RIP Amy Winehouse 1983-2011

Amy Winehouse tribute set at Zazzle.com 

Amy Winehouse is the latest to join the unfortunate ranks of the 27 Club, that group of musicians who all eerily died at the age of 27. Here are some of the notable members of the club you really don’t want to belong to. Sadly, this is only a small sampling of the roster of the 27 Club. {Via Buzzfeed}

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1. Jim Morrison - Lead singer and songwriter of The Doors. After struggling with drugs and alcohol for some time, Morrison died of a presumed heart failure on July 3rd, 1971.

2. Dave Alexander - Bassist for legendary punk band the Stooges. Died of pulmonary edema (associated with alcohol) on February 10, 1975.

3. Janis Joplin - Singer/Songwriter and ’60s icon. One of the first true female superstars. Died of a heroin overdose on October 4, 1970.

4. Ron “Pigpen” McKernan - Founding member and original keyboardist of the Grateful Dead. Died of a gastrointestinal hemorrhage (again associated with alcohol) on March 8th, 1973.

5. Richey Edwards - Founding member and lyricist for the Manic Street Preachers. Disappeared and presumed dead from suicide on February 1, 1995.

6. Jimi Hendrix - Legendary guitarist and songwriter for the Jimi Hendrix Experience & Band of Gypsys. Dead from asphyxiation as a result of wine and sleeping pills on September 18, 1970.

7. Robert Johnson - Pioneering blue musician and guitarist. Most likely died from poisoning on August 16, 1938. Widely considered the first member of the ’27 Club.’

8. Pete Ham - Keyboardist and guitarist of the British band Badfinger. Died from suicide by hanging on April 24, 1975

9. Alan Wilson - Lead singer and songwriter of Canned Heat. Died of an overdose on September 3, 1970.

10. Brian Jones - Founding member and guitarist of the Rolling Stones. Died from drowning in a pool one month after being kicked out of the band on July 3, 1969.

11. Chris Bell - Founder and songwriter of the extremely influential band Big Star. Died of a car crash on December 27, 1978.

12. Jean-Michel Basquiat - NYC based artist, friend of Andy Warhol, and founder of the band Gray. Died from a heroin overdose on August 12, 1988.

13. D. Boon - Guitarist and lead singer of the band Minutemen and extremely influential punk musician. Died as a result of injuries from a car crash on December 22, 1985.

14. Kristen Pfaff - Bassist for Hole. Died of an overdose on June 16, 1994.

15. Kurt Cobain - Singer and songwriter for Nirvana and grunge icon. Death by suicide on April 5, 1994.

I kept waiting for the sentence saying he started the Levi jeans company, it never came…

Image via Wikipedia

Claude Lévi-Strauss, the French anthropologist whose revolutionary studies of what was once called “primitive man” transformed Western understanding of the nature of culture, custom and civilization, has died at 100.

His son Laurent said Mr. Lévi-Strauss died of cardiac arrest Friday at his home in Paris. His death was announced Tuesday, the same day he was buried in the village of Lignerolles, in the Côte-d’Or region southeast of Paris, where he had a country home.

“He had expressed the wish to have a discreet and sober funeral, with his family, in his country house,” his son said. “He was attached to this place; he liked to take walks in the forest, and the cemetery where he is now buried is just on the edge of this forest.” {Read on} and {Here}

Cry, Laugh, Cry.

This reminded me of my friend who died a few years ago.

He was the wildest guy I had ever been friends with. He was always pushing his limits and shocking people into laughing. He would never back down from a dare which made him a blast to hang out with. (One even included him wearing a wedding dress to the movie theatre, and watch an entire movie) On top of that, he was a great friend.

Sadly his funeral was the dullest thing I had ever been to. No one was allowed to get up and speak or tell stories, but instead they turned it into a promotion of their church, and how if you join it you can live forever.

I even asked his family if I could get up and say some things but they said it wasn’t going to be that kind of funeral.

I sat there during the funeral thinking how my friend would have loved if I just stood up in the middle and started telling stories anyways. If I got kicked out, oh well.

I still kick myself for not doing it whenever I think about it.

This guy really is a true friend for fulfilling his promise.

{Read the real story}

Jeff Goldblum confirms and put his death into perspective.

“When Jeff Goldblum passed away, a little bit of all of us died. I will be missed.” {via}