R.I.P. Celebrities(Non Wrestlers or Sports related) 2023

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Bobby Osborne, mandolinist who challenged bluegrass traditions and embraced country and rock influences, dies at 91

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Burt Bacharach, the famed pop songwriter who wrote “I Say a Little Prayer” and several other songs, has died at age 94.

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BGT star Paula Moulton, who was left wheelchair bound after contracting MRSA, dies 'suddenly' aged 52

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A DJ died at Glastonbury festival after he suffered a medical episode at 4am on Sunday morning.

Jason Winder, 48, died in his tent at one of the Worthy Farm campsites in Somerset after emergency services were called to the scene but were unable to revive him.

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Harry Markowitz, Father of Modern Portfolio Theory, Dies at 95

Shared 1990 Nobel Prize in Economics for investment analysis
He ‘dramatically changed the way nearly all wealth is managed’

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Lithium-ion battery pioneer John Goodenough dies at 100

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'Little Miss Sunshine' And 'Catch-22' Star Alan Arkin Dies At 89

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RIP Alan.

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Homer Hogues, among the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen, dies at 96

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R.C. Harris passes

Banjo and guitar player, Roby Carter Harris, lovingly known as R.C. by his friends, family, and the wider bluegrass community, passed away on Wednesday, June 21, 2023. Harris, formerly of Mooresville, NC, was 83.

At age 11, R.C. began picking banjo at the old historic Playhouse Theater in Statesville, NC, and became well-known for his musical skills. His accomplishments included playing banjo and singing baritone with Bill Monroe & the Blue Grass Boys at the Grand Ole Opry in 1971.

Doug Hutchens, another former Blue Grass Boy, reflected, “R.C. worked with Bill in December of ’70 and until March of ’71. He had a very good paying job with a bank and tried to do it and play with Bill, but it was just too much. In March of ’71, Bill had asked me to come see him at the Opry. When I got there, I found that R.C. was snowed in in North Carolina, and wasn’t going to make it. Bill got Pete Sayers to play banjo Friday night. R.C. got there Saturday night.”

Harris was a founding member of the North Carolina band, Blue Denim. He recorded three albums for Old Homestead Records (1975-77). In 1978, the banjoist recorded an album, Grass Won’t Grow on a Busy Street, with Bobby Hicks, Del McCoury, Herschel Sizemore, and John Palmer that included four original tunes penned by Harris. In 2001, R.C. recorded Scenic Route with guest musicians John Duffey, Ben Eldridge, Tom Gray, Mike Auldridge, T. Michael Coleman, Jimmy Gaudreau, Chris Eldridge, and Jimmy Arnold. After playing country music for several years, he released Comin’ Back to Bluegrass in 2005.

He also served as a guest musician and singer on countless other recordings. R.C. also had a passion for good barbeque and created his own 5-String Barbeque Sauce.

Former band mate Joe Mahaffey shared, “The first time that I met R.C. he came to my uncle’s house to talk banjos. I was there with my dad. I was 14 years old. R.C. came driving up in a bronze ’57 Chevy two-door hard top. It would be 10 years before I saw him again. He was organizing a new band. Ray Cline had given him my name. That band was Blue Denim. That was the start of a life-time friendship. He was responsible for the music career I have enjoyed for the last 50 years.”

Another Blue Denim alum, mandolinist Wendell Wiles, added, “(My brother) Darel and I met R.C. in the early ’60s and began playing locally by the early ’70s. He introduced us to Jim Connell and Joe Mahaffey. He had worked up a great trio. He wanted Darel and me to provide the music and the band Blue Denim was born! The rest is history! We had a great run. R.C. did a great job managing our group! RIP R.C. Harris.”