the 27 club or club 27 is one you do not want to be a part of.
Brian JonesJuly 3, 1969Drowned in swimming pool.
[7]Rolling Stones founder and guitarist/multi-instrumentalist.
27 years and 125 days
Jimi HendrixSeptember 18, 1970Asphyxiated on vomit after combining sleeping pills with wine.
[8]Pioneering electric guitarist, singer and songwriter for
The Jimi Hendrix Experience and
Band of Gypsys.
27 years and 295 days
Janis JoplinOctober 4, 1970Probable heroin overdose.
[9]Lead vocalist and songwriter for
Big Brother and the Holding Company, The Kozmic Blues Band and Full Tilt Boogie Band.
27 years and 258 days
Jim MorrisonJuly 3, 1971Official cause of death listed as "heart failure"; however, no autopsy was performed.
[10]Lead singer, songwriter and video director for
The Doors.
27 years and 207 days
Kurt Cobainc. April 5, 1994Suicide by shotgun.
[11]Lead singer, guitarist and songwriter for
Nirvana.
27 years and c. 44 days
[edit] Other musicians who died at 27
Some lists include other musicians who died at age 27.
[3][12] Cobain and Hendrix biographer
Charles R. Cross writes, "The number of musicians who died at 27 is truly remarkable by any standard. [Although] humans die regularly at all ages, there is a statistical spike for musicians who die at 27."
[3]
Name
Date of death
Cause of death
Claim to notability
Alexandre LevyJanuary 17, 1892Unknown.Composer.
Louis ChauvinMarch 26, 1908Neurosyphilitic sclerosis.Ragtime musician.
Robert JohnsonAugust 16, 1938Unknown, but typically credited to
strychnine poisoning.Bluesman. Recorded very famous and influential set of 29 songs that influenced many famous musicians after him, considered the first of the unofficial 27 club.
Nat JaffeAugust 5, 1945Result of complications from
high blood pressure.Blues musician.
Jesse BelvinFebruary 6, 1960Car crash.R&B singer and songwriter.Rudy LewisMay 20, 1964Drug overdose.Vocalist of
The Drifters.Malcolm HaleOctober 31, 1968Carbon monoxide poisoning from a faulty space heater.Original member of
Spanky and Our Gang.
Dickie PrideMarch 26, 1969Overdose of sleeping pills.British rock and roll singer.
Alan "Blind Owl" WilsonSeptember 3, 1970
Barbiturate overdose, possible suicide.Leader, singer and primary composer of
Canned Heat.Arlester "Dyke" ChristianMarch 13, 1971Shot.Frontman and vocalist of
Dyke & the Blazers.
Linda JonesMarch 14, 1972Diabetic coma.R&B singer.
Ron "Pigpen" McKernanMarch 8, 1973Gastrointestinal hemorrhage associated with alcoholism.Founding member, keyboardist and singer of the
Grateful Dead.Roger Lee DurhamJuly 27, 1973Fell off a horse and died from the injuries.Singer and percussionist of
Bloodstone.Wallace YohnAugust 12, 1974Died in a plane crash along with three other band members.Organ player of
Chase.
Dave AlexanderFebruary 10, 1975Pulmonary edema.Bassist for
the Stooges.
Peter HamApril 24, 1975Suicide by hanging.Keyboardist and guitarist, leader of
Badfinger.
Gary ThainDecember 8, 1975Drug overdose.Former bassist of
Uriah Heep.
Helmut KöllenMay 3, 1977Carbon monoxide poisoning.Bassist with 1970s German prog rock band
Triumvirat.
Chris BellDecember 27, 1978Car crash: ran into a telephone pole.Singer-songwriter and guitarist of power pop band
Big Star and solo.
Jacob MillerMarch 23, 1980Car crash.Jamaican reggae artist and lead singer for
Inner Circle.
D. BoonDecember 22, 1985Lying 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.
Alexander BashlachevFebruary 17, 1988Suicide by jumping.Russian poet, rock musician and songwriter.
Jean-Michel BasquiatAugust 12, 1988
Speedball overdose.Painter and graffiti artist; formed the band Gray.
Pete de FreitasJune 14, 1989Motorcycle wreck on his way back from filming a music video.Drummer for
Echo & the Bunnymen.
Mia ZapataJuly 7, 1993Beaten, raped and murdered.Lead singer of
the Gits.
Kristen PfaffJune 16, 1994Officially ruled as an accidental heroin overdose.Bass guitarist for
Hole and
Janitor Joe.
Richey James Edwardsc. February 1, 1995Disappeared; officially
presumed dead November 23, 2008.Lyricist and guitarist for
Manic Street Preachers.
Fat PatFebruary 3, 1998Shot.Rapper and member of
Screwed Up Click.Freaky TahMarch 28, 1999Shot.Popular rapper and member of the rap group
Lost Boyz.Sean Patrick McCabeAugust 28, 2000Asphyxiated on vomit after ingesting too much alcohol.Lead singer of
Ink & Dagger.
Maria Serrano SerranoNovember 24, 2001
Plane crash.Background singer for
Passion Fruit.
Jeremy Michael WardMay 25, 2003Heroin overdose.
The Mars Volta and
De Facto sound manipulator.
Bryan OttosonApril 19, 2005Prescription drug overdose.Guitarist for
American Head Charge.
Valentín ElizaldeNovember 25, 2006Murdered.Mexican
banda singer.
Orish Grinsteadc. April 20, 2008Kidney failure.Founding member of '90s R&B group
702.
Lily TemboSeptember 14, 2009Severe gastritis.Zambian musician.
, but I was touched by watching that show.
