New Musicians and Artists in Rock & Roll Heaven in 2015, Part Three

Here are seven more members of Rock & Roll Heaven to salute:

Jack Ely, singer and guitarist with the Kingsmen ("Louie Louie"), died April 28, 2015 in Redmond, Oregon.  (Note:  some websites claim Ely died in Terrebonne, Oregon.  He died in Redmond, according to his son in the newspaper 'The Los Angeles Times' and in 'Billboard' magazine.)

 Buddy Emmons, virtuoso pedal steel guitarist who played for the Carpenters, Linda Ronstadt, the Everly Brothers, Ray Charles, Judy Collins, Roger Miller, John Sebastian, George Strait, Willie Nelson, Duane Eddy, Nancy Sinatra, Gram Parsons and J.J. Cale among others, died July 29, 2015 in Hermitage, Tennessee at age 78.  (Note:  some websites claim Emmons died July 21, and some say he died in Mishawaka, Indiana.  According to 'Billboard' and the newspaper 'The New York Times', Emmons died on July 29 in Hermitage.)









Steve Fishell, who played pedal steel for Emmylou Harris, called Emmons a musical genius:  You're talking about the ability to play fiery, complex, single-note solos that just would leave you staggered when you heard them, coupled with really imaginative chordal work," Fishell says. "And it all just seemed effortless."

Kim Fowley, singer and producer who produced the song "Alley-Oop" and worked with the Beach Boys, Frank Zappa, Slade, and the Runaways, and wrote songs for Helen Reddy, KISS and Alice Cooper, was born in Los Angeles; died January 15, 2015 of bladder cancer in Hollywood, California at age 75. 

Michael Gehrke, tour manager of the Scorpions for over 30 years, died January 16, 2015 at the age of 58. 

Dennis Greene, singer with Sha Na Na, died September 5, 2015 of esophageal cancer in Dayton, Ohio at age 66.

Jimmy Greenspoon, keyboardist of Three Dog Night, died March 11, 2015 of cancer at the age of 67 in North Potomac, Maryland. 

In addition to being a member of Three Dog Night, Greenspoon worked with artists such as Linda Ronstadt, the Beach Boys, America, Donovan, Beck, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Stephen Stills, Leon Russell, and Cheech & Chong, just to name a few.