On October 5, 2024, Nell Smith was killed in a car crash. She was 17 years old. Smith had attracted a good deal of attention back in 2021. She was just 14 at the time, but she impressed Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne so much that he asked her to sing on the band’s new album Where the Viaduct Looms. The album featured nine covers of Nick Cave songs, and Cave himself was reportedly impressed by the Canadian teenager. She sang lead on all nine tracks. The album was formally credited to “Nell Smith & the Flaming Lips.”
Smith, who was set to release her debut solo album in 2025, was perhaps the youngest of many vital musicians the world lost in 2024. Unlike in 2023, when headlining names like Tina Turner, Sinead O’Connor, Jimmy Buffett, and Gordon Lightfoot passed away, 2024 witnessed the loss of somewhat lesser-known talents – like Nell Smith – who nonetheless left a major void. Many were crucial band members or behind-the-scenes figures whose influences on modern popular music were easier to overlook than performers like Turner or O’Connor.
The following list is not even close to definitive. There were dozens more important performers who left us this past year. But here are 19 other artists, in addition to Nell Smith, who will be fondly remembered by music fans for decades to come.
2024 saw the loss of a lot of musical talent including a few giants of the industry
STEVE ALBINI, 61
Steve Albini could be abrasive and confrontational. That applied to the music he created with his seminal post-hardcore punk band Big Black, as well as to his interpersonal interactions. He was also – in the words of his longtime friend and record label owner Corey Rusk – “supernaturally talented, kindhearted, generous of spirit, and generous with his time.” Rush wrote that in his memorial to Albini in Rolling Stone Magazine shortly after a heart attack claimed Albini’s life in May.
Albini formed Big Black while a student at Northwestern in the early 1980s. His guitar was intentionally abrasive and loud. As a band member, Albini displayed his unique, inventive perspective by popularizing drum machines and laying the foundation for what would become industrial rock. And he may have made an even bigger impact on hard rock and its multitude of offshoots as an audio engineer – helping bands like the Pixies, Fugazi, and the Jesus Lizard, among countless others – achieve new, aggressive sounds.
He may be best known for producing Nirvana’s In Utero in 1993, but his influence on modern punk music goes well beyond any single achievement. He was as big a factor in what modern noise-based rock has become as anyone.
ASTON “FAMILY MAN” BARRETT, 77
Reggae is one of the musical genres most reliant on the bass, and Aston Barrett played the bass for the most important of all reggae bands, Bob Marley & the Wailers. He was also their band leader and, as much as anyone short of Marley himself, responsible for their revolutionary sound. After Marley’s death in 1981, Barrett continued playing with many other reggae outfits and began teaching up-and-comers how to break into the business.
In 2020, Bass Player Magazine ranked him first in their rundown of legendary bassists. Barrett, who was reported to have fathered more than 40 children, died of heart failure in February. (Of note: guitarist Donald Kinsey, who also played for a time with the Wailers, also passed away in 2024.)
DICKEY BETTS, 80
Want to know how undervalued Dickey Betts was during his lifetime? When he passed away in April, I wrote a tribute to him, which you can read here. And I misspelled his first name. That is inexcusable in a piece honoring a man who was one of the truly great Southern rock guitar players of the 20th century. Alongside the legendary Duane Allman, Betts helped create the signature twin-guitar attack that many more bands would emulate over the years. After Allman’s death, Betts continued on, writing, playing, and singing many classics. I should have gotten his name right.
ERIC CARMEN, 74
Carmen had several huge hits as a solo artist. Personally, I am not a big fan of his solo work, though singles like “All By Myself,” “Make Me Lose Control,” and “Hungry Eyes” were very popular. They tended to play into the singer’s grandiose, theatrical impulses. But in the early 1970s as frontman for the rock band Raspberries, Carmen helped crank out a number of great songs that married traditional pop with a ‘70s glam sheen. “Go All the Way” was their biggest hit, but the Cleveland band had a string of sprightly pop hits before splitting in 1975.
DUANE EDDY, 86
If you are a fan of electric guitar, you owe some thanks to Duane Eddy. In the late 1950s, Eddy began putting out a whole lot of instrumental rockers that kids could groove to. Eddy turned up the reverb to eleven to get an echoey twang that came to define a certain style of rock & roll. Though he often let the saxophone wail away, he helped establish the electric guitar as the foundational instrument in rock.
KINKY FRIEDMAN, 79
Kinky Friedman and his band, the Texas Jewboys, released their first album, Sold American, in 1973. Its first track – “We Reserve the Right to Refuse Service to You,” – chronicled a trip through Texas and a stop at a local café in which he is told, “You smell just like a communist – You come through just like a Jew – We reserve the right to refuse service to you.” Thus Kinky Friedman began a riotous takedown of music and culture that he would continue for better than forty years.
He played with country and folk music, but he was at his best when commenting on the cultural idiosyncrasies he saw around him. A lot of those earliest songs are just as relevant today as when he wrote them.
QUINCY JONES, 91
This isn’t a competition. But if it was, Quincy Jones would win. As a musician, songwriter, educator, and most importantly as a producer, it’s hard to come up with someone more crucial to the broad development of American pop music over the last fifty years. He played trumpet with Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie. He arranged for Frank Sinatra. He produced Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
Those are just a few of the names he worked with over the years. His accomplishments are too numerous to mention in a quick remembrance. For more details, you can read about his contributions to modern pop music here.
TOBY KEITH, 62
Toby Keith’s career highlights the complex nature of country music and the cultural divide it is now straddling, His breakout hit “Should Have Been a Cowboy” is one of the most successful country songs of all time. It also led directly to Adeem the Artist’s breakout hit “I Wish You Had Been a Cowboy” almost 20 years later. It became easy in time to forget about Keith’s music and focus instead on his well-publicized feuds with the likes of the (formerly Dixie) Chicks. His very presence eventually fueled a debate on the meaning of patriotism and its place in country music.
In “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (the Angry American),” Keith rather joyfully warns those that mess with the country, “We’ll put a boot in your ass – It’s the American way.” Of course, the problem is in defining what “messing” with the U.S.A. entails. That is a debate for another day. Love him or hate him. Toby Keith was a major part of the Bro-Country movement and popular music in the early 21st century.
WAYNE KRAMER, 75
Of all the bands on the “should be in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame,” none had a more passionate fanbase than the proto-punk legends, MC5. Their lead guitarist, Wayne Kramer, died a few months before they were finally inducted last year. Kramer’s lightning-fast riffs on the band’s Kick Out, the Jams live album from 1969 would inspire every punk and hard rock guitar player to follow. His shredding on “Ramblin’ Rose” and the title track can still raise goosebumps. After MC5 split up, Kramer went on to a varied career playing music, and serving a few years in prison on drug charges.
He resurfaced in the ‘90s, recording a series of albums for Epitaph Records. When he died, tributes poured in from every part of the music world – from Slash and Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses to singer/songwriter Jill Sobule. Rage Against the Machine Tom Morello, who inducted MC5 into the R&RHOF, called him “beyond inspiring.” (Of note: Dennis Thompson, the drummer from MC5 during most of their time together, passed away in 2024 as well.)
KRIS KRISTOFFERSON, 88
In hindsight, the shakiest part of Kris Kristofferson’s spectacular career was his actual signing. He developed into a good actor over time and could sell a song. But as a vocalist, he was nothing special. He was, however, a brilliant poet who chose to make country music his vehicle of choice. His songwriting in the early 1970s helped reinvent what country music could be. He wrote real songs about mature subjects and scared the wits out of traditional Nashville executives.
Still, the power of compositions like “For the Good Times,” “Help Me Make it Through the Night,” and especially “Me and Bobby McGee” ushered in a new era. He became a sex symbol and a movie star, and later in life, teamed up with the legendary outlaws of country music – Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Johnny Cash – to form the Highwaymen. You can check out a longer tribute here.
PHIL LESH, 84
As the bass player for the Grateful Dead, Phil Lesh was an integral part of one of the most beloved live-performance bands of all time. The extended jams that were so much a part of any Dead show required a bass player who could not merely keep time over long and complicated musical excursions, but who could also join in and pick up a melodic line when the guitars needed a little respite.
Lesh developed his chops over time, approaching his six-string bass the way a guitar player would. His contributions on Dead songs like “Morning Dew” and “Let it Grow” elevated them to beloved classics at any show. He also wrote and sang lead on “Box of Rain.” Lesh helped carry on the tradition following the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995 by playing with former bandmates and younger artists alike, keeping one of the most iconic parts of American rock & roll music alive and well for many new generations.
JOHN MAYALL, 90
Without John Mayall and his groundbreaking Bluesbreakers band, there may never have been a Fleetwood Mac. Or a Cream. Or for that matter, a Canned Heat. The Rolling Stones may have followed a very different trajectory. Members of all those bands were significantly helped along by Mayall. Mick Fleetwood and John McVie were his rhythm section. Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce played guitar and bass. So did Harvey Mandel and Larry Taylor. When the Stones needed a replacement for Brian Jones, they found Mick Taylor playing guitar with Mayall.
The number of future session Gods who passed through the ever-changing Bluesbreakers lineup is too big to count. Mayal’s music was excellent, and his own virtuosity on the harmonica helped make it a vital part of the blues sound. But it was as a bandleader that he made his greatest contribution. He bequeathed much of what would become classic blues rock to the rest of the world.
SERGIO MENDES, 83
Before world music was a thing, Sergio Mendes was introducing North America to funk-tinted bossa nova and taking the world by storm. He released dozens of albums over the years, working with a wide range of musicians, and dabbling in a wide range of styles. His recording of “Mas Que Nada” was a hit back in 1966, and then forty years later, was a hit again, this time with collaboration from the Black Eyed Peas. Mendes toured with Sinatra.
A few years ago, he recorded “Sabor do Rio,” with Common. Mendes is one of the godfathers of world music, reaching out to every corner of the world and showing how bossa nova cannot be confined to Brazil.
MELANIE, 76
When Melanie Safka passed away, every remembrance of her felt the need to point out she did far more than the one monster hit for which she became known. On Christmas Day, 1971, “Brand New Key” came out of nowhere to grab the number one spot on the Billboard charts. Melanie would hold onto the position for three weeks. It became her signature, even though it wasn’t very much like the rest of her music.
Melanie was from Queens and in her early performing days, that’s exactly what she sounded like – a New York folkie who wrote sweet, quirky songs and sang them in an earnest voice. But she was good enough to secure a spot at Woodstock when she was just 22. She went on at 11 pm on the first night when the Incredible String Band refused to play in the rain. She did some heartfelt folk tunes like “Close to it All” and “Birthday of the Sun.” She covered “Mr. Tambourine Man” and did a funny little number called “Animal Crackers,” which referenced Arlo Guthrie’s “Alice’s Restaurant.” Guthrie was the next act.
The following year, she achieved international success with “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain),” inspired by her Woodstock experience. Then came “Brand New Key,” an adorable little tune that took off and made her a star.
MOJO NIXON, 66
Though tragic, it seems somehow fitting that a gonzo showman like Neil Kirby McMillan – known to the world as Mojo Nixon – should pass away in a very public manner. In conjunction with his DJing gig on Sirius XM Radio, he was taking part in the Outlaw Country Cruise when he succumbed to a cardiac event. Nixon was known for his outlandish rockabilly compositions, for dissing Michael J. Fox in his minor hit “Elvis is Everywhere,” and for challenging all aspects of propriety in country music in songs like “Tie My Pecker to My Leg:” sample lyric – “Dad’s going steady with a pig in the barn – Grandma’s getting down with an ear of corn.”
I can’t really quote anything else from that particular song. And I’ll leave the songs he wrote about Martha Quinn, Don Henley, and Debbie Gibson for you to discover on your own. Nixon was referenced in the Dead Milkmen’s emo punk classic “Punk Rock Girl:” while in a record store, “We asked for Mojo Nixon – They said ‘he don’t work here’ – We said ‘if you don’t got Mojo Nixon then your store could use some fixin’.”
LIAM PAYNE, 31
There may have been no music-related death in 2024 that had a bigger impact on the public psyche than that of Payne, who died in a fall from a third-story window in Buenos Aires. Rumors immediately began circulating about depression and narcotics. Much of the early speculation was not supported by hard evidence, although cocaine and prescription medications appear to have been a factor in the tragedy.
Payne had been part of one of the most popular bands of the 21st century, One Direction, from 2010-2016. The band that was famously assembled by Simon Cowell from contestants on the British “X Factor” program, all branched off into solo work, and in some cases, acting, after 2016. Payne found success with several singles, though his solo album LP1 did little to impress most critics.
His fans still loved him, and many were devastated by his sudden death at 31. All four former bandmates in One Direction shared warm tributes, as did other pop luminaries like Justin Bieber, Charlie Puth, Rita Ora, and Halsey. You can read more about Payne here.
DAVID SANBORN, 78
Jazz saxophonist David Sanborn was scheduled to play a show in Annapolis, MD a few days after his death. I know this because I was at the venue one day before to see the Bodeans when I saw Sanborn's name on a list of upcoming shows. When I told the box office manager that Sanborn had passed away one day earlier, he said that the show had been canceled a few days before, but until that point, he had assumed it would be rescheduled.
Sanborn played a lot, either fronting his own ensemble or as an in-demand session player. His easy style with a pop tune belied his outstanding chops. I remember reading somewhere that what made Sanborn special was the way he could blend those two sensibilities – pop and jazz – as though they were natural companions. That is not true of a lot of very technically proficient players. He is at his unfussy best on his 1991 album, Another Hand.
J.D. SOUTHER, 78
After kicking around the music scene for a few years with limited success, John David Souther headed to Los Angeles, where he found a roommate named Glenn Frey. He worked with Frey and a few other musicians to form a backing band for Souther’s one-time girlfriend, Linda Ronstadt, and when that backing band decided to go out on their own, Frey invited Souther to join up. Souther chose not to join Frey and Don Henley in the Eagles, but he did maintain a relationship with the band as they grew bigger and bigger.
He wrote or co-wrote Eagles hits “James Dean,” “Victim of Love,” “Heartache Tonight,” and “Best of My Love.” He sang another co-written song – “Her Town Too” – with James Taylor. Similar to Kris Kristofferson, Southern wrote songs for plenty of others to score without ever really hitting it big himself. “You’re Only Lonely,” the title track from his 1979 album was his only significant hit on his own, but Souther played a major behind-the-scenes part in creating some of the best country and folk rock hits of his era.
MARY WEISS, 75
Mary Weiss was the first major recording artist to pass away in 2024, on January 19. But by that point, Weiss had been largely out of the music business for many decades. Though she made several attempts at reviving a recording career over the years, Mary Weiss essentially gave up on music in the late ‘60s, despite having one number song on her resume and performing as an opener from both the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.
Weiss was the primary vocalist for the Shangri-Las, one of the most underrated of all ‘60s groups. She sang with her sister Betty and the Ganser twins, Mary Ann and Margie. The foursome teamed up in high school and with the help of producer George Morton, they recorded a string of hits. Their best-known song was “Leader of the Pack,” but they were far from a one-hit wonder.
The Shangri-Las had a sense of drama – often a sense of melodrama – that made their songs a far cry from the sweet pop that most girl groups were cranking out. “Remember (Walkin’ in the Sand)” is an epic contemplation of heartbreak. “Give Him a Great Big Kiss” is a proud, jazzy ode to public displays of affection. And “I Can Never Go Home Again” may well be the saddest pop song ever recorded.
Mary Weiss, who went on to a post-music career as an interior designer, was at the center of some of the most highly theatrical pop music ever recorded.