End, which was instrumental in launching the career of Bob Dylan and several other singer/songwriters. Robbie Hoddinott (died March 6, illness, age 62): guitar player in the San Francisco-based band Kingfish. Joni Sledge (died March 10, natural causes, age 60): member of the 70s R&B/disco group Sister Sledge, best-known for "We Are Family." Evan Johns (died March 11, complications from surgery, age 60): guitarist in the band the LeRoi Brothers, as well as his own group Evan Johns and His H-Bombs. Don Warden (died March 11, natural causes, age 87): steel guitarist in Porter Wagoner's TV show band for years; and, after the show ended, he became Dolly Parton's manager. Joey Alves (died March 12, complications from ulcerative colitis, age 63): guitarist in the metal band Y&T. Maxx Kidd (died March 13, long illness, age 75): pioneer in go-go music who later promoted the careers of the Temptations, Lou Rawls, and other R&B singers. John Lever (died March 13, short illness, age 55): drumming for the British band the Chameleons. Tommy LiPuma (died March 13, short illness, age 80): Grammy-winning music producer who worked with the likes of Barbra Streisand, Diana Krall, Al Jarreau, and many others. James Cotton (died March 16, pneumonia, age 81): legendary blues harmonica player who also played on many rock albums. Chuck Berry (died March 18, heart attack, age 90): he didn't do much, except invent rock and roll. Chuck Barris (died March 21, natural causes, age 87): the TV game show host (The Gong Show) and producer (The Dating Game) also wrote the Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon hit "Palisades Park." Sib Hashian (died March 22, unknown cause, age 67): the drummer for the rock band Boston, he died while on a rock-themed cruise ship. Billy Stewart (died March 24, illness, age 85): the brother of "Tennessee Waltz" co-writer Redd Stewart was a fiddler who worked with Little Jimmy Dickens on the road and many acts in session work. Allan Weiss (died March 24, natural causes, age 90): a movie screenwriter who wrote the screenplays for Elvis movies Roustabout and Blue Hawaii. Pete Shotton (died March 24, heart attack, age 75): a member of the Quarrymen, which is remembered for also being John Lennon's first band. Rosie Hamlin (died March 30, illness, age 71): leader of the 60s group Rosie & the Originals, who had a hit with the song "Angel Baby." Farewell, and thank you for the music. There's no way I can play anyone but Chuck Berry for this month's tribute. As Bob Seger said, "All of Chuck's children are out there playing his licks."