i vote hendrix, elvis and lennon were waning...morrison never reached the heights that hendrix did... electric ladyland... and the gods made love.. [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdXZ2LoPtYA]YouTube - Jimi Hendrix "And The Gods Made Love" studio outtake[/ame]
none of the above. they were all a bunch of drug addicts and drunks who helped ruin the lives of millions of adolescent children. If anyone other than a musician did what those guys did, you'd piss on their graves.
No Buddy Holly? I would have to say based on your choices that Lennon was. I will also say that while I think his politics sucked, his music was good. The other three were tragedies of their own making. I liked Elvis the best of them all, and he was, at the time, the most popular of any of them. Hank Williams, Patsy Cline and Jim Reeves were as big a tragedy as any of those you have listed.
I agree with Patsy and Jim Reeves. Personally Bon Scott and Otis are mine, followed closely by Sam Cooke..Of those mentioned, probably Lennon......
The Day The Music Died Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, Feb. 3. 1959 [YOUTUBE]S6uEjifqTaI[/YOUTUBE]
In terms of a brilliant career of a man who was adding to music, I'd have to say that Hendrix's death was the greatest loss to the genre. Had he continued I expect he'd have migrated into Jazz, fusing jazz and electtric rock guitar. Now he'd have lost market share, because Rock was already rejecting him, but musically, I think he was just starting to mature into a serious musician.
Lennon was truly a tragedy... not something he brought upon himself.. Hendrix, Morrison (as much as I love the Doors), Elvis, Janis, etc all brought it upon themselves