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Re: (TV) John Byrne dead at 61
"Elvis to Eminem: quantifying the price of fame through early
mortality of European and North American rock and pop stars" J
Epidemiol Community Health 2007;61:896901. doi:
10.1136/jech.2007.059915
Abstract:
Objective: This study measures survival rates of famous musicians (n =
1064) from their point of fame and compares them to matched general
populations in North America and Europe.
Design: We describe and utilise a novel actuarial survival methodology
which allows quantification of excess post-fame mortality in pop
stars.
Participants: Individuals from North America and Europe performing on
any album in the All-Time Top 1000 albums from the music genres rock,
punk, rap, R&B, electronica and new age.
Results: From 3 to 25 years post fame, both North American and
European pop stars experience significantly higher mortality (more
than 1.7 times) than demographically matched populations in the USA
and UK, respectively. After 25 years of fame, relative mortality in
European (but not North American) pop stars begins to return to
population levels. Five-year post-fame survival rates suggest
differential mortality between stars and general populations was
greater in those reaching fame before 1980.
Conclusion: Pop stars can suffer high levels of stress in environments
where alcohol and drugs are widely available, leading to
health-damaging risk behaviour. However, their behaviour can also
influence would-be stars and devoted fans. Collaborations between
health and music industries should focus on improving both pop star
health and their image as role models to wider populations.
http://jech.bmj.com/preprint/bellis.pdf
On Tue, Dec 30, 2008 at 4:43 PM, Phil Obbard <pobbard@yahoo.com> wrote:
> "Why is it though, that musicians seem to have shorter life spans? They live
> shorter than presidents for example - who quite often do not expire until
> their 90s. Am I falsely falling for for a red herring, or am I on to
> something? Can someone devise a list of well known musicians who have made
> it beyond 80? Any musical genre will do."
>
> I've thought about this, too. For starters, you've got the "too fast to live" group -- the under-30 deaths due to excess, car/plane crash, or suicide: Cobain, Holly, Hendrix, Morrison, Aaliyah, etc. That skews the data, so let's leave it aside.
>
> That leaves us with a not insubstantial number of musicians who still died long before, let's say, the age of 75 (a fair life expectancy for males -- and overwhelming we're talking about males -- in the Western world). The first issue I run into is this: My own observational bias is that I'm mostly interested in musicians from 1960 onwards, and most of the well-known ones are still under the age of 70 (being born in 1940 or later). And even then, many of the post-30-something deaths have a "too fast to live" element to them: Entwhistle, Dee Dee Ramone, Dennis Wilson, Keith Moon, Johnny Thunders, Paul Butterfield, John Phillips, Denny Doherty, etc.
>
> As I was trying to figure out where to take my thoughts in this email, I just Googled "dead pop stars" and found this analysis of a study on exactly this subject. http://sentineleffect.wordpress.com/2007/09/19/debating-the-science-of-dead-pop-stars/. (Unfortunately, the link to the original study no longer appears to active).
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Russ <russvr@gmail.com>
> To: tv@obbard.com
> Sent: Tuesday, December 30, 2008 4:11:11 PM
> Subject: Re: (TV) John Byrne dead at 61
>
> Very sad. I always liked that song and Television's version of it was a high
> point of the two times I've managed to see them.
>
> This guy, John Byrne, only lived to be 61.
> Why is it though, that musicians seem to have shorter life spans? They live
> shorter than presidents for example - who quite often do not expire until
> their 90s. Am I falsely falling for for a red herring, or am I on to
> something? Can someone devise a list of well known musicians who have made
> it beyond 80? Any musical genre will do.
>
>
>
> On Tue, Dec 30, 2008 at 1:35 PM, Phil Obbard <pobbard@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> He was the author of Television favorite "Psychotic Reaction" and a member
>> of the Count Five.
>>
>>
>> http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-passings28-2008dec28,0,3451708.story(second half)
>>
>> I feel depressed, I feel so bad
>> 'Cause you're the best girl that I ever had
>> I can't get your love, I can't get a fraction
>> Uh-oh, little girl, psychotic reaction
>>
>> (And it feels like this!)
>>
>> I feel so lonely night and day
>> I can't get your love, I must stay away
>> I need you girl, by my side
>> Uh-oh, little girl, would you like to take a ride, now
>> I can't get your love, I can't get satisfaction
>> Uh-oh, little girl, psychotic reaction
>>
>> --Phil
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