Jimi Hendrix, Brain Jones, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and Kurt Cobain. I’m sure most people reading this would have heard of all of these famous musicians. Gifted, innovative, all have achieved legendary status in the world of music. Hendrix of course a remarkably talented electric guitarist; Brian Jones, founder of the group The Rolling Stones; Janis Joplin, a famous singer song writer in her own right and a big part of the sixties movement; Jim Morrison, leading man of the trippy Doors and of course Kurt Cobain, lead singer of the band Nirvana.
Ever heard of the expression “live fast die young”? Well, these certainly did that. In fact, none of them made it to their thirtieth birthday. So, what is the link between these musicians? Does the name twenty-seven mean anything to you? These people are in a special private members club known as The Twenty-Seven Club. The criteria for entry? They all died at this tender age, some under mysterious circumstances. These artists were at the peak of their creativity, had gained superstar status and following, yet never lived to see twenty-eight. In fact, further investigation into this club reveals that many other musicians, most notably rock stars, have indeed passed away at this age significantly more than any other.
The Twenty-Seven Club centres mainly around the five musicians I have mentioned due to their influence in popular music. Let’s take a look at each one.
Jimi Hendrix was born in Seattle, November twenty-seventh, 1942. Jimi rose through the ranks as a guitarist joining various bands and standing out as a player due to his flash style and being able to play left hand with a right-hand guitar. Playing as backing support to numerous blues and R&B artists of the day, an eventual meeting with an English manager bought him to the UK whereby The Jimi Hendrix Experience was formed. From here, tracks such as Purple Haze and Hey Joe propelled him into the spotlight further, resulting in a memorable performance at the Woodstock Festival, considered by many to be a pivotal moment in rock and roll history watched by millions of people. Back in London one night, his death never full explained (supposedly caused by a mix of sleeping pills and red wine) has been much debated today. He was twenty-seven years old…
Brian Jones was born in England, February twenty-eighth, 1942. He was a multi gifted instrumentalist and known for using non-traditional instruments such as the sitar and marimba. After receiving an acoustic guitar for his seventeenth birthday, he started playing blues and jazz. Brian then decided to take his instruments to London where he became friends with other musicians in the scene which prompted an ad in a local paper for a band. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards applied culminating in one of the most well-known bands in history, The Rolling Stones. Playing the harmonica and guitar in all the early recordings as well as taking charge of gigs and promotion, an eventual rift within the band caused an imminent departure. Shortly after, on the night of the second of July 1969, he was discovered motionless at the bottom of his swimming pool, again a much-debated topic as to the cause. He was twenty-seven years old…
Janis Joplin was born in Texas, January nineteenth, 1943. She first started singing in her local choir. Thinking of herself as a bit of a misfit she departed Texas to San Francisco where she became a part of the Height Ashbury hippy scene. A pioneer of standing up to a predominantly male scene, she gained much respect. Also known for her use of drugs and alcohol (namely Southern Comfort) she continued to gain following through her song writing lyrics and blues tinged voice. She performed both with bands and as solo. Time Magazine called her “the most powerful voice to emerge from the white rock movement”. Unfortunately drink and drugs reared their ugly head and whilst recording a new album she failed to show for a recording session. She was found dead on the floor after an overdose from heroin. She was twenty-seven years old…
Jim Morrison was born in Florida, December eighth, 1943. Graduating in literature and theatre arts, he first gained recognition as a poet and had an unusually high IQ to go with it. After graduation, he lived a bohemian lifestyle in Venice beach LA where he met his fellow band members whom would go to form The Doors. Taking a more psychedelic take on blues and rock, they quickly gained a fan base with songs such as Light my Fire and Break on Through to the Other Side with Morrison’s dark, haunting, but emotionally charged lyrics and voice. They became one of the biggest bands in the world and Jim became something of an icon due to his stage presence, demeanour and reputation as a serial womaniser. Jim also branched out into the world of poetry and cinema, he also managed to publish books and produce films. After a while, Jim left for Paris. One night after a supposed night of drinking, he fell asleep in the bath and never woke up. The verdict was a heroin overdose but there are many conspiracies including fake death. He was twenty-seven years old. His companion also died at the age of twenty-seven…
Lastly and more recently is Kurt Cobain. Kurt was born on the twenty seventh of February 1967 in Washington. His family had a musical background. He began singing, song writing and showing a heavy interest in art by the age of four. Over the years he developed his art into sculptures and paintings whilst listening to bands such as REM, Led Zeppelin and ACDC. For his fourteenth birthday, he received a guitar and began playing around his home town. Whilst practicing at a local studio he met a fellow musician with similar tastes and they went on to form the band Nirvana. The band got off to a slow start but eventually went on to sell over twenty-five million records and catapulting a genre known as grunge into the mainstream. Kurt continued to immerse himself in artistic projects and song writing however he was prone to alcoholic and solvent abuse, hence he became addicted. Following a first initial suicide attempt, he was found dead at his home with a gun and suicide note. He was twenty-seven years old…
So, these five musicians make the bulk of The Twenty-Seven Club. There are websites and books dedicated to this club all over the world. I think you would agree it does sound strange that these talented, creative people who accomplished so much in their short life should all die so young. There are many more musicians less mainstream who have made it to the club, in fact there are more that have passed away at this age than any other. While no one can argue the role of drink, drugs and rock & roll lifestyle, it does seem slightly odd that they should all be of frighteningly similar age.
I did read somewhere that the number twenty-seven can be signified as two plus seven equals nine, where nine takes the meaning complete or the length of human gestation. Another way of looking at it could be that by that age, they might had lived a full life equalling someone of a much greater life experience. So perhaps there is an ultimate price to pay for success. There is of course the pressure of continued success, living up to the hype and being constantly in the public eye. This for some can be too for overwhelming if they are not in the right mind-set. Maybe their time was right, they’d reached their full potential and the powers that be decided they would be better off on a higher plane. So maybe there is something we can all learn from this particular club. A life lesson teaching us that perhaps it would be better to let our hopes, dreams and ambitions come in to fruition over time, thus if and when we do attain them, we will be in a more mature and stable condition to handle them
Pete Rann
Toastmasters winning speech delivered circa 2011
© 2014 Pete Rann