# Ranking dead musicians, decade by decade

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ranking-dead-musicians-decade-by-decade/535313>\
**Category:** The Game Room\
**Created:** [April 7, 2010, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ranking-dead-musicians-decade-by-decade/535313 "2010-04-07T19:33:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\
**Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ranking-dead-musicians-decade-by-decade/535313/1 "2010-04-07T19:33:41Z")

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This is partially inspired by [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=558719), but also by a _Village Voice_ article I remember from 1981.

That article gave scores to all the major musicians who had died from 1971-1980 and ranked the results in a chart. As I recall, it allowed 10 points for past contributions, 10 points for potential future contributions, and 5 points for mode of death. Higher scores are better, so the guy who was [electrocuted on stage](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Harvey) would get the full 5 points while someone who died of old age would get fewer.

The article gave the maximum 25 points to only 2 musicians - Jimi Hendrix and Ronnie Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynyrd. John Lennon was ranked, but fell short on the “future potential” ranking. I don’t believe the _Voice_ ever followed up with a '80s or '90s chart.

So. let’s assemble our zombie musicians first, then we can figure out their point totals.

I’ll tip a toe in with one obvious nominee from each decade.  
1950s: Buddy Holly

1960s: Otis Redding

1970s: If we should do this over again - Jim Morrison

1980s: Bob Marley

1990s: Kurt Cobain

2000s (so far): Michael Jackson

We can proceed if someone cares to make a full list from this page: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List\_of\_deaths\_in\_rock\_and\_roll](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_deaths_in_rock_and_roll). I’m just an idea man.

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**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\
**Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ranking-dead-musicians-decade-by-decade/535313/2 "2010-04-07T19:42:17Z")

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I like most of the entries, but I’ll go with Marvin Gaye for the '80s. He definitely would get the full 5 points for “mode of death”–shot to death by his paranoid, strung-out, cross-dressing dad.

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**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\
**Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ranking-dead-musicians-decade-by-decade/535313/3 "2010-04-07T21:41:13Z")

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1960s: Former Rolling Stone, Brian Jones “death by misadventure”, drowned in a swimming pool.