Amy Winehouse Joins the Dead at 27 Club
This past Saturday, July 23, Amy Winehouse died and was found in her apartment — at the risky age of 27. Amongst the speculation of what was really the “unexplained” cause of death, and how drugs and alcohol likely played a part, murmurs were also rampant about the “Dead at 27 Club”. This club includes a long line of artists that died at the early age of 27, and it’s a club to which Amy Winehouse now belongs. Here are eight others that she joined.
| Robert Johnson 1911 – 1938 Johnson is considered to be the founding member of the Dead at 27 Club and the circumstances around his death are truly mysterious. Though no one really knows how he died, it is widely believed that he drank from a whiskey bottle laced with strychnine, and died from poisoning. |
| Brian Jones 1942 – 1969 Robert Johnson was the founding father of the blues, and Brian Jones, the original member of the Rolling Stones, was the founding father of rock n’ roll. It’s thought that when the spotlight shined much more brightly on Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, Jones fell heavily to substance abuse; Jones ultimately left the band in 1969 and was found dead in his swimming pool one month later. |
| Jimi Hendrix 1942 – 1970 One of the most recognized of the Dead at 27 Club, Jimi Hendrix truly tore up the rock scene with his own band and his passion and gift for playing the guitar. One night in 1970 while staying at his girlfriend’s apartment, Hendrix accidentally overdosed on sleeping pills and choked on his own vomit. |
| Jim Morrison 1943 – 1971 Another one of the most famed members of the Club, Morrison was one of the biggest things on the scene during his time, after forming the classic group The Doors. One night while in Paris, it’s said that Morrison was found dead in the bathtub of his apartment. No autopsy was performed and no one from the band or their crew ever saw his body. This had led to constant rumblings that Morrison faked his own death; so that he could get out of the spotlight and return to a normal life. |
| Janis Joplin 1943 – 1970 Just starting to find her fame, Janis Joplin was recording her second album, “Pearl” when she was found dead from a heroin overdose in her hotel. “Pearl” was released shortly after her death and hit number one on the Billboard 200 chart. |
| Kristen Pfaff 1967 – 1994 The lesser-known guitarist of the group Hole, Pfaff stood alongside Courtney Love with her own substance abuse and personal problems. With so much attention on the lead singer, few people spoke about Pfaff until she was found dead in her apartment, also from a heroin overdose. |
| Kurt Cobain 1967 – 1994 Still one of the most influential musicians today, Kurt Cobain had major problems with heroin and depression, as well as a major aversion to the spotlight that followed him everywhere. It was only two months after turning 27 that Cobain ended his own misery with a single gunshot to the head. |
| D. Boon 1958 – 1985 The original member of The Minutemen, D. Boon died from neither a drug problem nor suicide. Tragically, Boon was struck by a van in 1985 which killed him. His band broke up shortly after his death. |
Categorized in: Concerts
Tags: Music