Real ones we lost in 2022

If the memes and jokes are to be believed, 2022 wasn't any more of a picnic than any year since the pandemic started. Or since 2015 maybe. Or the century. Or eternity maybe. But truly, we did lose some real ones in the music world.

If you haven't heard of any of these folks, I suggest you check them out. There's a lot of great art here.

• Terry Hall. The last one of the year to go that I noticed, the Specials singer was a big loss to my musical history.
• Keith Levine. I was a little late to PiL, but so many of the guitarists I admire, like Daniel Ash, owe a ton to him. His work on Metal Box still blows me away.
• D.H. Peligro. An incredible drummer for one of the greats in hardcore, and one of the few and the proud who proved that punk wasn't just white guys and Bad Brains.
• Jerry Lee Lewis. What can you say about the Killer that hasn't been said? Not the original wild man of rock and roll, but an early trash fire who paved the way for many more. Still energizing to listen to.
• Pharaoh Sanders. One of the few jazz guys I really get into. Truly expanding stuff.
• Andy Fletcher. Depeche Mode was an early expansion into electronic music for me, and probably half the known universe too.
• Mark Lanegan. One of those guys who seemed to court death for a long time before they finally hooked up. A great lyricist and so unsung in the world of Seattle music.
• Rachel Nagy. I think I only saw the Detroit Cobras once when I lived there, but they were legendary. Too young, and I still haven't heard what happened.
• Vangelis. I was never a huge fan, but it's safe to say in hindsight he's one of the people who introduced me to electronic music. Maybe Jarre had more influence on me, but only because he came later — and because Vangelis's "Chariots of Fire" was so omnipresent.
• Lamont Dozier, Dennis Waterman, Ken WIlliams. You might not know these names. Look them up. That's a lot of firepower lost. These are guys with both art and craft, guys whose results are very difficult to argue with.
• Klaus Schulze. Up until relatively recently, I knew him mostly from the first Tangerine Dream album and Ash Ra Tempel, but even that'd be enough to cement him in my mind as one of the greats. But then there's Timewind, Angst, and a billion other releases. A master.
• The big hoedown in the sky. Country was hit hard in '22. C.W. McCall might've been a one-hit wonder ("Convoy") but it was a monster and it always makes me think of my uncle who knew every word and maybe still does. Then Mickey Gilly, Naomi Judd, and Loretta Lynn? All pioneers and legends.
• Classic rock radio. Dan McCafferty of Nazareth, Wilko Johnson of Dr. Feelgood, Christine McVee, Meat Loaf. Can't say I'm necessarily a fan of any of them, but their stature was undeniable. And of course, there's Meat's masterful performance in Fight Club.
• Coolio. It's fucking Coolio. How is Coolio gone?
• Taylor Hawkins. The Foos are not one of my favorites either, but it sure seems to me that he was loved by pretty much everyone who came across him.
• The lords of the synth. This year we lost both John Appleton, the inventor of the Synclavier, and Dave Smith, the man behind Sequential Circuits and one half of the pair responsible for MIDI.
• Ronnie Spector. Between her and Lamont Dozier both leaving the building, a massive chunk of Motown is gone. No disrespect to Diana Ross but Ronnie was always my favorite.
• Angelo Badalamenti and Julee Cruise. This is some serious garmonbozia. Angelo had a good run at least, but I was hoping to hear more from him.
• Mimi Parker. Saved the hardest for last. I truly don't know what to say about this one. So here's a video.