History of Sorts

As the curtain closes on 2024, we pause to reflect on the lives and legacies of the musicians who left us this year. These artists shaped our world with their melodies, lyrics, and rhythms—leaving an indelible mark on the soundtracks of our lives. Whether through haunting ballads, electrifying performances, or groundbreaking compositions, they gave voice to our joys, sorrows, and everything in between.

Today, we pay homage to some of them. Though their physical presence is gone, their music lives on—timeless, eternal, and ever-resonant.

Anthony Michael Clarkin (24 November 1946 – 7 January 2024) was an English musician, best known as the guitarist of the rock band Magnum. He was the sole songwriter throughout Magnum’s history, writing all of the material on their 23 studio albums as well as on two studio albums by Magnum spin-off group Hard Rain.

Ian Frederick Stephen Amey (15 May 1944 – 14 February 2024), who went by the stage name Tich, was an English pop rock guitarist, who was a member of Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich from 1964 until his retirement in 2014.

Eric Howard Carmen (August 11, 1949 – 11 March, 2024) was an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was the lead vocalist of the Raspberries, with whom he recorded the hit “Go All the Way”and four albums. He embarked on a solo career in 1975 and had global success with “All by Myself”, “Never Gonna Fall in Love Again”, “She Did It”, “Hungry Eyes”, and “Make Me Lose Control”. In later years, he toured with Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band before reforming the Raspberries in 2004.

Michael Thomas Pinder (27 December 1941 – 24 April 2024) was an English rock musician. He was a founding member and the original keyboard player of the rock group the Moody Blues. He left the group following the recording of the band’s ninth album Octave in 1978. Pinder was renowned for his technological contributions to rock music, most notably in the development and emergence of the Mellotron in 1960s rock music. In 2018, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Moody Blues. He was the last surviving member of the group’s original lineup.

Douglas Lloyd Ingle (September 9, 1945 – May 24, 2024) was an American musician, best known as the founder, organist, primary composer and lead vocalist for the band Iron Butterfly. He wrote the band’s hit song “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida”, which was first released in 1968, and was the last surviving member of the band’s 1967–1969 lineup.

Channing Nicole Larry (October 9, 1997 – June 11, 2024), known professionally as Enchanting, was an American rapper from Fort Worth, Texas. She was signed to Gucci Mane’s record label, 1017 Records, and gained initial recognition for her 2022 single, “Track & Field”, featuring fellow rapper Kaliii, which gained over six million YouTube views as of the time of her death. She frequently collaborated with Gucci Mane, alongside Big Scarr, Coi Leray, Foogiano, and Kaliii.

John Brumwell Mayall OBE (29 November 1933 – 22 July 2024) was an English blues and rock musician, songwriter and producer. In the 1960s, he formed John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among its members some of the most famous blues and blues rock musicians. A singer, guitarist, harmonica player, and keyboardist, he had a career that spanned nearly seven decades, remaining an active musician until his death aged 90. Mayall has often been referred to as the “godfather of the British blues”, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the musical influence category in 2024.

Jack Patrick Russell (December 5, 1960 – August 7, 2024) was an American rock vocalist. He was a founding member of the hard rock band Great White.
Russell was born in Montebello, California, on December 5, 1960.He grew up with influences such as Robert Plant and Steven Tyler, and became a vocalist for many bands in high school and later on. He met Mark Kendall in a concert and began plans to form a band called Dante Fox. Band manager Alan Niven and Kendall decided to change the name of the band to Great White because “that was Mark Kendall’s nickname. He had very white hair and very light complexion. They called him the Great White”.

Dingeman Adriaan Henry van der Sluijs (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈdɪŋəˌmɑn ˈɑdriaːn ˈɦɛnri ˈvɑn dər ˈslœys]; 28 December 1947 – 18 September 2024), better known by his stage name Dick Diamonde, was an Australian bass guitarist. He was a founding mainstay member of the Easybeats. Diamonde, with the group, was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2005.

Liam James Payne (29 August 1993 – 16 October 2024) was an English singer. He was a member of the English-Irish pop band One Direction, one of the best-selling boy bands of all time, alongside Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson. Payne twice appeared as a solo auditionee on the British television series The X Factor in 2008 and 2010; in the latter, he was invited to join One Direction alongside fellow contestants, placing third and later achieving global success.

Robert Cory Bryar (December 31, 1979 – November 24, 2024) was an American musician and sound engineer best known as the drummer of American rock band My Chemical Romance. He was the longest-tenured and last official drummer in the band, performing in the rock group from 2004 until his departure in 2010.

Robert Bruce “Slim” Dunlap (August 14, 1951 – December 18, 2024) was an American rock musician. He was a Minnesota-based guitarist and singer-songwriter who was best known as a member of The Replacements from 1987 to 1991, replacing original lead guitarist Bob Stinson. Dunlap also recorded two solo albums in the mid-1990s.

Dunlap was influenced by Hank Williams and Keith Richards, and had been called “one of the last old-school cool guitar players”.Ralph Heibutzki at AllMusic said that he “epitomizes the journeyman musician who plays for the fun of it, when his day gig allows”. His solo albums earned praise from Bruce Springsteen, who called them “really, deeply soulful and beautiful.

May they all rest in peace.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_2024_deaths_in_popular_music

https://www.billboard.com/photos/musicians-who-died-2024-1235589087/