Kyle Yorlets
24, singer and songwriter with the country band Carverton.

In West Nashville, Tennessee, USA, of gunshot wounds following a robbery


Cadet
(28), former member of the Gypsy Hill Crew, who worked with such rap acts as Krept & Konan and Bugzy Malone, and whose songs include 'Gipset Flow' and 'Stereotype'.

In Newcastle-under-Lyme, UK, following a car crash


Roberto Livi
(76), singer, songwriter and producer, who wrote hits for Roberto Carlos, José José, Julio Iglesias, Ana Gabriel, Vicki Carr, Christian Castro and Lisette Melendez.

In Denver, Colorado, USA, of heart failure


Harold Bradley
(93), guitarist whose instrumental breaks, usually uncredited, became a core part of such classic hit songs as 'The Battle of New Orleans', 'Swingin', 'Here In The Real World', 'Crazy', 'Coal Miner’s Daughter', 'Stand By Your Man', 'Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree', 'Make The World Go Away', 'Big Bad John', 'Jingle Bell Rock', 'King Of The Road', 'Harper Valley P.T.A.', 'It’s Only Make Believe', 'Long Black Veil' and 'For the Good Times'.

Credited as 'most recorded instrumentalist in history' and and a member of Nashville’s renowned 'A Team' of session musicians, Harold Bradley backed such stars as Elvis Presley, Brenda Lee, Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Clyde McPhatter, Ruth Brown, Carl Perkins, The Everly Brothers, Eddy Arnold, Ernest Tubb, Red Foley, Hank Williams, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn, Ray Price, Patsy Cline, Jimmie Davis, Webb Pierce, Jim Ed Brown, Don Gibson, Jim Reeves, Chet Atkins, The Statler Brothers, Bill Anderson, Kitty Wells, Charley Pride, Tom T. Hall, Conway Twitty, Roger Miller, Willie Nelson, George Morgan, Marty Robbins, Lefty Frizzell, Faron Young, Hank Snow, Floyd Cramer, Bob Wills, Dolly Parton, Carl Smith, Johnny Cash, Hank Thompson, Sonny James, Ivory Joe Hunter, Patti Page, Brook Benton, Connie Francis, Ann-Margret, Burl Ives, Leon Russell, Bobby Vinton, Al Hirt, The Four Aces, Paul Anka, The Newbeats, Robert Mitchum, Michael Nesmith, Tom Jones, Pete Fountain, Henry Mancini, Joan Baez, Damita Jo, Boots Randolph, and Perry Como.

In Nashville, Tennessee, USA, of heart failure


James Ingram
(66), singer, songwriter, record producer. two-time Grammy Award-winner and two-time Academy Award nominee for Best Original Song, whose hits include "Just Once", "One Hundred Ways", "Baby, Come To Me", "How Do You Keep The Music Playing?", "Yah Mo B There", "What About Me?", "Somewhere Out There", "The Secret Garden (Sweet Seduction Suite)" and "I Don't Have The Heart".

In Los Angeles, Californa, USA, of brain cancer


Michel Legrand
(86), composer, songwriter, pianist and winner of three Academy Awards for such scores as 'Summer Of ’42' and 'Yentl' as well as the song 'The Windmills Of Your Mind' from the film 'The Thomas Crown Affair'.

Michel Legrand who was also Oscar-nominated for the movies 'Les Parapluies De Cherbourg' and 'Les Demoiselles De Rochefort' worked with such stars as Miles Davis, Ray Charles, Orson Welles, Perry Como, Neil Diamond, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Lena Horne, James Ingram, Jack Jones, Kiri te Kanawa, Frankie Laine, Johnny Mathis, Diana Ross, Barbra Streisand, Sarah Vaughan, Shirley Bassey, Andy Williams, Nana Mouskouri, Jean Cocteau, Frank Sinatra and Edith Piaf.

His hit songs include 'What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life?', 'Watch What Happens', 'The Summer Knows' and 'You Must Believe In Spring'.

International Songwriters Association Hall Of Fame Member.

In Paris, France, following a heart attack


Oliver Mtukudzi
(66), singer, songwriter, philanthropist and human rights activist, and Zimbabwe's first UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Eastern and Southern Africa.

In Harare, Zimbabwe, of complications from diabetes.


Maxine Brown
(87), singer-songwriter, brother of country star Jim Ed Brown, and member of The Browns whose hits include 'The Three Bells', 'Scarlet Ribbons', 'The Old Lamplighter' and 'Send Me The Pillow You Dream On'. Maxine Brown's songs were also recorded by such country acts as Justin Tubb, Goldie Hill, Buck Owens, Susan Raye, The Canadian Sweethearts, George Jones, Margie Singleton, Bill Anderson, Jan Howard and The Collins Kids.

In Little Rock, Arkansas, USA, of complications from heart and kidney disease


Shirley Boone
(84), singer, songwriter, author, daughter of country legend Red Foley, wife of pop superstar Pat Boone, and mother of Grammy nominated vocalists Cherry, Lindy, Debby and Laury Boone.

In Beverly Hills, California, of cancer


Bonnie Guitar
(95), songwriter, guitarist and record label owner, whose own hits included 'Dark Moon', 'Mister Fire Eyes', 'I’m Living In Two Worlds', 'Get Your Lie The Way You Want It', 'The Tallest Tree', 'You Can Steal Me', 'A Woman In Love', 'Stop The Rain', 'Leaves Are The Tears Of Autumn', 'That See Me Later Look' and 'Allegheny', working alongside such acts as Sam Cooke, The Everly Brothers, Gene Vincent, The Del-Vikings and Jerry Lee Lewis.

In 1959, she discovered the Fleetwoods, and formed a record label (Dolton Records) to record the group, going on to produce, and play guitar on most of their hits, including 'Come Softly To Me', 'Mr Blue', Tragedy', 'The Great Imposter', 'Outside My Window' and 'Lovers By Night Strangers By Day'. She subsequently signed the Ventures, producing such hits as 'Walk Don’t Run', 'Perfidia' and 'Slaughter on Tenth Avenue'. Having sold Dolton to Liberty Records, she retired with her husband to their ranch near Mount Rainier where they reared horses, but following his death in 1983, resumed her performing career, recording a number of albums while working night clubs along the West Coast until a few months before her final illness.

In Soap Lake, Grant County, Washington, USA, of congestive heart failure, following a fall


Whitey Shafer
(82), songwriter amd singer who penned such country classics as 'All My Ex's Live In Texas' and 'Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind' along with hits for George Jones, Merle Haggard, Keith Whitley, George Strait, Willie Nelson, Connie Smith, Johnny Russell, John Michael Montgomery, Lee Ann Womack, Kenny Chesney, Moe Bandy. Johnny Rodriguez, Lefty Frizell, Shawn Colvin and many others.

In addition to his songwriting career, Whitey Shafer recorded for a number of labels, including Musicor and RCA, and toured as an opening act for Willie Nelson.

International Songwriters Association Hall Of Fame Member.

In Whitney, Texas, USA, of heart failure


Phil Thomas
(74), songwriter whose hits include 'Colorado Kool-Aid' and 'Me And The IRS' (Johnny Paycheck), 'Drinkin’ My Way Back Home' (Gene Watson), 'Now You’re Talking' (Mel McDaniel), 'Hard Baby To Rock' (Tari Hensley) and 'Mirror, Mirror' (Barbara Mandrell), as well as chart entries for such stars as Montgomery Gentry, John Conlee, George Strait, Alabama and Randy Travis.

In Perry County, Tennessee, USA, of heart failure


Maeng Yuna
(29), singer-songwriter known as the 'Suzanne Vega of South Korea', whose hits include 'Paradise'.

In Seoul, South Korea, following a heart attack


Steve Ripley
(69), songwriter, musician, studio owner, and lead singer with The Tractors ('Baby Likes To Rock It'), and who worked with Bob Dylan, Leon Russell, J J Cale, Roy Clark and Eddie Van Halen.

In Pawnee, Oklahoma, USA, of cancer


Pegi Young
(66), singer, songwriter, educator, philanthropist and former wife of singer-songwriter Neil Young, and who worked with such acts as Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Elton John, Pearl Jam, Metallica, R.E.M., James Taylor, Willie Nelson, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Buffalo Springfield.

In San Mateo, California, USA, of cancer


Daryl Dragon
(76), singer, songwriter, musician, and one-half of The Captain & Tenille whose hits include 'Love Will Keep Us Together', 'Song Of Joy. 'Do That To Me One More Time', 'Can't Stop Dancing', 'You Never Done It Like That', 'The Way I Want To Touch You' and 'Muskrat Love'.

Son of noted composer Carmen Dragon, Daryl played with Fats Domino and BB King prior to stardom and was also the keyboard player for the Beach Boys in the mid-1960s and early 1970s.

In Prescott, Arizona, USA, from complications of renal failure

Songwriter Obituaries Prior To 2019

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