Louder: Bill Withers, Ellis Marsalis, Adam Schlesinger

April 3, 2020

By Caryn Ganz

Pop Music Editor

There are 10 obituaries in this Louder: Bill Withers, the soul singer and songwriter who established himself as a legend in a 14-year recording career; Ellis Marsalis, the pianist and patriarch of the influential jazz family; Adam Schlesinger, the Fountains of Wayne musician who brought his power-pop gifts to TV, the big screen and the stage.

The jazz guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, the trumpeter Wallace Roney, the country artist Jan Howard, the Nashville star Joe Diffie, the “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll” co-writer Alan Merrill, the Dizzy Gillespie collaborator Mike Longo, the genre-transcending percussionist Ray Mantilla.

Many of the above died of the coronavirus, which continues to remake our world. Brett Sokol looked at how community radio stations across the U.S. are hanging on and trying to retain their eccentricity. Melena Ryzik and Nancy Coleman reported on the rapper 6ix9ine’s release from prison, and how other inmates are petitioning for the same.

And we listened to new music: from Nine Inch Nails, the Weeknd and Waxahatchee. If you need a moment of inspiration, start with Mavis Staples. And add Hayley Williams’s “Over Yet” to your weekend playlist, too. The 51-second mark is a moment of much needed bliss.

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Chester Higgins Archives

Bill Withers, Who Sang ‘Lean on Me’ and ‘Ain’t No Sunshine,’ Dies at 81

A three-time Grammy Award winner, he had a string of much-covered hits in the 1970s but had not released an album since 1985.

By Neil Genzlinger

Chad Batka for The New York Times

Those We’ve Lost

Ellis Marsalis, Jazz Pianist and Music Family Patriarch, Dies at 85

The father of Wynton and Branford Marsalis and a prominent performer and educator, he succumbed to complications of the coronavirus.

By Giovanni Russonello and Michael Levenson

those we’ve lost

Adam Schlesinger, Songwriter for Rock, Film and the Stage, Dies at 52

He made suburban characters shine in Fountains of Wayne songs and brought pop-rock perfection to the film “That Thing You Do!” He died of coronavirus complications.

By Ben Sisario

Adam Schlesinger’s 30 Essential Songs

Hear tracks from Fountains of Wayne, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” and more — plus a tune written about the power-pop dynamo, who died of the coronavirus at 52.

By Rob Tannenbaum

NEW MUSIC

the playlist

Mavis Staples’s Soulful Solidarity, and 10 More New Songs

Hear tracks by Moses Sumney, Troye Sivan, Sonic Boom and others.

By Jon Pareles, Jon Caramanica and Giovanni Russonello

album review

Nine Inch Nails Faces the Pandemic With Hope, Despair and Noise

On a pair of free albums, “Ghosts V: Together” and “Ghosts VI: Locusts,” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s suspenseful sounds feel very much of the moment.

By Jon Pareles

critic’s pick

The Weeknd’s Gleamy, Seamy Pop Returns

On “After Hours,” the singer’s border-crossing big-tent ambitions reach new heights.

By Jon Caramanica

critic’s pick

Waxahatchee’s Katie Crutchfield Is Out of the Storm, Cleareyed

The 31-year-old singer and songwriter’s new album, “Saint Cloud,” has a cleaner sound and some of her most evocative lyrics.

By Lindsay Zoladz

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CORONAVIRUS

As Tekashi69 Is Released, Inmates Fearing Coronavirus Ask, ‘Why Not Me?’

The rapper will serve the final four months of his two-year term in home confinement. High-profile inmates like Bill Cosby and R. Kelly are arguing for home confinement too, so far without success.

By Melena Ryzik and Nancy Coleman

Community Radio Fights to Stay Live (and Weird) Despite Coronavirus

Local stations have cut down on D.J.s coming to the studio, but playlists and personalities are holding strong as small stations get a chance to build bigger audiences.

By Brett Sokol

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Marie’s Is Closed, but Its ‘Dominatrix’ Pianist Still Takes Requests

With a piano and a camera, Franca Vercelloni of Marie’s Crisis Cafe continues to play for the bar’s show-tune singalongs on social media.

By Bob Morris

critic’s notebook

With Stars at Home, a Coronavirus Pop Benefit Scales Down

Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey, Billie Eilish, Camila Cabello and Sam Smith performed remotely to raise money for organizations helping with Covid-19 relief.

By Jon Pareles

OBITUARIES

those we’ve lost

Bucky Pizzarelli, Master of the Jazz Guitar, Is Dead at 94

He became a mainstay of the New York jazz scene, often performing with his celebrated son John. He died of the coronavirus.

By Peter Keepnews

those we’ve lost

Wallace Roney, Jazz Trumpet Virtuoso, Is Dead at 59

Initially dismissed by some as a Miles Davis imitator, Mr. Roney, who has died of coronavirus complications, emerged as a major musician in his own right.

By Giovanni Russonello

Jan Howard, Singer and Writer of Country Hits, Dies at 91

A female star in Nashville when there weren’t many others, she found success as Bill Anderson’s duet partner and as a solo artist singing about the heartache she knew all too well.

By Bill Friskics-Warren

those we’ve lost

Joe Diffie, Grammy-Winning Country Music Star, Dies at 61

He was known for his ballads and honky-tonk singles, like “Home” and “Pickup Man.” On Friday, he announced that he had tested positive for the coronavirus.

By Jon Caramanica

those we’ve lost

Alan Merrill, a Songwriter of ‘I Love Rock ’n’ Roll,’ Dies

The musician, who died of the coronavirus, had an early rock career in Japan before helping write the song that became Joan Jett’s breakthrough hit.

By Ben Sisario

those we’ve lost

Mike Longo, Jazz Pianist, Composer and Educator, Dies at 83

Best known for his long association with Dizzy Gillespie, Mr. Longo, who died of the coronavirus, also led a big band and promoted the work of other musicians.

By Steve Smith

Ray Mantilla, Percussionist Who Transcended Genres, Dies at 85

He was adept at a range of instruments, particularly the congas and timbales, and he could make himself at home in almost any ensemble.

By Giovanni Russonello

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Taylor Jewell/Invision, via Associated Press

My Ten

Kathy Valentine of the Go-Go’s Would Like to Talk to You About Memes

The musician’s list of cultural must-haves includes her collection of kitsch, reruns of “The Office” and early punk and hip-hop photographs.

By Elisabeth Vincentelli

After 94 Years, the Song Ends for the Turtle Bay Music School

The closing of the Manhattan institution, born in the days of Gershwin, after an ill-fated effort to relocate illustrates the struggle for small nonprofits.

By James Barron

the charts

The Weeknd’s ‘After Hours’ Earns the Year’s Biggest Debut Week

The album had 221 million streams and sold 275,000 copies via a variety of bundles with merchandise and tickets to a tour that may have to be postponed.

By Ben Sisario