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Revision as of 18:11, 16 December 2008

The 27 Club, also occasionally known as the Forever 27 Club, is a popular culture name for a group of influential rock and blues musicians who all died at the age of 27, sometimes under mysterious circumstances.

Musicians usually included in the 27 Club

There is some debate as to the criterion used to include musicians who died at the age of 27 in the "27 Club". The impetus for the Club's creation were the deaths of an unusual number of prominent 27 year old musicians within a two year period of time. Lists include Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Kurt Cobain. Hendrix, Joplin, and Morrison all died within a ten month period. Morrison and Jones died on the same date two years apart. Kurt Cobain, who died in 1994, was later included by some, probably due to his popularity and his death occurring at the pinnacle of his career. (According to the book Heavier Than Heaven, when Cobain died, his sister claimed that as a kid he would talk about how he wanted to join the 27 Club.)

Name Date of death Cause of death Fame
Brian Jones July 3, 1969 Drowned in swimming pool. Rolling Stones founder and guitarist / multi-instrumentalist.
Jimi Hendrix September 18, 1970 Asphyxiated on vomit after overdose of sleeping pills. Pioneering electric guitarist, singer and songwriter for The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Band of Gypsys.
Janis Joplin October 4, 1970 Probable heroin overdose. Lead vocalist and songwriter for Big Brother and the Holding Company, The Kozmic Blues Band and Full Tilt Boogie Band.
Jim Morrison July 3, 1971 Official cause of death listed as "heart failure" but, as no autopsy was performed, the actual cause remains mysterious. Probable heroin overdose. Poet, lead singer, songwriter and video director for The Doors.
Kurt Cobain c.April 5, 1994 Self inflicted shotgun wound to the head. Lead singer, guitarist and songwriter for Nirvana.

Other well-known musicians who died at 27

Some lists include other musicians who died at age 27. Cobain and Hendrix biographer Charles R. Cross writes, "The number of musicians who passed away at 27 is truly remarkable by any standard. humans die regularly at all ages, there is a statistical spike for musicians who die at 27."

Name Date of death Cause of death Fame
Louis Chauvin March 26, 1908 Multiple sclerosis, probably symphlitic. Ragtime musician.
Robert Johnson August 16, 1938 Unknown, but typically credited to strychnine poisoning. Possibly shot. Bluesman. Recorded very famous and influential set of 29 songs that influenced many famous musicians after him.
Jesse Belvin February 6, 1960 Car wreck. R&B singer and songwriter
Malcolm Hale October 31, 1968 Liver Failure. Original member of Spanky and Our Gang.
Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson September 7, 1970 Barbiturate overdose, possible suicide. Leader, singer and primary composer of Canned Heat.
Linda Jones March 14, 1972 Diabetic coma. R&B singer
Les Harvey May 2, 1972 Electrocuted by a microphone. Guitarist of Stone the Crows.
Ron "Pigpen" McKernan March 8, 1973 Gastrointestinal hemorrhage associated with alcoholism. Founding member and keyboardist of the Grateful Dead.
Dave Alexander February 10, 1975 Pulmonary edema. Bassist for the Stooges.
Pete Ham April 24, 1975 Suicide by hanging. Keyboardist and guitarist, leader of Badfinger.
Gary Thain December 8, 1975 Drug overdose. Former bassist of Uriah Heep.
Helmut Köllen May 3, 1977 Carbon monoxide poisoning. Bassist with 1970s German prog rock band Triumvirat.
Chris Bell December 27, 1978 Car wreck; ran into a telephone pole. Singer-songwriter and guitarist of power pop band Big Star and solo.
D. Boon December 22, 1985 Lying down in the back of a van when it veered off road, he was ejected from the vehicle and broke his neck. Guitarist, lead singer of punk band the Minutemen.
Jean-Michel Basquiat August 12, 1988 Speedball overdose. Painter and graffiti artist; formed the band Gray.
Pete de Freitas June 14, 1989 Motorcycle wreck on his way back from filming a music video. Drummer for Echo & the Bunnymen.
Mia Zapata July 7, 1993 Murdered. Lead singer of the Gits.
Kristen Pfaff June 16, 1994 Heroin overdose. Bass guitarist for Hole and Janitor Joe.
Richey Edwards c. February 1, 1995 Disappeared; officially presumed dead November 23, 2008. Lyricist and guitarist for Manic Street Preachers.
Fat Pat February 3, 1998 Shot. Rapper and member of Screwed Up Click.
Sean Patrick McCabe August 28, 2000 Asphyxiated on vomit after ingesting too much alcohol. Lead singer of Ink & Dagger.
Jeremy Michael Ward May 25, 2003 Heroin overdose. The Mars Volta and De Facto sound manipulator.
Bryan Ottoson April 19, 2005 Prescription drug overdose. Guitarist for American Head Charge.
Valentin Elizalde November 25, 2006 Gunned down in an ambush. Popular Mexican banda music singer.
Levi Kereama October 4, 2008 Fell from a hotel window. suspected suicide. Australian Idol contestant, and lead singer for band Lethbridge.

Notes

  1. The 27 Club from BBC Radio 2. Access date 19 June, 2007
  2. Malu, Berges Y, "The 27 Club" in Split Magazine, May 20, 2007. Access date 19, June, 2007
  3. ^ Cross, Charles R., "P-I's Writer in Residence Charles R. Cross explores the darker side of 'only the good die young'" in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 23 February, 2007. Access date 19, June, 2007
  4. "Heavier than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain". HyperionBooks.com.

References

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