Pop, Hip-Hop and Rock Star Deaths in 2023

December 27, 2023

February

• Burt Bacharach - singer-songwriter noted principally for his work with Dionne Warwick; winner of six Grammy Awards, including one for "That's What Friends Are For"; 94

• Bruce Barthol - original bass player with Country Joe & the Fish; 75

• Chuck Jackson - North Carolina-born R&B singer had hit with "Any Day Now" (No. 23, 1962); 85

• Trugoy the Dove (David Jolicoeur) - member of New York rap group De La Soul; 54

January

RIP Tom Verlaine and David Crosby (Croz photo by Henry Diltz)

• Robbie Bachman - drummer with Canadian band Bachman-Turner Overdrive; 69

• Jeff Beck - former guitarist with the Yardbirds and a solo performer; eight-time Grammy winner and two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee; bacterial meningitis; 78

• Jeff Blackburn - singer-songwriter who founded the Ducks that also included Neil Young in 1977 in Santa Cruz, CA; wrote "My My Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)" (1979); 76

• Alan Copeland - singer with the Modernaires; also wrote songs and arrangements for pop and jazz acts; 96

• David Crosby - former member of the Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young as a singer-songwriter/guitarist and two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee; 81

• Dean Daughtry - co-founder/keyboard player with Atlanta Rhythm Section and before that with the Classics IV; 76

• Gangsta Boo (Lola Mitchell) - member of Memphis rap group Three 6 Mafia and also as solo recording artist; drug overdose; 43

• Gordy Harmon - original member of L.A. R&B singing group the Whispers; 79

• Curtis "CJ" Harris - Alabama singer who appeared on American Idol; heart attack; 31

• Barrett Strong - original Motown performer ("Money (That's What I Want)" (No. 23, 1959 and co-songwriter of some of the R&B label's greatest hits, including "I Heard It Through the Grapevine"; 81