Musicians No More Trivia Quiz

Answer: Lennon

John Lennon was born in Liverpool, England in 1940 and was one half of an incredibly successful songwriting duo with Paul McCartney. As a member of the Beatles he was part of the British Invasion as the popular young band toured the United States. After the breakup of The Beatles he produced songs with Yoko Ono and wrote "Imagine", "Give Peace a Chance", and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)".

He was controversial, opinionated and active in anti-war activities and sentiments. His last solo album "Double Fantasy" won a Grammy Award for Album of the Year.

He was gunned down on December eighth, 1980 outside his Manhattan apartment.

Answer: Joplin

Janis Joplin was an American singer/songwriter who was born in Texas in 1943. She appeared at the Monterey Pop Festival as the singer of the band Big Brother and the Holding Company. She had a number one hit with a cover of the song "Me and Bobby McGee".

Other popular songs include "Try", "Piece Of My Heart" and "Cry Baby". Joplin also appeared at the Woodstock festival and the Festival Express. In 1970 at the age of twenty-seven she died of a drug overdose and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.

Answer: Cobain

Kurt Cobain was born in Aberdeen, Washington in 1967. In 1987 he formed the band Nirvana which went on to become a big influence in the grunge scene. The grunge scene was known for loud angst filled music and a fashion sense and cultural outlook built on second hand clothing and being anti-establishment. Nirvana released three studio albums as well as the excellent "MTV Unplugged in New York". Cobain wrote "Smells Like Teen Spirit", "All Apologies", and "About A Girl" amongst many others. Cobain was an excellent songwriter who struggled with drug addiction and depression.

He also struggled with the fame that came with being in Nirvana. In April 1994 Cobain died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

Answer: Prince

Born Prince Rogers Nelson in 1957, he was a singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He released thirty-nine albums during his life and wrote multiple songs for other people. He wrote "Manic Monday" which the Bangles recorded, "Nothing Compares 2 U" which Sinead O'Connor recorded and "Sugar Walls" for Sheena Easton.

He won multiple awards, including an Academy Award for the song "Purple Rain", Grammy Awards, American Music Awards, Golden Globe, Brit Awards, Billboard Music Awards and BET Awards.

Some of the names he went by include The Artist Formerly Known as Prince and the Artist. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. One of my favorite online videos that I have watched multiple times is when George Harrison was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and multiple musicians are onstage performing "While My Guitar Gently Weeps".

When Prince does his solo in that song, it's like there is no other guitar player on stage with him. Prince passed away in 2016.

Answer: Downie

Gord Downie was born in Ontario, Canada in 1964 and was the frontman of The Tragically Hip from 1984 to 2017. The Hip, as the band is known to fans, won sixteen Juno Awards and was the best selling band in Canada between 1996 and 2016. Downie was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer in 2015 and the band decided to go on a final tour, performing all of their biggest hits and most popular and well loved songs to sold out, emotional crowds.

The final stop on their tour was a televised live concert in Kingston, Ontario, the hometown of the band. Downie also released seven solo albums including "Introduce Yourself" which was released ten days after his death.

He was mourned throughout Canada and many rock radio stations across Canada skipped their regular programming for all Hip music following the news of his death.

Answer: Valens

Valens was born in California in 1941 and was just seventeen years old when he died in a plane crash in 1959. Two of his biggest hits include "La Bamba" and "Donna". "La Bamba" sold over one million copies and he became so popular that in order to continue with his music career, he dropped out of high school. On the day the music died, Valens, Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper all boarded a plane, after a show, that crashed in Iowa, killing all three of them and the pilot.

In 2001 Valens was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Answer: Chapin

Harry Chapin was born in New York City in 1942. He didn't begin focusing on music until 1971. Between 1972 and his death in 1981, he released eleven albums. He is a Grammy Hall of Fame inductee and has sold over sixteen million records worldwide. One of his biggest and most well known songs is "Cat's in the Cradle" which was his only number one song (number one on the Billboard Hot 100) and was nominated for a Grammy award. Chapin worked tirelessly to bring attention to and try to end hunger.

He was pivotal in the creation of the Presidential Commission on World Hunger in 1977.

After his death, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his humanitarian efforts.

Answer: Marley

Bob Marley was born in Jamaica in 1945. He started his music career in 1963 with his band the Wailers. He is credited with bringing reggae music to international audiences. The song "One Love/People Get Ready" was released as a single from their debut album which didn't chart in the United States but has gone on to become one of his most well known songs.

In 1977 he was diagnosed with cancer and passed away from the disease in 1981. The best of album called "Legend" was released after his death and went on to become the best selling reggae album of all time. Marley was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

Answer: Elliot

Mama Cass Elliot was born in Maryland in 1941. She was with the Mamas and the Papas from 1965 to 1968 and during that time, the group released five studio albums and seventeen singles. Some of their memorable songs include "California Dreamin'" and "Monday, Monday".

After the band broke up, Mama Cass went on to have a solo career that included five solo albums. In April 1974 she collapsed at a television studio but stated that it was likely due to exhaustion. In July 1974 after having appeared at the Palladium for a two-week stint, she died in her sleep in London, England.

The official cause of death was heart failure, not from choking on a ham sandwich. Apparently one of the first doctors who saw her body erroneously stated that he thought a piece of sandwich was stuck in her windpipe but this was not true. An autopsy showed no food in her windpipe and pointed to heart failure.

Answer: Denver

John Denver was born in New Mexico in 1943. He began his music career in the 1960s and during his career released approximately three hundred songs. He primarily played an acoustic guitar but had crossover hits, appealing to country, pop and adult contemporary fans.

His song "Take Me Home, Country Roads" reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100, has been covered a number of times and is one of his most well known songs. Denver also acted on television and in movies. He was in the movie "Oh God!" with George Burns.

He enjoyed flying and died while flying, from a single plane accident in 1997.