These Rockstars Died At The Age Of 27!

Famous but controversial rockstars who died infamously at the age of 27...

1.

Brian Jones was a guitarist and multi-instrumentalist who brought together members of the Rolling Stones in 1962. Jones figured prominently in the Rolling Stones' early albums, playing rhythm and slide guitar, harmonica and doing background vocals. Jones' relationship with other band members became strained when they learned that Jones was actually making more money - £5.00 per week - according to the management contract that Jones had signed for all band members in early 1963. Aside from his musical career, Jones was a man about town who may have fathered as many as five illegitimate children. But from 1968 onward Jones' contributions to the Rolling Stones diminished steadily, perhaps because of his increasing use of mind-altering substances, and by mid 1969 Jones was expelled from the band. Jones planned to start his own band, but this never happened. Circumstances regarding Jones' death remain cloudy to this day. Jones was found motionless at the bottom of his swimming pool and declared dead by authorities. Friends said that Jones had been drinking and taking pills. The coroner's report showed "death by misadventure." Some think Jones committed suicide; others think he was murdered. Fellow Rolling Stones Mick Jagger and Keith Richards didn't attend Jones' funeral. Brian Jones died on July 3, 1969. A rockstar died at 27!

2.

 

Jimi Hendrix became an overnight sensation after an eruptive performance at the Monterey International Pop Festival in June 1967, where he played his guitar behind his back, with his teeth and later set it aflame and then bashed it into the stage. During Hendrix's short, three-and-a-half-year recording career, he became rock's number one guitarist, and is still considered such by many rock purists. In 2003 Rolling Stone voted him the greatest guitarist of all time. Hendrix's tour de force was the double-album set Electric Ladyland, featuring hits such as "Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)," "Still Raining, Still Dreaming" and "House Burning Down." This album is an exemplar of Hendrix's inventiveness, guitar genius and versatility. Not bad for a high school dropout who couldn't read music! Fortunately, Hendrix toured almost constantly and many of those performances, including an iconic one at Woodstock, were recorded in some fashion. Moreover, Hendrix jammed with just about every notable lead guitarist of the era, except Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page. What a shame! Jimi Hendrix died of drug complications - mixing alcohol with barbiturates, a very dangerous combination - on September 18, 1970.  Case of another rockstar's dead at 27!

3.

Jim Morrison, mystic, poet, shaman, filmmaker and, oh yes, lead singer for the rock group the Doors, which splashed upon the music scene in Los Angeles in 1967. Perhaps Morrison's greatest work came on "The End," a protracted ode to Greek tragedy laced with obscenities, the singing of which got the band thrown out of their gig at The Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood. Morrison's risqué antics got the band in trouble many times. Perhaps to avoid jail time for an obscenity conviction in Florida, Morrison moved to Paris in March 1971. One morning at dawn, Morrison began spitting up blood, took a bath and died of an apparent heart attack (an autopsy was never performed.) Since Morrison's drinking and drugging were legendary, even for the standards of the time, his death probably didn't surprise many. Some think Morrison faked his death and went to Africa. Jim Morrison died on July 3, 1971. Another rockstar bit the dust at 27!

4.

Troubled genius Kurt Cobain formed the grunge group Nirvana in 1986. Led by Cobain's songwriting, singing and lead guitar, Nirvana's second album Nevermind hit the top of the charts in 1991, making the band superstars and netting them truckloads of money. But Cobain, a quiet, reclusive fellow, never enjoyed the limelight of celebrity. Nirvana's mega hit single, "Smells Like Teen Spirit," is considered one of the greatest rock tunes of all time. In 2007 VH1 voted it the top rock song of the 1990s. The tune is still popular; even college marching bands play it. As Nirvana gained popularity, Cobain started using heroin in the early 1990s. He may have started taking heroin to relieve pain from chronic back and stomach trouble. Cobain said his stomach pain was so bad at times that he sometimes considered committing suicide. In March of 1994 Cobain attempted suicide by gobbling painkillers washed down with champagne. But on April 5, 1994 Kurt Cobain succeeded in ending his life with a shotgun blast to the head. But some people think Cobain was murdered. They say Cobain couldn't have used the shotgun to shoot himself because he had a large amount of heroin in his system. Could the heroin have killed him anyway? Experts can only speculate . . . .  Tragic ending of another rockstar at 27!