Risky Business
The music business is a risky business in so many ways. And yes, there is a Music Mafia; it’s real and not just the stuff of Hollywood movies. There are also the perils of unscrupulous people, financial failure and every sort of imaginable disaster. However, perhaps the most least thought of risk can actually be the largest risk to those in this industry: Air travel.
Most of us can remember one or two of our favorites who perished in plane accidents. Buddy Holly may come to mind the most. Here’s a large but only partial list of those in the music business that went down in planes:
Glenn Miller (1944)
Buddy Holly (1959)
Richie Valens (1959)
The Big Bopper – Jiles Perry “J. P.” Richardson, Jr. (1959)
Patsy Cline (1963)
Otis Redding (1967)
Jimmie King (1967)
Ronnie Caldwell (1967)
Phalon Jones (1967)
Carl Cunningham (1967)
Matthew Kelly (1967)
Jim Croce (1973)
Maury Meuhleisen (1973)
Morgan Tell (1973)
George Stevens – Comedian (1973)
Lynyrd Skynyrd – Lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and back-up singer Cassie Gaines (1977)
Ricky Nelson (1985)
Stevie Ray Vaughan (1990)
Bobby Brooks (1990)
Nigel Browne (1990)
Colin Smythe (1990)
Alecsander Alves – Mamonas Assassinas (1996)
Alberto Hinoto – Mamonas Assassinas (1996)
Samuel Reis de Oliveira – Mamonas Assassinas (1996)
Júlio César Barbosa – Mamonas Assassinas (1996)
Sérgio Reis de Oliveira – Mamonas Assassinas (1996)
Fanfarekorps Koninklijke Nederlandse Landmacht – 23 out of 37 members of the Royal Netherlands Army Fanfare (1996)
John Denver (1997)
“Aaliyah” Dana Haughton (2001)
Maria Serrano-Serrano – Passion Fruit (2001)
Nathaly van het Ende – Passion Fruit (2001)
Jenni Rivera (2012)
There are many risks in the music business. I know. I’ve been in the business for over 45 years. There is some sort of danger around every corner. However, not once have I ever accepted a ride in a small plane or helicopter…. just saying.
Photo: 1959 plane crash that killed Richie Valens, Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper.
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allenrizzi 
Yep, small planes are scary…traveled on one from Butte, Montana and veered off to Lewiston, Idaho with a “green” pilot. Motherly Assassins (Mamonas Assassinas), really? Still a shame these folks left us that way. 😪
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Seems I’ve been there and done that….. 😉
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Many tragedies there. The day the music died, indeed. Over and over.
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Thanks for commenting. Combined, we’re talking about a huge loss of music that never got made.
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I had no idea
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Unfortunately, this is only a partial list.
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Nice and informative article.
I have recently published a post How to Start Business
Hope you will like the above post also.
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Unbelievable when you look at that list! Little planes are scary!
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Reblogged this on allenrizzi and commented:
Thankfully I stayed off small planes!
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The vast majority of small plane accidents are the result of bad decisions by pilots or clients not because small planes are dangerous. People who fly on charter flights should know and understand the risks (usually bad weather) and be able to evaluate if their pilot adequately respects the risks and has the training and experience to handle them. When a surfer gets killed or injured, no one blames the surf board.
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We sure lost a lot of talent way too soon, thanks to small planes nd questionable pilots.
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It seems always to be the latter. Again, I’ve never ventured on a small plane for that reason.
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