RIP

Chuck Berry has died aged 90 at his home in Missouri.  Chuck Berry was one of the very last of rock and roll’s great pioneers. His career lasted more than 70 years.  With his early hits, he helped transform mid-century Rythym and Blues into the rock and roll sound we recognise today. Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry was born into a middle-class African-American family in St. Louis, Berry had an interest in music from an early age and gave his first public performance at Sumner High School. While still a high school student he was convicted of armed robbery and was sent to a reformatory, where he was held from 1944 to 1947. After his release, Berry settled into married life and worked at an automobile assembly plant. By early 1953, influenced by the guitar riffs and showmanship techniques of the blues musician T-Bone Walker, Berry began performing with the Johnnie Johnson Trio. His break came when he travelled to Chicago in May 1955 and met Muddy Waters, who suggested he contact Leonard Chess, of Chess Records. His hits included ‘Johnny B Goode’, ‘Roll Over Beethoven’ and the million-selling ‘Maybellene’. In 1986, Berry was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Keith Richards. He was cited for having "laid the groundwork for not only a rock and roll sound but a rock and roll stance".

Former England and Aston Villa defender Ugo Ehiogu has died at the age of 44 after suffering a cardiac arrest at Tottenham's training centre on Thursday. Ugo was also a backer of the record label Dirty Hit wich brought the world Wolf Alice and the 1975. He married his wife, Gemma, in 2005. He had two children, his son Obi Jackson and daughter Jodie.

Producer and promoter Barry Marshall-Everitt has passed away after a long fight with cancer. He leaves behind his much loved wife Bex Marshall , the British blues musician and songwriter, and three children. He was 69. 

American mastering engineer Tom Coyne, who worked on recordings by Adele, Taylor Swift, Sam Smith, Kool & The Gang and many more, has passed away.

Joseph Rascoff, the co-founder of Rascoff Zysblat Organization (RZO) and business manager to The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Paul Simon, U2, Sting, Shania Twain and David Byrne, has passed away aged 71. The news was announced by long-time business partner Bill Zysblat, with whom Rascoff founded RZO in 1987. He died “surrounded by family”.

Robert “P-Nut” Johnson has died. Johnson, whose voice drove forward Bootsy’s Rubber Band and later Parliament-Funkadelic, had been ill for some time. Johnson contributed to many classic releases such as 'Motor Booty Affair' and 'Gloryhallastoopid' both vocally and occasionally in production. He most recently participated in the surprisingly popular 2014 Funkadelic release, 'First Ya Gotta Shake The Gate'. "An extremely talented singer who brought many smiles to the funk nation".

The founder of the Roland electronic musical instrument company, Ikutaro Kakehashi, has died, aged 87. Under his direction, the company had a massive influence on electronic music through equipment such as the TR-808 drum machine and TB-303 bass synthesiser. Kakehashi was also the first person to propose the standardisation of protocols between electronic instruments, which became MIDI.

British Spotify executive Chris Bevington has been named as one of four people killed as a result of a terrorist attack in Stockholm. Bevington, 41, had worked at Spotify for the past five years, most recently serving as its Director of Global Partnerships/Business Development. The father-of-two, who previously worked at Warner Music Group, was based in the Swedish capital. Spotify's Daniel Ek said "There are no words for how missed he will be or for how sad we all are to have lost him like this". 

Radio 2 presenter Brian Matthew has died, aged 88, following a period of ill-health that brought to an end to his long career with the BBC station earlier this year. In a statement, Radio 2 head Lewis Carnie said: "Brian was one of this country's most popular and best-loved presenters, delighting millions of listeners with his memories and favourite tunes on 'Sounds Of The 60s' for 27 years. On behalf of everyone at Radio 2, we send love and our best wishes to his family at this difficult time".

Guitarist John Warren Geils Jr of The J. Geils Band has died aged 71.  The musician and founder of the band was found dead at his home in Groton, Massachusetts on Tuesday April 11th. The J. Geils Band had a number of hits across the 1980s, including 'Centerfold', 'Love Stinks' and 'Freeze-Frame'. His former bandmate Peter Wolf paid tribute on Facebook, writing: "Thinking of all the times we kicked it high and rocked down the house! R.I.P Jay Geils."