Infamous Fifteen: Rock Stars Dead at 27

Below is a list of rock stars who died infamously at the age of 27. The list includes blues artists such as Robert Johnson, as well as performers of rhythm and blues, since rock ‘n' roll grew from these genres, but does not include artists from other genres such as hip-hop, jazz or country, etc. The artists are listed chronologically by the dates of their demise.

1. As the legend goes, blues artist Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil at the crossroads so he could attain virtuosity with the guitar. Well, somehow Johnson got his wish, recording 29 songs - many of them classics - during a short career. Perhaps Johnson's greatest tunes were "Come on in My Kitchen," "Sweet Home Chicago" and "Crossroad Blues," famously covered by the rock group Cream on their double album set Wheels of Fire. Many consider Johnson the father of modern rock ‘n' roll. (Incidentally, an actor portrays a Johnson-like character in the movie Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou?) It is generally accepted that Johnson was poisoned - perhaps given some tainted rye moonshine - by a jealous husband or girlfriend while playing at a juke joint near Greenwood, Mississippi. Johnson took days to die and was buried in an unmarked grave. Robert Johnson passed on August 16, 1938.

2. Rudy Lewis, singer in the legendary R&B group the Drifters from 1960 to 1964, sang the lead on such hits as “On Broadway” (a top ten hit) and “Up on the Roof.” Formerly of the Clara Ward Singers, Lewis’ silky sweet voice was compared to that of Ben E. King. Just before the recording of mega hit “Under the Boardwalk,” Lewis was found dead in his apartment, and the cause of death has never been ascertained. Authorities think he died of a drug overdose, though friends think Lewis, a binge-eater, probably choked to death on food. Rudy Lewis died on May 20, 1964.

3. 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.

4. Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson was one of the seminal members of Canned Heat, a Sixties blues-revival band. Wilson was a rhythm guitarist, songwriter, vocalist and virtuosic harmonica player. Blues legend John Lee Hooker called Wilson the best harmonica player he had ever seen. Wilson sang the lead on the two of Canned Heat's greatest hits - "Going Up the Country" and "On the Road Again." (The latter can be heard on a current TV commercial.) Wilson had emotional problems and attempted suicide numerous times. Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson died of a drug overdose - widely considered a suicide - on September 3, 1970.

5. 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.

6. Janis Joplin started her singing career with the psychedelic rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company. Joplin's raucous, bluesy voice fit in well with the San Francisco acid rock sound emerging at the time. Like Hendrix, Joplin blew people's minds at Monterey in 1967, singing such hits as "Down on Me" and "Ball and Chain." Joplin eventually left Big Brother and formed two more bands. After having given up drugs for awhile - except for perhaps her beloved alcohol - Joplin obtained a potent batch of heroin that hadn't been cut and died of an overdose on October 4, 1970. (Other junkies died from the same load of H.) Possible biographical movie projects have been in the works for years. The movie, The Rose, starring Bette Midler, is often considered a Joplin biopic. However, Joplin was no pop singer!

7. 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 (two years to the day after Brian Jones).

8. Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, keyboardist, singer and harmonica player,was one of the founding members of the Grateful Dead, a prominent San Francisco Bay Area band. McKernan was known for his thick, weathered vocals on such tunes as "Midnight Hour" and "Death Don't Have No Mercy." McKernan once had a fling with fellow boozer Janis Joplin and sang with her at some gigs. (According to singer Grace Slick of the Jefferson Airplane, McKernan introduced Joplin to Southern Comfort.) When McKernan's health began deteriorating, he left the Grateful Dead in 1972. On March 8, 1973 Ron "Pigpen" McKernan was found dead of a stomach hemorrhage brought on by years of heavy drinking.

9. Peter Ham was a guitarist and songwriter for Badfinger, an early Seventies rock group that some called the new Beatles. Appropriately, Badfinger's first hit "Come and Get It," was written by Beatle bassist Paul McCartney. The band continued churning out cutting-edge material, seemingly making lots of money; however, nobody knew where the money was going. Distraught over financial matters, Peter Ham hanged himself on April 23, 1975. Allegedly, Ham left a suicide note naming Stan Polley, his booking agent, as the cause of the suicide. But Polley denied the existence of such a note.

10. Bassist and songwriter Gary Thain played with the Keef Hartley Band at Woodstock and later became the third bassist for British rock group Uriah Heep. Primarily a blues and jazz player, Uriah Heep was Thain's first plunge into rock. Thain also wrote some of Uriah Heep's material, notably "Chrystal Ball" and "Gary's Song." Gary Thain died of a heroin overdose on December 8, 1975.

11. Mia Zapata formed the punk rock band the Gits while attending college in Ohio. Zapata was heavily influenced by blues singers such as Bessie Smith and Billie Holiday. Joan Jett compared Zapata’s talent to that of blues legend Janis Joplin. But Zapata’s singing career didn’t get rolling until 1989 when the group relocated to Seattle, Washington, where “grunge” was slowly gaining nationwide popularity. The Gits first album was Frenching the Bull, released in 1992. Tragically, just when the Gits were finding an audience, Zapata was found dead near the Comet Tavern in Seattle. Zapata had been raped, badly beaten and strangled to death. Using DNA evidence, Zapata’s assailant was eventually apprehended, convicted and then sentenced to 36 years in prison. Mia Zapata died on July 7, 1993.

12. 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 . . . .

13. In 1993, Kristen Pfaff became the bassist for Hole, the band Courtney Love had formed before the death of husband Kurt Cobain. Pfaff played on Live Through This, the only album she recorded with Hole (certainly an ironic title for Pfaff). As many musicians have done in past decades, Pfaff began using heroin. On June 16, 1994 Kristen Pfaff died of a heroin overdose.

14. Sean Patrick McCabe was the lead singer/song writer for the hard rock band Ink and Dagger. Brought together in 1996, this Philadelphia alternative rock band used vampire shtick in their live performances, developing a large following in Philly's underground music scene. Their first album was Drive This Seven Inch Wooden Stake Through My Philadelphia Heart. Sean Patrick McCabe choked to death on his own vomit while swilling alcohol on August 28, 2000.

15. Levi Kereama was a contestant on the first season of Australian Idol in 2003, but he only made it to sixth place. Later, Levi, along with his brothers, formed the rhythm and blues group, Lethbridge, at times supporting top-rated talent such as Boyz II Men and Shaggy. Levi’s sweet voice brought to mind the crooning of Michael Jackson and Jeffrey Osborne. On October 4, 2008, Levi fell to his death from a 20-story hotel window. Authorities believe his death was a suicide, but family members say it was an accident.

There's a statistical probability that some young rockers will die at 27. They have to die sometime, right? But let's hope it's a long time - if ever - before anymore rockers are added to this tragic list.