Yahoo Music Staff

Music Stars We Lost in 2016

Yahoo Music Staff

November 19, 2016 at 10:56 AM

Jason Mackenroth (second from right) played drums for the Rollins Band from 1998 to 2004, released two solo albums, and was a band musician for the Blue Man Group. He died on Jan. 3 after a four-year battle with prostate cancer. He was 46.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Paul Bley was a pianist and composer known for his contributions to the free jazz movement and his work with Ornette Coleman, Charles Mingus, Charlie Parker, and many more. He died Jan. 3 at the age of 83.?(Photo: Getty Images)

John Thurman Hunter Jr., known as Long John Hunter, was a blues guitarist. His best known tracks were “El Paso Rock” and “Alligators Around My Door.” He died Jan. 4 at 84 years old.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Craig Strickland was the lead singer of the country act Backroad Anthem. He was found Jan. 4 after being reported missing a week earlier while out duck hunting during a winter storm. He was 29.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Robert Balser was the animation director for the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine. He died Jan. 4 at the age of 88.?(Photo: Facebook)

Robert Stigwood was best known for managing artists Cream, Eric Clapton, and the Bee Gees, as well as producing the hit musical movies?Saturday Night Fever and Grease. He died Jan. 4 at the age of 81.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Nicholas Caldwell was a founding member of the Whispers, whose hits included "Rock Steady.” He died Jan. 5 from ?congestive heart failure. He was 71.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Otis Clay was a soul singer that was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. He died Jan. 8 of a heart attack at age 73.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Joseph Cecil “Red” Simpson was a country singer known for his songs based on truckers. He died Jan. 8 after complications from a heart attack. He was 81. (Photo: Facebook)

John Berry was the co-founder of the indie-rock band Idaho. He passed away peacefully in his sleep on Jan. 9. (Photo: Facebook)

David Bowie was a pioneer of rock, film, fashion, and tech, and one of the most influential musical artists of all time. He passed away from cancer on Jan. 10, just two days after his 69th birthday and the release of his critically heralded 25th album, Blackstar. (Photo: AP)

Giorgio Gomelsky was a music manager, songwriter, and record producer. He was the manager for both the Rolling Stones and Yardbirds. He died of cancer on Jan. 13 at the age of 81.?(Photo: Getty Images)

René Angélil was a singer, music manager, and the husband of Céline Dion. He died of cancer on Jan. 14, just two days before his 74th birthday.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Gary Loizzo (left) was the lead singer of the band American Breed as well as a recording engineer for bands such as REO Speedwagon, Styx, and Bad Company. He died of pancreatic cancer on Jan. 16. He was 70. (Photo: Facebook)

Kevin Junior was the founder and lead singer of the Chicago indie-pop band Chamber Strings. While no cause of death has been given, Junior had long suffered from heart issues. He died Jan. 17 at age 46. (Photo: Facebook)

Blowfly (real name: Clarence Reid) was known as “the original dirty rapper,” considered by many to be the forefather of acts like Ol’ Dirty Bastard and 2 Live Crew. He passed away from liver cancer on Jan. 17, at age 76. (Photo: Complex)

Dale Griffin was the drummer for Mott the Hoople, whose biggest hit was the David Bowie-penned “All the Young Dudes.” He died in his sleep Jan. 17 at the age of 67.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Glenn Frey was a founding member of the Eagles. He died Jan. 18 after suffering complications arising from rheumatoid arthritis, colitis, and pneumonia. He was 67.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Jimmy Bain played bass for the bands Dio and Rainbow. He died Jan. 24?while on Def Leppard’s “Hysteria on the High Seas” cruise. He was 68.

Paul Kantner was the guitarist and co-founding member of Jefferson Airplane. He died of multiple organ failure on Jan. 28. He was 74.

Signe Anderson (left), Jefferson Airplane’s original vocalist, died Jan. 28 — the same day her former bandmate Paul Kantner also died. She was 74. No cause of death for Anderson has been revealed. (photo: Associated Press)

Jon Bunch, former vocalist for Sense Field and Further Seems Forever, died Feb. 1 at age 46. Details surrounding Bunch’s passing have not been revealed. (

Big Kap, an important DJ in the NYC rap scene who worked with the Notorious B.I.G., Funkmaster Flex, and others, passed away from a heart attack on Feb. 3.?He was 45.

Brad Kent (left) was a guitarist in the early Vancouver punk band Victorian Pork, and in D.O.A. He died Feb. 3 from complications from pneumonia.

Earth, Wind & Fire founder Maurice White died Feb. 4 at his home in Los Angeles, at age 74. White suffered from Parkinson’s disease and had retreated from the public even as the band he founded kept performing. (photo: Associated Press)

Dan Hicks was a prominent figure in American roots music. He died Feb. 6 after a two-year battle with cancer. He was 74.

Viola Beach were an emerging indie-pop group consisting of Kris Leonard (guitar and vocals), River Reeves (guitar), Tomas Lowe (bass), and Jack Dakin (drums). On Feb 13. the band and their manager were killed when their car plunged from a bridge into the water below.

Vanity (Denise Matthews) was the lead singer in the Prince-assembled trio Vanity 6, best known for their hit “Nasty Girl.” She spent the last years of her life as a Christian evangelist. Vanity died Feb. 15 from kidney failure as a result of years of crack cocaine abuse. She was 57. (Photo: Getty Images)

Charlie Tuna was a famous Southern California radio personality and television host from the ‘60s through the ‘80s. He passed away in his sleep on Feb. 19. He was 71. (Photo: Getty Images)

Sonny James was the singer of the 1957 #1 single “Young Love” and more than 20 #1 country hits. He died Feb. 22 of natural causes at age 87. (Photo: Getty Images)

Joey Martin Feek (right) was one half of the country duo Joey + Rory with her husband, Rory Feek. She died March 4 after a battle with cervical cancer that eventually spread to her colon. She was 40 years old. (Photo: Getty Images)

George Martin, the “Fifth Beatle” and British treasure who signed the Fab Four to a label contract when no one else would, produced virtually all their songs, and introduced lavish arrangements into “Yesterday” and “A Day in the Life,” died March 8 at age 90. (Photo: New York Daily News Archive)

Andrew Loomis (far left) was the drummer and a founding member of the seminal Pacific Northwest punk act Dead Moon. While a cause?of death has not been given specified, he had battled lymphoma for years. Loomis died March 8. (Photo: Anthony Pidgeon/Redferns)

John Morthland was a pioneer of the first wave of rock criticism who wrote for the early days of Rolling Stone and was the editor of Creem magazine from 1974-75. He passed away March 8 at age 68. A cause of death was not given. (Photo: Facebook)

Keith Emerson, founding member and keyboardist of Emerson, Lake and Palmer and a prog-rock legend, died March 10 of a suspected suicide. He was 71. (Photo: Getty Images)

Gogi Grant?was an American?popular singer?best known for her 1956 chart-topping hit “The Wayward Wind.” She passed away on March 10 at age 91.?(Photo: Michael Ochs Archive)

Ben Edmonds was an award-winning music journalist who served as the editor of Creem magazine from 1971-1975. He later worked as a band manager and as an A&R executive for several major labels. He died March 11 after a nearly year-long battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 65.?(Photo: Birmingham Historical Museum)

Louis Meyers was the co-founder of Austin, Texas’s South by Southwest music festival and an accomplished folk musician in his own right. He died of a heart attack on March 11 at age 60, on the opening day of this year’s SXSW festival.

Frank Sinatra Jr.?was an American singer/songwriter/conductor, the son of Frank Sinatra,?and the younger brother of?Nancy Sinatra.?He died after suffering a?cardiac arrest while on tour in?Daytona Beach, Florida, on March 16. He was 72.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Steve Young was a pioneer of the?“outlaw country” movement of the 1970, best know for his song?“Seven Bridges Road.” He died March 17 in Nashville at age 73.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Malik Isaac Taylor, aka Phife Dawg, was a founder member of the seminal hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest.?He passed away on March 22 due to complications related to diabetes. He was only 45 years old.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Bassist James Jamerson Jr. was renowned session musician and the son of legendary bassist James Jamerson. He died March 23 after battling the spinal condition ankylosing spondylitis for years. He was 58.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Jimmy Riley?was a Jamaican solo artist and a member of the Sensations and the Uniques. He died of cancer on March 23, at age 61. (Photo: Wikipedia)

Ross Shapiro (far right), singer and guitarist for Athens. Georgia rock band the Glands, passed away from an undisclosed illness on March 26. (Photo: Facebook)

Andy “Thunderclap” Newman was the pianist for the band Thunderclap Newman, best known for the 1969 hit?“Something in the Air.” He died on March 30 at age 73. (Photo: Michael Ochs Archives)

Gato Barbieri?was an Argentine jazz tenor saxophonist and composer who rose to fame during the free jazz movement in the 1960s. He died April 2 at age 83. (Photo: WireImage)

Leon Haywood was soul-funk singer-songwriter and producer whose?1975 single "I Want'a Do Something Freaky to You” was sampled by several artists, most famously by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg on “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang.” Haywood died in his sleep on April 5. He was 74. (Photo: Rolling Stone)

Merle Haggard was?a pioneer of outlaw country and Bakersfield sound, and was often called “the Poet of the Common Man.” He died of double pneumonia on his 79th birthday, on April 6. (Photo: Redferns)

Jimmie Van Zant,?born Jimmie Kelsay,?was a Southern rock singer-songwriter and guitarist and?the illegitimate son of E. C. Van Zant (uncle of Donnie, Johnny, and Ronnie Van Zant.?He died on April 7 at age 59, after battling?liver cancer for?several years. (Photo: Getty)

Floyd August “Gib” Guilbeau?was a pioneering?Cajun country-rock musician/songwriter and former member of Nashville West, Swampwater, and the Flying Burrito Brothers. He died on April 12 at age 78.?(Photo: Getty)

David Gest, known to most as the ex-husband of Liza Minnelli, produced the highest-rated?musical TV special in history, 2001?Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration: The Solo Years. He was found dead in a London hotel room on April 12. He was 62.?(Photo: Getty)

Pete Zorn was an American multi-instrumentalist and longtime member of Richard Thompson’s backing band. He was also a member of Steeleye Span, The Albion Band, and Driver 67. He died April 19 after a long battle with cancer. He was 65. (Photo: Getty)

Prince Rogers Nelson, aka Prince, shockingly passed away April 21. At first it was reported that he had battled the flu; later it was revealed that the cause of death was a prescription opiate overdose. He was 57. (Photo: AP)

Lonnie Mack?was an American?blues/country singer and pioneering, influential guitarist. He died of natural causes on April 21 at age 74.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Billy Paul?was a Grammy-winning?soul singer, known for his 1972 hit “Me and Mrs. Jones.” He died on April 24 after battling pancreatic cancer. He was 81.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Isao Tomita was a Japanese composer and a?pioneer of electronic music. He died at age 84 on May 5 from heart failure.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Candye Kane was a California blues/swing/roots-rock artist who released a dozen critically acclaimed albums. She died on May 6 after an eight-year battle with?pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer. She was 54.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Rickey Smith was a contestant from Season 2 of?‘American Idol.” He was killed on May 6 in a multi-car accident. He was 36.

John Stabb, singer of the seminal D.C. hardcore band Government Issue, died May 7 from stomach cancer. He was 54.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Peter Behrens was a German musician best known as the drummer for the band Trio, who scored a massive international new wave hit in 1982 with?“Da Da Da.” He died of multiple organ failure on May 11, at the age of 68. (Photo: Getty Images)

Tony Barrow was the Beatles’ publicist from 1962-68 and inventor of the phrase "Fab Four.” He later handled PR and management for?the Kinks, the Bay City Rollers,?David Cassidy, Gladys Knight, the Monkees, Tony Bennett, the Jackson Five, and many others. He died May 14, three days after his 80th birthday.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Guy Clark?was a Grammy-winning?Texas country and folk singer, musician, and songwriter whose songs were recorded by?Johnny Cash, Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs, Brad Paisley, John Denver, Alan Jackson, Rodney Crowell,?Kenny Chesney, and many others.?He died May 17 after a long battle with lymphoma. He was 74.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Nick?Menza was a professional drummer who was a member of Megadeth from 1989-98 and again 2004. On May 21, he died onstage of a heart attack while performing at the Baked Potato?in Studio City, Calif. He was 51 years old. (Photo: Complex)

John Berry was a founding member of the Beastie Boys and credited for giving the group their name. On May 20, he passed away after suffering from frontal lobe dementia. He was 52. (Photo: Polly Wog Stew EP artwork)

Bassist Marshall Jones was the last surviving member of the?Ohio Players,?an American funk/R&B band known for the massive ‘70s hits “Fire” and “Love Rollercoaster.” He died on May 27 at age 75.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Thomas Fekete, guitarist for the indie band Surfer Blood, died May 30 from a rare and aggressive form of cancer. He was only 27 years old.?(Photo: Getty Images)

David Swarbrick was an English folk musician, singer-songwriter, and extremely influential fiddle player. He died June 3 at age 75.?(Photo: Getty Images)

DJ White Owl was an influential mixtape DJ who released literally hundreds of tapes over the course of a decade. His friend Pokerface announced his death on Instagram on June 6.?

Christina Grimmie was a pop singer and YouTube star who made the top three of 'The Voice’ Season 6. On June 10, she was gunned down by a stalker while signing autographs after a concert in Orlando. She was 23.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Henry McCullough?was a Northern Irish guitarist, singer, and songwriter ?best known for his work as a member of Spooky Tooth, the Grease Band, and Wings. He died on June 14 at age 72, after an undisclosed long illness. (Photo: Redferns)

Attrell Stephen Cordes, Jr., aka?Prince Be, was the lead singer of pioneering hip-hop group P.M. Dawn. He died from renal failure, a complication of his diabetes, on June 17. He was 46.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Tenor Fly, aka?Jonathan Sutter. was a British singer/rapper and member of Freestylers?who came to fame during the early-’90s ragga movement. He?died suddenly June 17.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Alejandro "Jano” Fuentes was a Mexican singer who competed on ‘La Voz,’ the Mexican version of ‘The Voice.’ On June 16, he was shot dead by an unknown assailant while sitting in his car after celebrating his 45th birthday. He was taken off life support and pronounced a dead two days later.?(Photo: La Voz)

Outlaw country songwriter/producer/musician Freddy Powers died June 21 after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 84.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Ralph Stanley, a bluegrass pioneer who played in the Stanley Brothers and Clinch Mountain Boys and experience a career resurgence thanks to?‘O Brother, Where Are Thou?,’ died June 23. He was 89.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Legendary keyboardist Bernie?Worrell was a founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic, also known for his work with Talking Heads. He died June 23 at age 72, after a battle with lung cancer.?(Photo: AP)

Elliot Marvin Wolff was a songwriter and producer who got his start?working as a musical director for Peaches & Herb and later wrote hit songs for?Johnny Gill, Paula Abdul, Taylor Dayne, and Color Me Badd, and others. On June 25, his body was found in the Santa Fe National Forest, two weeks after he had gone missing. (Photo: Getty)

Bonny “Mack” Rice was?best known for writing the classics “Mustang Sally” and “Respect Yourself.”?He died June 27, at age 82, from complications of Alzheimer’s disease.?(Photo: Getty)

Scotty Moore was a legendary?guitarist, widely considered one of the greatest of all time, best known for his work on early Elvis Presley recording like?“Jailhouse Rock” and?“Heartbreak Hotel.”?He died June 28 at age 84.?(Photo: Getty)

Rob Wasserman?was a Grammy-winning composer and bassist who played and recorded with a wide variety of musicians including Bruce Cockburn, Elvis Costello, Ani di Franco, Jerry Garcia, Rickie Lee Jones, Van Morrison, Aaron Neville, Lou Reed, Pete Seeger, Bob Weir, Brian Wilson, Neil Young, and many others. He died June 29 after a battle with cancer. He was 64.?(Photo: Getty)

Vaughn Harper (pictured left) was a famous DJ?on New York’s WBLS, host of the long-running radio show “Quiet Storm.” He died July 9 from complications of diabetes. He was 70.?(Photo: Getty)

Geneviève Castrée Elverum was a Canadian cartoonist, illustrator, and musician who?recorded under the names?Woelv and?? PAON. She was the wife of musician Phil Elverum (Mount Eerie,?the Microphones). She passed away July 9 from pancreatic cancer. She was 35.?(Photo: Getty)

On July 14, it was announced on 4AD Records’ Facebook page that Steven Young, of the U.K. synthpop group Colourbox and M/A/R/R/S (“Pump Up the Volume”) had passed away. The cause of death was not revealed. (Photo: 4AD/Facebook)

Alan Vega was the co-founder of the incredibly influential NYC synth-punk duo Suicide. He died in his sleep at age 78 on July 16, just a couple months before Suicide were set to headline the Desert Daze festival in California.?(Photo: Getty)

Marni Nixon?was an American soprano and playback singer for featured actresses in movie musicals. She was best known for dubbing the singing voices of the leading actresses in films, including The King and I, West Side Story, and My Fair Lady. On July 24, she died after a long, off-and-on battle with breast cancer, which she had survived in 1985 and 2000. She was 86. (Photo: Getty Images)

Jimmy Nederlander was the chairman of the Nederlander Organization,?one of the largest live theater owners and producers in the United States. He was known at the last patriarch of Broadway, who?produced or co-produced more than 100 shows including Annie, La Cage aux Folles, Nine, and The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby. He passed away July 25 at age 94.?(Photo: Taylor Hill/Getty Images)

Sandy Pearlman?was an American music producer, artist manager, professor, poet, songwriter, and record company executive best known for his work with?Blue ?yster Cult. He died July 26?from pneumonia due to stroke-related complications. He was 72. (Photo: YouTube)

Duchess DeSade, aka Barbara Planek, was an L.A. punk/underground icon and performance artist. She passed away from a brief illness on July 27. She was 53.?(Photo: Facebook)

Nigel Gray?was a legendary English record producer?famous?for his work with the Police,?Siouxsie & The Banshees, and?Godley & Creme. He died July 30 of undisclosed causes. He was 69.?(Photo: Facebook)

Ricci Martin?was the youngest son of Dean Martin (the sixth of his father’s eight children) and an American musician and singer in his own right. He passed away on Aug. 3 at age 62. A cause of death was not given.?(Photo: Mindy Small/FilmMagic)

Pete Fountain was a legendary clarinetist who brought traditional New Orleans jazz to the mainstream via his frequent appearances on the Lawrence Welk and Johnny Carson television shows. He died of heart failure on Aug. 6, at age 86.?(Photo: Gary Null/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)

Barbara Gibb was the matriarch of the Gibb family, which included her sons in the Bee Gees (Barry, Maurice, and Robin Gibb, shown here) and Andy Gibb. She passed away on Aug. 12 at age 95, after outliving three of her children: Andy, Maurice, and Robin.?(Photo: AP/Michael Caulfield)

Blues/gospel singer Ruby Wilson was a fixture on the Memphis music scene for more than 40 years and known as?“the queen of Beale street.” She died Aug. 12 after suffering a heart attack. She was 68 years old.?(Photo: Duffy-Marie Arnoult/Getty Images)

James Woolley was a touring keyboardist for Nine Inch Nails from 1991 to 1994. He died Aug. 14?from neck-related injuries, after falling off a ladder while retrieving music equipment in his studio. He was 49.?(Photo: Facebook)

Bobby?Hutcherson?was an renowned and influential American jazz vibraphone and marimba player. He passed away from emphysema?on Aug. 15, at age 75.?(Photo: David Redfern/Redferns)

Lou?Pearlman?was the disgraced manager of successful 1990s boy bands?Backstreet Boys,?*NSYNC, O-Town, and LFO. In 2008, he went to jail for running one of the largest and longest-running Ponzi schemes in history, leaving more than $300 million in debts.?He died of cardiac arrest on Aug. 19 while serving a 25-year prison sentence. He was 62. (Photo: Dan MacMedan/WireImage for The Recording Academy)

Matt Roberts was the former guitarist of rock band 3 Doors Down. He died Aug. 20 from a suspected prescription drug overdose. He was 38 years old.?(Photo: Andy Kropa/Getty Images)

Swipey, aka Douglas Brooks, was a rising rapper who was shot and killed near his mother’s home in Maryland? on Aug. 21. He was just 18 years old.?(Photo: Instagram)

Gillian "Gilli” Mary Smyth?was an English musician best known for being a member of the seminal psychdelic rock band Gong, which she co-founded in 1967. She passed away on Aug. 22 at age 83.?(Photo: C Brandon/Redferns)

Juan Gabriel was a Mexican superstar who sold more than 100 million records worldwide, making him one of Latin America’s best-selling singer-songwriters. He died of a heart attack on Aug. 28. He was 66.?(Photo: Giulio Marcocchi /Getty Images)

Fred Hellerman (far right) was an American folk singer, guitarist, producer, and songwriter, and the last surviving member of the Weavers. He died Sept. 1 at age 89.?(AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

Jerry?Heller?was a?music manager and businessman best known for managing N.W.A and Eazy-E, with whom he co-founded Ruthless Records. Paul Giamatti portrayed him in the biopic ‘Straight Outta Compton’ last year. Heller passed away Sept. 2 after suffering a heart attack while driving, which resulted in a car accident. He was 75.?(Photo: Victor Chavez/WireImage)

Lewis Merenstein?was an American record producer, most famous as the producer of the Van Morrison?album Astral Weeks.?Merenstein died on Sept. 6 of pneumonia at age 81. (Photo: Rolling Stone)

Prince Buster was a Jamaican musician who pioneered ska music in the 1960s and inspired Britain’s second wave of ska in the 1980s.?He has long been regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of ska and rocksteady music. He died Sept. 8 after a history of heart problems and strokes. He was 78.?(Photo: Frans Schellekens/Redferns)

Aiexis Arquette was a transgender musician, actress, cabaret performer, part-time drag queen (as Eva Destruction), L.A. nightlife icon, and activist. She died of undisclosed causes on Sept. 11 at age 47.?(Photo: Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic)

Leonard Haze was?the original drummer for the hard rock band Y&T. He?died on Sept. 11 after a lengthy battle with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). He was 61. (Photo: Facebook)

Donald Buchla was an American pioneer in the field of sound synthesizers. He released?his first units shortly after Robert Moog’s first synthesizers, although his instrument was arguably designed before Moog’s. Some have dubbed him the greatest modular synthesizer designer of all time. He passed away on Sept. 14 at age 79. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Curtis Hanson was the director of one of the most heralded hip-hop films of all time, Eminem’s semi-autobiographical ‘8 Mile.’ He passed away on Sept. 20 of natural causes, at age 71. (Photo: Getty Images)

Shawty Lo, aka Carlos Rico Walker, was an Atlanta rapper, best known for the 2005 hip-hop hit “Laffy Taffy.” He died in a single-car accident on Sept. 21. He was 40 years old.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Buckwheat Zydeco, aka Stanley Dural Jr., was a pioneering zydeco artist, widely credited with bringing the Louisiana musical genre to the mainstream. He passed away on Sept. 24 from lung cancer. He was 68.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Jean Shepard was a pioneering honky-tonk singer and longtime member of the Grand Ole Opry. On Sept. 25, she died of Parkinson’s disease at the age of 82.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Kashif Saleem was an influential R&B musician and songwriter who produced Whitney Houston’s breakout single, “You Give Good Love,” and also worked on records by Barry White, Evelyn “Champagne” King, and George Benson. He was found dead of natural causes on Sept. 25. He was 59.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Caroline Crawley was one half of the ‘80s Goth/alternative duo Shelleyan Orphan and later the lead singer of the ‘90s worldbeat group Babacar, which featured former members of the Cure. She died on Oct. 4 of undisclosed clauses. She was 53.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Rod Temperton was a legendary songwriter who penned hits for Michael Jackson (“Thriller,” “Rock With You,” “Off the Wall”), George Benson “(Give Me the Night”), Michael McDonald (“Sweet Freedom”), and many others. He was also a member of the ‘70s funk band Heatwave, best known for “Boogie Nights.” He died of cancer in early October. He was 66. (Photo: Getty Images)

Phil?Chess?was an American record producer and the co-founder of iconic rock 'n’ roll and blues label?Chess Records (home to Chuck Berry, Etta James, Bo Diddley, and many others). He died Oct. 18 at age 95. (Photo: Rolling Stone)

Pete Burns was a gender-bending new wave and reality TV star, best known for fronting Dead or Alive. Dead or Alive had a run of pop hits in the 1980s, most notably 1985′s “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record).” Burns died from a cardiac arrest on Oct. 23. He was 57 years old. (Photo: Redferns)

Bobby Vee, aka Robert Thomas Velline,?was a 1960s teen idol and American pop singer who scored?38?Hot 100 chart hits. He first gained fame as a teenager when he filled in for Buddy Holly at a Minnesota gig after Holly was killed in a plane crash. Vee died on Oct. 24 from complications of early onset Alzheimer’s disease. He was 73. (Photo: AP)

Kay Starr was an American pop and jazz singer famous for #1 hits in the 1950s, “Wheel of Fortune” and “The Rock And Roll Waltz.” She died on Nov. 3 from complications of Alzheimer’s disease at the age of 94. (Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Eddie Harsch was a?Canadian-American keyboardist who played with the bands Bulldog, the Detroit Cobras, and, most famously,?the Black Crowes. He died on Nov. 4, at age 59. (Photo: Allen Einstein/NBAE via Getty Images)

Jean-Jacques Perrey was a pioneering French electronic music producer. He died of complications from lung cancer on Nov. 4. He was 87 years old. (Photo: Randy Yau/Wikipedia Commons)

Leonard Cohen was a legendary Canadian singer-songwriter, considered to be one of the greatest of all time. He passed away on Nov. 7, just three weeks after the release of his critically acclaimed 14th album,?‘You Want It Darker.’ He was 82. (Photo: Graham Denholm/WireImage)

Leon Russell?was an American musician and songwriter who wrote or co-wrote such classics as?“Delta Lady,”?“A Song for You,” and?“Superstar.” Over the years, he worked with with Elton John, the Beach Boys,?John Lennon, Ringo Starr,?George Harrison,?Bob Dylan,?the Rolling Stones, and many more. He recorded 31 albums and 430 songs over his long career, before dying on Nov. 13 while recovering from heart surgery. He was 74. (Photo: Getty Images)

Billy Miller was a rock ’n’ roll archivist and president of the rockabilly/garage label Norton Records.?He died on Nov. 13 from complications of multiple myeloma, kidney failure, and diabetes. He was 62. (Photo: Pitchfork)

David Mancuso was a DJ and pioneer of NYC dance culture. In the 1970s he founded the Loft, widely considered the first underground dance party in New York, and the inclusive dance event Love Saves the Day.?He was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame in 2005. Mancuso died Nov. 14 at age 72.?(Photo: Pitchfork)

Mose Allison was an influential blues and jazz pianist whose songs were covered by the Clash, the Who, Elvis Costello, Van Morrison, Robert Palmer, Bonnie Raitt, Leon Russell, the Yardbirds, the Bangles, and many others. He died of natural causes on Nov. 15 at age 89. (Photo: Frans Schellekens/Redferns)

Don Waller was a respected and influential rock journalist and former frontman of the 1970s proto-punk band Imperial Dogs. He died Nov. 17 of undisclosed causes. (Photo: Natalie Nichols)

Sharon Jones?was?the lead singer of the Brooklyn soul/funk band Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. She released her first album at the late-blooming age of 40 after working as a corrections officer at Rikers Island for many years. Jones was nominated for a Grammy in 2014, and was the subject of the documentary Miss Sharon Jones! in 2015. She passed away on Nov. 18 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer that forced her to back out of President Obama’s South by South Lawn festival the previous month. She was 60 years old. (Photo: Getty Images)

Colonel Abrams was a renowned house music artist, singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. He died on Thanksgiving Day after a long history of health problems, He was 67.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Pauline Oliveros (left) was an American composer, accordionist, and pioneer in experimental and electronic art music. She died Nov. 24 at age 84.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Tony Martell was an American music industry senior executive and philanthropist and the founder of the T.J. Martell Foundation. He died Nov. 27 at age 90. (Photo: Getty Images)

Cash Askew, of the Bay Area dream-pop band Them Are Us Too, was among the 36 victims who died in Oakland’s tragic Ghost Ship fire in Oakland on Dec. 2. She was 22 years old. (Photo: Kristin Cofer)

Greg?Lake?was an English bassist, guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer best know as a founding member of the progressive rock bands King Crimson and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. He died Dec. 7 after a long battle with cancer. He was 69.

Alan Thicke was a Canadian actor also famous for composing such TV theme songs as?“Fact of Life,”?“Diff’rent Strokes,” and?“Wheel of Fortune.” He died Dec. 13 after collapsing while playing hockey with his son;?he was late diagnosed of dying from type-A aortic dissection. He was 69. (Photo: Getty Images)

Bob Coburn was an influential DJ and longtime host of the syndicated radio program Rockline. He?died Dec. 17 after a battle with lung cancer. (Photo: Getty Images)

Andrew Dorff, brother of actor Stephen, was a country songwriter who penned several No. 1 hits for artists like?Blake Shelton and Kenny Chesney. He?died Dec. 19 at age 40.?(Photo: Getty Images)

Rick Parfitt was the rhythm guitarist of Status Quo, who scored 60 chart hits in the U.K., more than any other rock group. He died Dec. 24 from a severe infection following complications from a shoulder injury. He was 68. (Photo: Getty Images)

George Michael was a Grammy-winning pop icons known for his groundbreaking solo work and for fronting Wham! in the 1980s. He died on Christmas Day at age 53. (Photo: Redferns)

Debbie Reynolds was a star of stage and screen, famous for her roles in classic movie musicals and a string of chart hits in the 1950s, including 1957′s?“Tammy.” She died on Dec. 28, just one day after the passing of her daughter, Carrie Fisher. She was 84. (Photo: AP)

Jason Mackenroth (second from right) played drums for the Rollins Band from 1998 to 2004, released two solo albums, and was a band musician for the Blue Man Group. He died on Jan. 3 after a four-year battle with prostate cancer. He was 46. (Photo: Getty Images)

Jason Mackenroth (second from right) played drums for the Rollins Band from 1998 to 2004, released two solo albums, and was a band musician for the Blue Man Group. He died on Jan. 3 after a four-year battle with prostate cancer. He was 46. (Photo: Getty Images)

This has been a very rough year for music fans. Since January, we have lost so many greats, including Earth, Wind & Fire’s Maurice White, Jefferson Airplane’s Paul Kantner, Glenn Frey, Sir George Martin, A Tribe Called Quest’s Phife Dawg, Merle Haggard, Parliament-Funkadelic’s Bernie Worrell, ELP’s Keith Emerson, Suicide’s Alan Vega, Dead or Alive’s Pete Burns, Leonard Cohen, and, most shockingly, David Bowie, Prince, and George Michael. Hopefully 2017 will bring better news, but for now, Yahoo Music looks back on those who have left us in the past 12 months.

News

Life

Entertainment

Finance

Sports

New on Yahoo

Music Stars We Lost in 2016

Jason Mackenroth (second from right) played drums for the Rollins Band from 1998 to 2004, released two solo albums, and was a band musician for the Blue Man Group. He died on Jan. 3 after a four-year battle with prostate cancer. He was 46. (Photo: Getty Images)