Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison all died at the age of 27 between 1969 and 1971. At the time, the coincidence gave rise to some comment, but it was not until the death of Kurt Cobain, about two and a half decades later, that the idea of a "27 Club" began to catch on in public perception, reignited with the death of Amy Winehouse in 2011. Through interviews with people who knew them, such as music stars, critics, medical experts and unseen footage, the lives, music, and artistry of those who died at 27 are investigated with a bid to find answers.
03-26-2018
1h 10m
THIS
HELLA
Doesn't have an image right now... sorry!has no image... sorry!
Olly Alexander (born Oliver Alexander Thornton, 15 July 1990), is an English singer, songwriter and actor. His music is released under the name Years & Years.
Thomas Giles Robinson (born 1 June 1950) is a British singer, bassist, radio presenter and long-time LGBT rights activist, best known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band. He later peaked at No. 6 in the UK Singles Chart with his solo single "War Baby".
Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969) was an English musician and composer, best known as the founder and original leader of the Rolling Stones. Initially a slide guitarist, Jones went on to play a wide variety of instruments on Rolling Stones recordings and in concerts, including rhythm guitar, lead guitar, sitar, dulcimer, various keyboard instruments such as piano and mellotron, marimba, wind instruments such as harmonica, recorder, saxophone, as well as drums, vocals and numerous others.
After he founded the Rolling Stones as a British blues outfit in 1962, and gave the band its name, Jones' fellow band members Keith Richards and Mick Jagger began to take over the band's musical direction, especially after they became a successful songwriting team. Jones and fellow guitarist Richards also developed a unique style of guitar play that Richards refers to as the "ancient art of weaving" where both players would play rhythm and lead parts together. Richards continued the style with later guitarists, and the sound became a Rolling Stones trademark. Jones, however, did not get along with the band's manager, Andrew Loog Oldham, who pushed the band into a musical direction at odds with Jones' blues background.
When Jones developed alcohol and drug problems, his performance in the studio became increasingly unreliable, leading to a diminished role within the band he had founded. In June 1969, the Rolling Stones dismissed Jones; guitarist Mick Taylor took his place in the group. Jones died less than a month later, drowning in the swimming pool at his home at the age of 27. Jones’ death was referenced in songs by many other pop-bands, and was the subject of poems by Pete Townshend and Jim Morrison. Referring to Jones, the Rolling Stones' Bill Wyman lamented the waste of a great innovator. In 1989, the Rolling Stones, including Jones, were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Brian Jones, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix, November 27, 1942 – September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter. He is widely considered to be the greatest electric guitarist in musical history, and one of the most influential musicians of his era across a range of genres.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Jimi Hendrix, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer considered the premier female blues vocalist of the Sixties; her raw, powerful and uninhibited singing style, combined with her turbulent and emotional lifestyle, made her one of the biggest female stars in her lifetime. She died of a drug overdose in 1970, aged 27, after releasing three albums. A fourth album, Pearl, was released a little more than three months after her death, reaching number 1 on the charts.
James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 - July 3, 1971) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet, best remembered as the lead singer of The Doors. Due to his poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, wild personality, performances, and the dramatic circumstances surrounding his life and early death, Morrison is regarded by both music critics and fans as one of the most iconic and influential frontmen in rock music history.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Jim Morrison, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – c. April 5, 1994) was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana.
Cobain formed Nirvana with Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington, in 1985 and established it as part of the Seattle music scene, having its debut album Bleach released on the independent record label Sub Pop in 1989. After signing with major label DGC Records, the band found breakthrough success with "Smells Like Teen Spirit" from its second album Nevermind (1991). Following the success of Nevermind, Nirvana was labeled "the flagship band" of Generation X, and Cobain hailed as "the spokesman of a generation". Cobain however was often uncomfortable and frustrated, believing his message and artistic vision to have been misinterpreted by the public, with his personal issues often subject to media attention. He challenged Nirvana's audience with its final studio album In Utero (1993).
During the last years of his life, Cobain struggled with heroin addiction, illness and depression, his fame and public image, as well as the professional and lifelong personal pressures surrounding himself and his wife, musician Courtney Love. On April 8, 1994, Cobain was found dead at his home in Seattle, the victim of what was officially ruled a suicide by a self-inflicted shotgun wound to the head. The circumstances of his death have become a topic of public fascination and debate. Since their debut, Nirvana, with Cobain as a songwriter, has sold over 25 million albums in the US alone, and over 50 million worldwide.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Kurt Cobain, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was a British singer-songwriter known for her powerful contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres including R&B, soul and jazz. Winehouse's 2003 debut album, Frank, was critically successful in the UK and was nominated for the Mercury Prize. Her 2006 follow-up album, Back to Black, led to six Grammy Award nominations and five wins, tying the record for the most wins by a female artist in a single night, and made Winehouse the first British singer to win five Grammys, including three of the "Big Four": Best New Artist, Record of the Year and Song of the Year. On 14 February 2007, she won a BRIT Award for Best British Female Artist; she had also been nominated for Best British Album. She won the Ivor Novello Award three times, one in 2004 for Best Contemporary Song (musically and lyrically) for "Stronger Than Me", one in 2007 for Best Contemporary Song for "Rehab", and one in 2008 for Best Song Musically and Lyrically for "Love Is a Losing Game", among other prestigious distinctions. The album was the third biggest seller of the 2000s in the United Kingdom. Winehouse was credited as an influence in the rise in popularity of female musicians and soul music, and also for revitalising British music. Winehouse's distinctive style made her a muse for fashion designers such as Karl Lagerfeld. Winehouse's problems with drugand alcohol abuse, and her self-destructive behaviours were regular tabloid news from 2007 until her death. She and her former husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, were plagued by legal troubles that left him serving prison time. In 2008, Winehouse faced a series of health complications that threatened both her career and her life. Winehouse died of alcohol poisoning at the age of 27 on 23 July 2011 at her home in London.
