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The Myth and the Coincidence in the 27 Club Everybody Was Young

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The Myth and the Coincidence in the 27 Club Everybody Was Young 1 Universidad de Guanajuato CAADI Valenciana Materia: inglés Alumno: Benjamín Pacheco López Semestre: 4º Carrera: Letras Españolas The myth and the coincidence in The 27 Club Everybody was young, passionate and determined to conquer the world… or maybe they were just a group of persons who coincidintly died at an early age: The 27 Club. Today, this label reffers a group of virtuos musicians who died at the same age and contributed to the industry of music in different levels, but also involves people with complicated lives who felt depressed and misunderstood so many times. According to Charles R. Cross, biographer of several rockstars, this phenomenon is more a “name for a grouping of obituaries”1 than a properly club because it refers to a group of famous musicians who died at 27 years old. In fact, from 1908 to 2011 there are fourty five “club members”2, between singers, guitarists and pianists, but the list tends to change from one resercher to another. However, the most representative are: Robert Johnson, Brian Jones, Jimmy Hendrix, Janis Joplin, James Morrison, Kurt Cobain, and recently, Amy Winehouse. For the record, even Mexican banda singer Valentín Elizalde is included but this is questionable, according to the “requiriments” to enter to the list. Back to Cross, “It wasn`t until Cobain took his own life in 1994 that the idea of the 27 Club arrive in the popular zeitgeist”3. The journalist explains that when Cobain committed suicide, the press quoted out of context a declaration of his mother, Wendy Fradenburg Cobain O´connor, which was related to an idea of the “Forever 27 Club” or the “Curse of 27”, as the club is also known. The first quote was carried worldwide by The Associated Press (AP): “Now he´s gone and joined in that stupid club. I told him not to join that stupid club”4, but the full quote reveals a mother more concerned about his only son: “I´ll never hold him again. I don´t know what to do. I 1 Charles R. Cross, “Only the good die Young”, http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/P-I-s-Writer-in- Residence-Charles-R-Cross-1229072.php, p.1 [Consulted in 22 April 2012]. 2 Simon Phillips, “The 27 Club. Infographic”, http://simonphillips.com.au/the-27-club, [Consulted in 22 April 2012]. 3 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit., p.1. 4 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit, p.1. 1 2 don´t know where to go”5, according to Aberdeen Daily World. This crucial words “stupid club”, apparently had an impact in popular culture and remains as a topic that appears from time to time when a rockstar dies. Besides, the development of Internet had an impact on the design of blogs, specialized websites and thousands of articles in magazines; likewise the publication of books, documentaries and even movies related to the “Curse of 27”, spreads the idea that there is something special about this celebrities. This paper does not attempt to present all the information related to The 27 Club. However this is a simple approach to the lives of the main “members” of the club and some specialized opinions about it. I hope that the readers can find further information about this interesting club. Maybe the people died but their legacy will “live” forever. Some opinions: biological and mathematical analysis In recent years, the scientists have been interested in The 27 Club. Cross refers that is not surprising the inordinate number of rock musicians who have died in their twenties considering that lifestyle factors, including drug and alcohol abuse, played a role in most of these deaths. He said that “scientists have suggested that we are captivated with analyzing death because such investigations make us better able to stave it off”6. This is the reason why the people scan the obituaries and that to look at the ages of the deceased, an action that appears to be universal and across cultures. The journalist ads: “It may come from a need for assurance that most deaths fall within a normal range… Early death is almost expected for those who are famous perhaps as a precautionary tale of excess and as a further warning”7. In contrast, Cross quotes the intent of the Astrological Lodge of London for explaining the statistical spike of the 27 Club. The members of this astrological group “maintain that it is all about the stars: Saturn returns in astrological terms every 28 years marking a life transition. Saturn´s return marks the end of youth and the 5 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit, p.1. 6 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit., p.3. 7 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit., p.3. 2 3 beginning of maturity. However, there is no statistical increase of death at 27 among the general population, just famous musicians” 8, the author seems to say ironically. In the other hand, Adrian Barnett, a scientist from Queensland University of Technology in Australia, concludes that the age is unlikely to have been the cause of the demise of these artists. According to a research to test the “27 club hypothesis”, Barnett compared the mortality of famous musicians with that of the UK population. He included 1046 musicians (solo artists and band members of different musical genre) who had a number one album in the UK charts between 1956 and 2007. During this period 71 of the musicians died, which represents the 7 % of the sample. For the test, Barnett and his colleagues “used mathematical analysis to determine the significance of age 27. They found no peak in the risk of death at this age, however musicians in their 20’s and 30’s were two to three times more likely to die prematurely than the general UK population”. One of the evidences founded in this research is that there where no deaths in this age group in the late 1980’s. Barnett “speculates that this could be due to better treatments for heroin overdose, or the change in the music scene from the hard rock in the 1970’s to the pop dominated in the 1980s”9. At the end of the research, Barnett said that “the 27 club is based on myth, but warned that musicians have a generally increased risk of dying throughout their 20’s and 30’s (…) this finding should be of international concern, as musicians contribute greatly to population´s quality of life, so there is immense value in keeping them alive (and working) as long as possible”10. In general, this information can help us to understand that apparently there is no connection between the age and pre-natural death in an artist. In fact, Cross reminded us that several musicians were very superstitious about death. For example, Jimmy Hendrix believed in astrological designs. According to the article, the guitarist “predicted his own accidental death at 27. Hendrix, who was born in Harborview Hospital on Nov. 27, suggested in several conversations that he would die at 27. Just days before his death, he told one interviewer: I´m not sure I will live to be 28 years 8 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit., p.3. 9 Adrian Barnett, “Is 27 really a dangerous age for famous musicians? A retrospective cohort study”, http://www.bmj.com/press-releases/2011/12/20/27-really-dangerous-age-famous-musicians- retrospective-cohort-study [Consulted in 23 April 2012]. 10 Adrian Barnett, Op. Cit., [Consulted in 23 April 2012]. 3 4 old”11. Also, in a Tarot session, when the “Death” card was drawn, says Cross, “Hendrix acted as if he had been given a diagnosis of cancer (and) began to act like a condemned man”12. In another example, Brian Jones was apparently very pessimist about his life. It is reported that he said in an early stage of his career that “he did not believe he would live beyond the age of twenty-seven”13; Kurt Cobain also was known for his studies about the legendary lifestyle of rockstars of the seventies. He was under the mistake impression that these artists had all taken their own lives: “I want to be rich and famous and kill myself like Jimmy Hendrix”14 he told a friend in high school years, and even he liked to watch a video that “showed a Pennsylvania state official shooting himself in the head on live television”15, according to Cross. The other artists were not far away from issues related to death: Jim Morrison sang “this is the end, my friend/The end of nights we tried to die”16; Janis Joplin felt “All caught up in a landslide, bad luck/ pressing in from all sides/ Just got knocked off of my easy ride/ Buried alive in the blues”17; and Amy Winehouse… just simply refuse to go to “rehab” although she knew that she will fall in drugs again. The musical contributions The anecdotes referenced above help us to explain some parts of the behavior of the artists. Although the theme is vast, I will focus in the musical contributions of these great performers. At the end, these are the main reasons and motivations of The 27 Club. Robert Johnson: the “seed” Although some researchers place the Brazilian composer, pianist and conductor Alexander Levy as the first member of The 27 Club, the crown seems to belong to 11 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit., p.3. 12 Charles R. Cross, Op. Cit., p.3. 13 John Etherington, “The Club of 27. Brian Jones”, http://www.clubof27.com/jones.html, [Consulted in 23 April 2012].
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