Top 5 - Musicians Who Have Choked to Death On Their Own Vomit

Thought it was time to revisit this post which has become a bit of an annual tradition. Jimi Hendrix headlines a list of musicians who choked to death on their own vomit.

1. Jimi Hendrix - guitar god
2. Bonn Scott - original lead singer for AC/DC
3. John Bohnam - drummer Led Zepplin
4. Tommy Dorsey - bandleader and brother of Jimmy Dorsey
5. Mamma Cass - rock myth has her choking on a ham sandwich which technically isn't vomit but since she really died of a heart attack anyway - I thought I'd toss her in at #5 just to round off the list.

Even though everyone knows how Bonn Scott died - his death certificate actually says "death by misadventure". Maybe that's because it was unclear if he choked on his own vomit. You can't dust for vomit you know.

PS - My goal in life is now to have "death by misadventure" be my official cause of death. 

PPS - If it was just "musicians who have choked to death" Michael Hutchence from INXS would have been very high on the list. (Too soon?)

Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin reunited last night for a concert and reports are that they were great. Of course it was impossible for all the original band members to reunite - with John Bonham dead and all - but they did the next best thing with Bonham's son Jason manning the drums. This was predicted almost 2-years to the very day in this very space:

Chas [West] probably best known as the lead singer of the band Bonham. This is the band that was formed by Jason Bonham, the son of Led Zeppelin drummer and rock legend John Bonham. Like many rock legends - John Bonham died way too young.

When you sit next to a rock star you talk about rock music. We spoke about every subject that I could think of. I asked him how he got the gig with Bonham - he said it was simple, "I was the only one who could keep up with Jason when he was drinking." I asked if Led Zeppelin was ever getting back together with Jason Bonham taking his dad's spot in the band. Chas told me that they came close but this was back when Bonham was just starting out and Jason was seriously partying. Robert Plant was afraid that Jason was going down the same path to an early death as his dad and Plant wanted nothing to do with contributing to another tragedy. Now that Jason Bonham is clean and sober - the two concerns are tarnishing the bands legacy as the greatest rock band in history and Robert Plant's concern about hitting some of those high notes in some of the songs. Chas wouldn't rule out the band getting back together but if it happened he said it would be done the "English way" - with very little forewarning or publicity.