Composer, musician, video artist, teacher, and writer Tony Conrad.

Conrad reportedly introduced Cale and Reed to a book called The Velvet Underground, which is how they got the band’s name.

http://pitchfork.com/news/64699-tony-conrad-has-died/

The last surviving resident of St Kilda, a remote Scottish archipelago which was evacuated in 1930, has died.
Rachel Johnson was born on the main island of Hirta in July 1922 and was eight years old when she, her family and other islanders left the isle.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-35985243

Life became unsustainable there and all the islanders were removed to the mainland.

Now there is a military radar station with temporary staff, Scottish National Trust volunteers and visiting tourists, but none of them are permanent.

Knew the name, can’t say I could name one of his songs but then he doesn’t seem to have been well known this side of the pond. Then again I recall being told that C&W was the national folk music of America – could you name any British folk musicians, let alone legends?

Anyway, here is someone who few of you will have heard of…

Indonesian pop star Irma Bule bitten by cobra on stage, continues for 45 minutes before fatal collapse

Irma Bule, an Indonesian pop singer known for performing with live snakes, has died after a King Cobra attacked her during a gig this week.
Bule reportedly stood on the snake’s tail, causing it to bite her on the thigh during a show at Karrawang, West Java. Remarkably, she continued playing for 45 minutes before falling ill.
An eye-witness, Ferlando Octavion Auzur, said Bule refused an offer of antidote after the bite. But 45 minutes later, she collapsed on stage vomiting and suffering seizures and was taken to hospital, where she died. She was 29.
A handler attempts to detach a king cobra snake after it bit singer Irma Bule. She later died.
A handler attempts to detach a king cobra snake after it bit singer Irma Bule. She later died. Photo: YouTube
According to National Geographic, the venom from a single King Cobra bite “is enough to kill 20 people, or even an elephant. King cobras are shy and will avoid humans whenever possible, but they are fiercely aggressive when cornered.”
Bule was a folk-pop singer, who regularly performed with large de-fanged snakes. Some reports of the incident said Bule did not realise she had suffered a life-threatening bite.

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/indonesian-pop-star-irma-bule-bitten-by-cobra-on-stage-continues-for-45-minutes-before-fatal-collapse-20160408-go1wqi.html

I’m guessing most people on this side of the Atlantic are unfamiliar with US aviation magazines, unless they have access to them via specialist vendors.
My memory of them is not good but what I do recall was that I was unimpressed with their coverage of anything not American, although this might be due to only searching them out a few times. This might not be the case over the course of twelve months.

MERLE HAGGARD
DEAD
On 79th Birthday

http://www.tmz.com/2016/04/06/merle-haggard-dead/

He was something in country and western music, apparently.

Dennis Davis, drummer, best known for his work with David Bowie, has passed away.

Davis’s drumming can be heard on seven Bowie albums released between 1975 and 1980: ‘Young Americans’, ‘Station To Station’, ‘Low’, ‘Heroes’, ‘Stage’, ‘Lodger’ and Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)’.

http://www.nme.com/news/david-bowie/92812