Thursday, December 14, 2006

Ahmet Ertegun, R. I. P.

Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun dies - MUSIC - MSNBC.com: "NEW YORK - Ahmet Ertegun, who helped define American music as the founder of Atlantic Records, a label that popularized the gritty R&B of Ray Charles, the classic soul of Aretha Franklin and the British rock of the Rolling Stones, died Thursday at 83, his spokesman said.

Ertegun remained connected to the music scene until his last days — it was at an Oct. 29 concert by the Rolling Stones at the Beacon Theatre in New York where Ertegun fell, suffered a head injury and was hospitalized. He later slipped into a coma."

What can you say? Atlantic Records. Big Joe Turner. Ruth Brown. Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters. The Clovers. Stick McGhee. Professor Longhair. Ray Charles. Leiber and Stoller. Atco. The Coasters. Chuck Willis. LaVern Baker. I could go on. Ertegun was a giant in the music world that I cared about when I was young.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

...The Modern Jazz Quartet, and John Lewis's other projects, among them this Texas guy, Ornette Coleman...John Coltrane as he stepped out on his own (even if he and Ray Charles did their most adventurous work on ABC Records...)...as Ruth Brown forced everyone to admit, not always the best with the finances, but hardly alone in that, but gosh, what a catalog that label had. Has.