Jump to content

The Rest in Peace Thread

SteveAJones

By SteveAJones
in Ramble On

 Share

Recommended Posts

Patrycja

Patrycja

Posted
Posted

I'm sad to hear of Leonard Nimoy's passing, but somehow at peace with it as well. I very much admire how he handled his relationship with the iconic role of Spock and the trajectory of his career over the years. Whereas earlier he wanted to distance himself from Spock, neither did he go the way of sticking to just that role and milking it. Later, he grew to have a more balanced approach to having played Spock, one in which he embraced the stoic Vulcan and his legions of fans, yet still continued to pursue his many interests. From acting in film, TV and theatre, to directing, narrating, doing voice overs, writing biographies, screenplays, and poetry, taking photographs, and probably some other artistic ventures I don't know of, he did what he loved, and we've benefited from all of the creative facets of his character. All that, and from many accounts, just a decent all around guy, too. What an interesting man. What a full life.

Is the history behind his famous LLAP hand gesture well known? Do people know it has roots in the Kohanim blessing? I'm familiar with the priestly tribe, but the first time I ever saw the hand gesture was in a video of a Leonard Cohen concert in Israel (2009, I think) in which he blessed the crowd. I thought hey that looks a lot like... and sure enough, it is:

"So I peaked" hahaha I love it! It's a great story, one of those wonderment of childhood moments that stays with you long after the magic has been understood, yet it somehow still retains its mystery and sparkle; he passed that on to millions of people and so the story lives on.

Rest in peace, Leonard Nimoy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Disco Duck

Disco Duck

Posted
Posted

Leonard Nimoy made Spock one of the most endearing characters in American pop culture history, and I thoroughly enjoyed his narration of the In Search Of... series. By all accounts he was a great man.

You and I agree on this. I would also add that both Star Trek and the Spock character transcend nationality and culture. I know several immigrant Americans who watched Star Trek reruns in their native countries and consider Mr. Spock their favorite Star Trek character.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
Deborah J

Deborah J

Posted
Posted

^^ We just keep losing so many great ones.

This one is really sad for me.

Andy Fraser, rocker behind ‘All Right Now’ and Free bassist, dead at 62

BY JIM FARBER

Andy Fraser — co-author of the rousing rock standard “All Right Now,” and a key force behind the classic-rock band Free — has died.

One of the elite members of Britain’s blues-rock wave of the ‘60s and ‘70s, Fraser appeared to have died of natural causes, according to a source close to the musician.

Fraser was found in his car by his gardener on Monday near his adopted home of many years in Temecula, Calif. Though no official cause of death has been announced, the bassist had been living with HIV since the ‘90s.

He was 62.

A true rock prodigy, Andrew McLan Fraser played with John Mayall’s seminal blues band starting at the age of 15. By the next year, he formed Free.

Born in Paddington, London, Fraser began playing piano at age 5. He was classically trained and by 13 mastered the guitar well enough to play at local East End clubs. A fellow student in high school, Sappho Korner, introduced Fraser to her influential father, Alexis Korner, a key developer of British blues. Korner mentored him, later suggesting him to Mayall who had a slot open in his band for a bass player. Adept at many instruments, Fraser stepped easily into the role.

After a brief spell, Korner next introduced Fraser to a group of musicians who would insure his legend. With singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Paul Kossoff and drummer Simon Kirke, Fraser formed Free in 1968.

The band’s 1969 debut, “Tons of Sobs,” completely changed the dynamic of U.K. rock-blues. Countering the manic pace, and busy structures of psychedelic rock, Free played deep and slow. Their songs were heavy in the best sense, with every beat and note hitting hard. Drummer Simon Kirke patented a specific rhythm that gave the songs profound weight, while guitarist Kossoff, blessed with one of the greatest tremolos in rock history, let each riff shimmer and hang in the air.

Fraser completed the band’s minimalist allure with terse and punch bass lines, many of which formed key hooks in the songs. In his composition “The Stealer” — covered by stars from Rod Stewart and the Faces to Bettye Lavette — Fraser’s bass loped over the beat, creating a maddening sea-saw effect.

The group became global superstars with their third album, 1970’s “Fire and Water.” It contained the title song hit, as well as the single that would both confine, and bolster, the band for the decades to come: “All Right Now.”

Fraser — who had become a friend of this writer in his later years — told me the band never liked their undying hit. They considered it a simplistic ditty, hacked out to kill time between gigs.

But once their label president Chris Blackwell heard it, he knew it was a gold mine.

Unfortunately, the song wound up utterly defining Free in the U.S. Here, they were unfairly known as a one-hit wonder, while home in the U.K., they are properly recognized as a peer to the classic British rockers from Traffic to Cream to Mott the Hoople.

Within the band, Fraser developed an unusual musical approach to the bass. He said he was influenced by the great Motown bottom men. Also, since the band contained just three players, he had to use his instrument to fill in as many holes as possible.

Fraser played other instruments in the band, including a distinctively jaunty piano on the gorgeous ballad “My Brother Jake.” Though he didn’t consider himself primarily a bassist, he recorded one of that instrument’s greatest rock solos in the concert version of “Mr. Big” contained on 1971’s electrifying “Free Live.”

The release of the live album was prompted by a brief breakup of the band. They reunited in 1972 to put out “Free at Last.” As on all six of the band’s studio albums, Fraser co-wrote most of the material with Rodgers.

The high-minded mold he set for Free with Rodgers found a dumbed-down, but lucrative, corollary in Bad Company. Rodgers formed that band with drummer Kirke, bassist Boz Burrell and Mott guitarist Mick Ralphs.

After Fraser left Free in ‘72, he formed the compact blues-rock group Sharks, which only lasted a year. Next, he led the Andy Fraser Band, where he played multiple instruments and sang lead.

In the ‘80s, Fraser released a strong solo album titled “Fine Fine Line.”

Later, the musician worked behind the scenes as a songwriter and producer. He penned hits for stars like Joe Cocker, Chaka Khan, Paul Young, and Rod Stewart. Robert Palmer had a huge hit with Frasers’ song “Every Kind of People.”

For the 1994 Woodstock, Fraser reunited with old Free-mate Paul Rodgers for a performance that included a take on “All Right Now.”

In the years between, that song became the gift-that-keeps-on-giving, generating millions of dollars for its authors. It was a No. 1 hit in over 20 countries and was recognized by ASCAP in 1990 for over 1 million radio plays in the U.S. alone. By Oct. of 2006, it passed the 3 million mark in plays in the U.K.

In 2005, the musician put out an extremely personal solo album, “Naked and Finally Free.” He came out as a gay man in an interview I conducted with him for the national gay and lesbian magazine The Advocate that year.

In more recent years, politics became more important to Fraser. He wrote a song to support the election of Barack Obama and donated proceeds from various songs to progressive and humanitarian causes. He also mentored young artists, like the guitar prodigy Tobi Earnshaw, producing albums for him and playing in his band.

At the time of his death, Fraser had talked about going on tour with Frankie Miller, another classic singer in the ‘60s British blues-rock mold.

The musician is survived by two daughters, Hannah and Jasmine Fraser.

For fans, Fraser will be remembered as a key player in rock’s golden age, a star who could use any instrument to create melodies and rhythms you couldn’t get out of your head.

huty17474164.jpg?enlargedMICHAEL PUTLAND/GETTY IMAGES

Fraser (c.) backstage with his Free cohorts, singer Paul Rogers (l.), drummer Simon Kirke (2nd from r.) and guitarist Paul Kossoff in 1972.

jfarber@nydailynews.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Disco Duck

Disco Duck

Posted
Posted

^^ We just keep losing so many great ones.

This one is really sad for me.

Andy Fraser, rocker behind ‘All Right Now’ and Free bassist, dead at 62

BY JIM FARBER

Andy Fraser — co-author of the rousing rock standard “All Right Now,” and a key force behind the classic-rock band Free — has died.

One of the elite members of Britain’s blues-rock wave of the ‘60s and ‘70s, Fraser appeared to have died of natural causes, according to a source close to the musician.

Fraser was found in his car by his gardener on Monday near his adopted home of many years in Temecula, Calif. Though no official cause of death has been announced, the bassist had been living with HIV since the ‘90s.

He was 62.

A true rock prodigy, Andrew McLan Fraser played with John Mayall’s seminal blues band starting at the age of 15. By the next year, he formed Free.

Born in Paddington, London, Fraser began playing piano at age 5. He was classically trained and by 13 mastered the guitar well enough to play at local East End clubs. A fellow student in high school, Sappho Korner, introduced Fraser to her influential father, Alexis Korner, a key developer of British blues. Korner mentored him, later suggesting him to Mayall who had a slot open in his band for a bass player. Adept at many instruments, Fraser stepped easily into the role.

After a brief spell, Korner next introduced Fraser to a group of musicians who would insure his legend. With singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Paul Kossoff and drummer Simon Kirke, Fraser formed Free in 1968.

The band’s 1969 debut, “Tons of Sobs,” completely changed the dynamic of U.K. rock-blues. Countering the manic pace, and busy structures of psychedelic rock, Free played deep and slow. Their songs were heavy in the best sense, with every beat and note hitting hard. Drummer Simon Kirke patented a specific rhythm that gave the songs profound weight, while guitarist Kossoff, blessed with one of the greatest tremolos in rock history, let each riff shimmer and hang in the air.

Fraser completed the band’s minimalist allure with terse and punch bass lines, many of which formed key hooks in the songs. In his composition “The Stealer” — covered by stars from Rod Stewart and the Faces to Bettye Lavette — Fraser’s bass loped over the beat, creating a maddening sea-saw effect.

The group became global superstars with their third album, 1970’s “Fire and Water.” It contained the title song hit, as well as the single that would both confine, and bolster, the band for the decades to come: “All Right Now.”

Fraser — who had become a friend of this writer in his later years — told me the band never liked their undying hit. They considered it a simplistic ditty, hacked out to kill time between gigs.

But once their label president Chris Blackwell heard it, he knew it was a gold mine.

Unfortunately, the song wound up utterly defining Free in the U.S. Here, they were unfairly known as a one-hit wonder, while home in the U.K., they are properly recognized as a peer to the classic British rockers from Traffic to Cream to Mott the Hoople.

Within the band, Fraser developed an unusual musical approach to the bass. He said he was influenced by the great Motown bottom men. Also, since the band contained just three players, he had to use his instrument to fill in as many holes as possible.

Fraser played other instruments in the band, including a distinctively jaunty piano on the gorgeous ballad “My Brother Jake.” Though he didn’t consider himself primarily a bassist, he recorded one of that instrument’s greatest rock solos in the concert version of “Mr. Big” contained on 1971’s electrifying “Free Live.”

The release of the live album was prompted by a brief breakup of the band. They reunited in 1972 to put out “Free at Last.” As on all six of the band’s studio albums, Fraser co-wrote most of the material with Rodgers.

The high-minded mold he set for Free with Rodgers found a dumbed-down, but lucrative, corollary in Bad Company. Rodgers formed that band with drummer Kirke, bassist Boz Burrell and Mott guitarist Mick Ralphs.

After Fraser left Free in ‘72, he formed the compact blues-rock group Sharks, which only lasted a year. Next, he led the Andy Fraser Band, where he played multiple instruments and sang lead.

In the ‘80s, Fraser released a strong solo album titled “Fine Fine Line.”

Later, the musician worked behind the scenes as a songwriter and producer. He penned hits for stars like Joe Cocker, Chaka Khan, Paul Young, and Rod Stewart. Robert Palmer had a huge hit with Frasers’ song “Every Kind of People.”

For the 1994 Woodstock, Fraser reunited with old Free-mate Paul Rodgers for a performance that included a take on “All Right Now.”

In the years between, that song became the gift-that-keeps-on-giving, generating millions of dollars for its authors. It was a No. 1 hit in over 20 countries and was recognized by ASCAP in 1990 for over 1 million radio plays in the U.S. alone. By Oct. of 2006, it passed the 3 million mark in plays in the U.K.

In 2005, the musician put out an extremely personal solo album, “Naked and Finally Free.” He came out as a gay man in an interview I conducted with him for the national gay and lesbian magazine The Advocate that year.

In more recent years, politics became more important to Fraser. He wrote a song to support the election of Barack Obama and donated proceeds from various songs to progressive and humanitarian causes. He also mentored young artists, like the guitar prodigy Tobi Earnshaw, producing albums for him and playing in his band.

At the time of his death, Fraser had talked about going on tour with Frankie Miller, another classic singer in the ‘60s British blues-rock mold.

The musician is survived by two daughters, Hannah and Jasmine Fraser.

For fans, Fraser will be remembered as a key player in rock’s golden age, a star who could use any instrument to create melodies and rhythms you couldn’t get out of your head.

huty17474164.jpg?enlargedMICHAEL PUTLAND/GETTY IMAGES

Fraser (c.) backstage with his Free cohorts, singer Paul Rogers (l.), drummer Simon Kirke (2nd from r.) and guitarist Paul Kossoff in 1972.

jfarber@nydailynews.com

Sigh...he was a major talent. I read a lengthy interview with Andy Fraser shortly after he came out as gay. Until then I had no idea he was only 15 when he started Free or that he was mixed race.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sathington Willoughby

Sathington Willoughby

Posted
Posted

Gregory Walcott, Reluctant Star of 'Plan 9 From Outer Space,' Dies at 87

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/gregory-walcott-dead-plan-9-783562

After reading this, I finally decided to watch this movie. Wow. I could only handle 20 minutes, so far it has shattered my expectations lol. Just, unbelievable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkpJAQ9G-gM

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Patrycja

Patrycja

Posted
Posted (edited)

^^^ Read about that earlier today, Strider. Amazing how his remains were found, and at a time when science could definitively verify that it's him.

Although this is not quite that delayed in paying respects, I somehow missed the passing of Steve Sanfield on January 28, 2015 and only just found out today when looking for one of his books.

RIP to a great storyteller.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2015/02/prweb12523453.htm

Edited by Patrycja
Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing

LEDZEPPELIN.com

Site Navigation

  • LedZeppelin.com Home
  • News
  • Discography
  • Merchandise
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

    • Led Zeppelin Timeline

  • Concert Timeline / Database
  • Events
  • Photos
  • Video
    • ×
    ×
    • Create New...