10/09/1927 - 05/18/2004
Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was a jazz drummer of the post-bop era. He showed interest in drums at a young age, watching the circus bands march by his family's home in Pontiac, Mi...
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06/03/1941 - 12/26/1999
Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions and for composing the soundtrack to the blaxploitation ...
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08/04/1901 - 07/06/1971
Louis Daniel Armstrong nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana.
Coming to prominence in the 1920s as an "inventive" cornet an...
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07/07/1911 - 02/01/2007
Gian Carlo Menotti (July 7, 1911 – February 1, 2007) was an Italian-American composer and librettist.
03/20/1937 - 09/01/2008
Jerry Reed Hubbard (March 20, 1937 – September 1, 2008) known professionally as Jerry Reed, was an American country music singer, innovative guitarist, songwriter, and actor who appeared in more than a dozen films.His song "When You...
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08/13/1951 - 12/16/2007
Daniel Grayling "Dan" Fogelberg (August 13, 1951 – December 16, 2007) was an American singer-songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist, whose music was inspired by sources as diverse as folk, pop, rock, classical, jazz, and b...
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09/23/1926 - 07/17/1967
John William Coltrane (sometimes abbreviated "Trane"; September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was prolific, organizing at least fifty recording sessions as a leader during his reco...
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Jelly Morton (Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe)
09/20/1885 - 07/10/1941
Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe (September 20, 1885 – July 10, 1941), known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer.
Louie Bluie (Howard Donald Armstrong)
03/04/1909 - 07/30/2003
Howard "Louie Bluie" Armstrong was an African American string band and cantry blues musician who played fiddle, mandolin and guitar and also sang. He was also a notable visual artist and raconteur.
Frank Sinatra (Francis Albert Sinatra)
12/15/1915 - 05/14/1998
Francis Albert Sinatra was an American singer and Academy Award-winning actor who many consider to be one of the finest male popular song vocalists of all time. Critics place him alongside the great artists as one of the most important, popul...
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02/21/1933 - 04/21/2003
Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), also known by her stage name Nina Simone, was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music.
Simone aspired to...
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01/10/1924 - 08/16/2007
Maxwell Lemuel "Max" Roach (January 10, 1924 – August 16, 2007) was an American jazz percussionist, drummer, and composer.
07/10/1959 - 10/21/2006
Sandy West (July 10, 1959 – October 21, 2006) was an American musician, singer, songwriter, and drummer. She was hailed by fans and critics alike to be a groundbreaking musician, as a drummer. She was one of the founding members of...
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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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06/28/1902 - 12/30/1979
Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American composer of music for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television. He is best known for his songwriting partner...
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