Top Ten Rock and Rollers to Die Before 30

10. Sid Vicious

Date of Birth: 05/10/1957

Date of Death: 02/02/1979 Age at Death: 21

Bass player for the punk band The Sex Pistols.

The Sex Pistols were a very influential punk band from the UK. They only made one album but it put them on the map. In 1978 Sid and his girlfriend were found in a New York hotel room on the bathroom floor. The woman was dead from a single stab wound. Vicious claimed he had no memory of what happened because of the drugs he had taken. He was charged with murder and later released on bail. 10 days later he attempted suicide. After leaving the hospital he was arrested for assaulting a man and spent 55 days in Rikers Island Jail in New York. Shortly after being released he died of a Heroin overdose.

9. Janis Joplin

Date of Birth: 01/19/1943

Date of Death: 10/04/1970

Age at Death: 27

Influential female rock and roll singer.

She has inspired many female artists in the generations to come. She sang hits such as “Piece of My Heart”, and “Me and Bobby McGee.” She performed at many famous concerts including The Woodstock Music festival. Recently Rolling Stone has rated her the 28th best singer of all time. Her early death was the result of a heroin overdose.

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8. Ronnie van Zant

Date of Birth: 01/15/1948

Date of Death: 10/20/1977

Age at Death: 29

Lead singer for the band Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Lynyrd Skynyrd was a very influential and popular southern rock band. They produced hits such as “Free Bird” and “Sweet Home Alabama”, “Free Bird” is considered by some one of the greatest rock and roll songs of all time. Van Zant is the older brother of the current lead singer of Lynyrd Skynyrd. He died in a plane crash that took the lives of several other band members and seriously injured the rest. In 2000 his grave was vandalized and his coffin removed.

7. Gram Parsons

Date of Birth: 11/05/1946

Date of Death: 09/19/1973

Age at Death: 26

American singer and songwriter.