RIP Clarinet Man. He was born in Poland, fought for America in the Pacific theater of World War II, sold thousands of vacuums as a door-to-door salesman, but for residents of and visitors to downtown Denver over the last 30 years, Adam Stawinski was known as “Clarinet Man.” He died on April 9 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s at the age of 97. Stawinski played tune after tune for passersby in his retirement, selling cassettes and CDs of his performances.
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Clarinet Man, fixture on 16th Street Mall in Denver, dies at age 97
Retiree Adam Stawinski played tunes for Denver folks on their way to Coors Field
Adam Stawinski’s clarinet was his passion. Denver’s 16th Street Mall was his stage.
While buskers and street musicians come and go on the outdoor mall, Stawinski, once described as a roaming jukebox because of his repertoire of more than a thousand songs, was a familiar fixture downtown for more than two decades, belting out tune after tune to countless passers-by.
Stawinski, known as “Clarinet Man,” died of Alzheimer’s disease April 9 in the Highline Rehabilitation and Care Community, according to his daughter, Mary. He was 97.
“He knew about 600 songs by heart,” Mary Stawinski said. “He went every day to the mall, every single day.”
Born on Nov. 5, 1918, in Poland, Adam Stawinski immigrated as a child with his family to Pittsburgh.
He served in the U.S. Army during World War II in the Pacific theater.
Stawinski worked, and retired, as a door-to-door vacuum salesman. He excelled in the profession, at one point selling more than 100 vacuums during the course of a month.
“He was good at everything he did,” his daughter said.
Stawinski picked up the clarinet as a teenager, playing in numerous bands over the years, including an Army ensemble.
He moved to Denver in the mid-1970s and began playing downtown in the mid- to late-1980s, a few years after the mall’s opening.
“That was his life, and that was his love,” his daughter said, adding that he played the clarinet “to make people happy.”
Stawinski also frequented Blake Street, which runs by Coors Field, during baseball season, often wearing a Colorado Rockies cap with the bill pointed sideways and downward.
At age 83, Stawinski told The Denver Post that he was hitting his stride.
“I’m getting better now,” he said. “I’m practicing all the time.”
A mall passer-by, who often tipped Stawinski $20 for playing, once left him $100.
Initially, Stawinski played the mall standing up, eyes closed and tapping his left foot as people streamed by. A small, handmade sign inside an open suitcase announced cassettes — and, later, CDs — of his music for sale.
Among some of Stawinski’s more popular tunes were “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.”
Later, as Stawinski aged, he played sitting, then in a motorized cart and sometimes a wheelchair.
In 2004, a trio of people swiped Stawinski’s case filled with tips. There was about $20 in it, but when the three thieves were caught a short time later by a Denver police officer, they had only $5 among them.
“For you to steal it from me, you must have needed it more than me. So keep it,” said Stawinski at the time. He refused to press charges.
About seven years ago, a thug stole Stawinski’s open suitcase. Stawinski was punched in the face by the robber.
About six years ago, Alzheimer’s kept Stawinski from appearing downtown.
“He started getting lost coming home,” Mary Stawinski recalled.
Adam Stawinski was preceded in death by his wife, Jane, in 1998. They had 10 children, six boys and four girls. Of their children, six survive.
Burial with military rites, held Friday at Fort Logan National Cemetery, was attended by family and friends. Also in attendance were several strangers who had crossed paths with Stawinski as he performed on the mall.
“He was just a good man, never hurt anybody, never even cussed,” Mary Stawinski said. “Our family thanks his fans.”
By Kieran Nicholson | The Denver Post
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822, knicholson@denverpost.com or @kierannicholson
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Kevin Jackson, Local Bassist
From Erica Brown on Fb, 4/28/16: Bummer. My dear, dear friend Kevin Jackson, bass player extraordinaire, (whom many of you knew) has transitioned unexpectedly. Thanks, Wendy / Vindicators for sending me a note. Please keep me informed as to arrangements. I was blessed to run into Kevin and his wife again at Sheri Rossi-Farris’ memorial, and it was so good to catch up!! Rest easy, my friend. See you on the other side.
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Harrison Calloway of the Muscle Shoals Horns
The Muscle Shoals Horns was an American brass section of session musicians who performed on many R&B and rock records between the late 1960s and the mid-1980s, as well as making their own recordings which included the 1976 R&B chart hit “Born To Get Down”.
The performers included Harrison Calloway Jr. (trumpet), Ronnie Eades (baritone saxophone), Harvey Thompson (saxophone, flute), and Charles Rose (trombone). Calloway, Eades and Thompson met while at Tennessee State University in Nashville, and began performing with local bands and, on one occasion, young guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Together with Rose, they began recording together at the FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals in the late 1960s, and performed on 300 albums, by musicians including Bob Dylan, B.B. King, and Elton John, often working with the musicians of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section.
The Muscle Shoals Horns also achieved commercial success in their own right, releasing three albums under their own name, with four records on the R&B singles chart in 1976-77 – “Born To Get Down (Born To Mess Around)” (#8), “Open Up Your Heart” (#47), “Bump De Bump Yo Boodie” (#63), and “Dance To The Music” (#57). They also released three albums – Born To Get Down (1976), Doin’ It To The Bone (1977), and Shine On (1983) – and were credited on the 1975 DJM album Elton John Band featuring John Lennon and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The four members reunited in 2015 after a 30-year break, with a performance to mark the release of their recordings on CD.
Harrison Calloway, seen by the other members as “the father of the group”, died in Jackson, Mississippi on April 30, 2016, aged 75, following a stroke.
http://www.wikipedia.com/muscle_shoals_horns
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Afeni Shakur, Tupac Shakur’s Mom
Afeni Shakur (born Alice Faye Williams; January 10, 1947 – May 2, 2016) was an American music businesswoman, philanthropist, political activist and Black Panther. She was the mother of the late rapper Tupac Shakur. She acted as her own criminal defense attorney after being accused of taking part in numerous bombings as a member of the Panthers.
Involvement in the music industry and philanthropy
Exactly one year following Tupac’s death, with the money made from Tupac’s posthumous albums, Afeni founded the Georgia-based Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation, which provides art programs for young people, and Amaru Entertainment, the holding company for all Tupac’s unreleased material. She has also since launched a fashion clothing line, Makaveli Branded; all proceeds go to his charity, the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation.
Injunction against Death Row Records
Shakur was reportedly in Federal Court on July 20, 2007, to file an injunction to prevent Death Row Records from selling any unreleased material from Tupac after the company failed to prove that the unreleased songs were not part of its bankruptcy settlement. She created a record label named Amaru Records to release Tupac’s unreleased recordings. Afeni Shakur won her court case against Death Row Record to receive 150 unreleased songs by her son.
Guest appearances and lectures
In addition to philanthropy work, Shakur traveled across the US, making guest appearances, lectures, and more. On February 6, 2007, she gave the Keynote Address for Vanderbilt’s Commemoration for Black History Month.
Death
On May 2, 2016, police and paramedics responded to a report of possible cardiac arrest at Shakur’s home in Sausalito, California. She was transported to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afeni_Shakur
[Editor’s note: We included Ms. Shakur’s death here because she was a mom who had to take over after her son’s death to manage his estate even though she knew little about the business of music. Please honor YOUR mom on Mother’s Day.]
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Other Notable Musicians’ Deaths…
May 2016
4: Olle Ljungström, 54, Swedish singer and guitarist; Ursula Mamlok, 93, German composer.
3: Jadranka Stojakovic, 65, Bosnian singer-songwriter, motor neuron disease.
2: Doug Raney, 59, American jazz guitarist (death announced on this date); Afeni Shakur, 69, mother of Tupac Shakur; American businesswoman and political activist (Black Panthers).
1: Jean-Marie Girault, 90, French politician, Mayor of Caen (1970–2001).
April
30: Harrison Calloway, 75, American musician and bandleader (Muscle Shoals Horns), stroke; Phil Ryan, 69, Welsh keyboardist (Man).
29: Aaron Aites, American musician and filmmaker (Until the Light Takes Us), kidney cancer; Dmytro Hnatyuk, 91, Ukrainian baritone opera singer; David Page, 55, Australian composer (Bangarra Dance Theatre).
27: Gabriele Sima, 61, Austrian opera singer.
26: Joe Siva, 61, Malaysian music producer, lung cancer.
25: Mei Baojiu, 82, Chinese Peking opera artist, bronchospasm; Wolfgang Rohde (de), 66, German musician, cancer.