I am curious as to what all the "new" genres of music (progressive rock, punk rock, disco, New Wave synth-pop, grunge, etc.) would have sounded like if none of the key people behind many of our favorite groups and musical genres have passed away?

Case in point - a list of all the people who shouldn't have died:
*Robert Johnson (died 8/16/1938, age 27)
*Hank Williams (died 1/1/1953, age 29)
*Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper (Jiles P. Richardson) and Ritchie Valens (died 2/3/1959, ages 22, 28 and 17 respectively)
*Eddie Cochran (died 4/17/1960, age 21)
*Otis Redding (died 12/10/1967, age 26)
*Brian Jones (The Rolling Stones) (died 7/3/1969, age 27)
*Alan Wilson (Canned Heat) (died 9/3/1970, age 27)
*Jimi Hendrix (The Jimi Hendrix Experience) (died 9/18/1970, age 27)
*Janis Joplin (died 10/4/1970, age 27)
*Jim Morrison (The Doors) (died 7/3/1971, age 27)
*Duane Allman (The Allman Brothers, Derek & the Dominos) (died 10/29/1971, age 24)
*Gram Parsons (The Flying Burrito Brothers) (died 9/19/1973, age 26)
*Jim Croce (died 9/20/1973, age 30)
*Mama Cass Elliot (The Mamas & the Papas) (died 7/29/1974, age 32)
*Nick Drake (died 11/25/1974, age 26)
*Pete Ham (Badfinger) (died 4/24/1975, age 27)
*Elvis Presley (died 8/16/1977, age 42)
*Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines and Cassie Gaines (Lynyrd Skynyrd) (died 10/20/1977; ages 29, 28 and 29 respectively)
*Keith Moon (The Who) (died 9/7/1978, age 32)
*Sid Vicious (The Sex Pistols) (died 2/2/1979, age 21)
*Bon Scott (AC/DC) (died 2/19/1980, age 33)
*Ian Curtis (Joy Division) (died 5/18/1980, age 23)
*John Bonham (Led Zeppelin) (died 9/25/1980, age 32)
*Darby Crash (The Germs) (died 12/7/1980, age 22)
*John Lennon (The Beatles) (died 12/8/1980, age 40)
*Randy Rhoads (Ozzy Osbourne) (died 3/19/1982, age 25)
*Karen Carpenter (The Carpenters) (died 2/4/1983, age 32)
*Muddy Waters (died 4/30/1983, age 68)
*Dennis Wilson (The Beach Boys) (died 12/28/1983, age 39)
*Marvin Gaye (killed by his own dad 4/1/1984, age 44)
*Ian Stewart (The Rolling Stones' keyboardist) (died 12/12/1985, age 47)
*Rick Nelson (died 12/31/1985, age 45)
*Cliff Burton (Metallica) (died 9/27/1986, age 24)
*John Curulewski (Styx) (died 2/13/1988, age 37)
*Hillel Slovak (Red Hot Chili Peppers) (died 6/25/1988, age 26)
*Roy Orbison (The Traveling Wilburys) (died 12/6/1988, age 52)
*Stiv Bators (Lost Boys, Lords of the New Church) (died 6/2/1990, age 40)
*Stevie Ray Vaughan (died 8/27/1990, age 35)
*Johnny Thunders (died 4/23/1991, age 40)
*Freddie Mercury (Queen) (died 11/25/1991, age 46)
*Kurt Cobain (Nirvana) (died 4/5/1994, age 27)
*Shannon Hoon (died 10/21/1995, age 28)
*Brad Nowell (Sublime) (died 5/25/1996, age 28)
*John Panozzo (Styx) (died 7/16/1996, age 47)
*Tupac Shakur (died 9/13/1996, age 25)
*Eva Cassidy (died 11/2/1996, age 33)
*The Notorious B.I.G. (died 3/9/1997, age 24)
*Michael Hutchence (INXS) (died 11/22/1997, age 37)
*John Denver (died 12/12/1997, age 53)
*Sonny Bono (Sonny & Cher) (died 1/5/1998, age 62)
*George Harrison (The Beatles) (died 11/29/2001, age 58)
*John Entwistle (The Who) (died 6/27/2002, age 57)
*Howie Epstein (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers) (died 2/23/2003, age 47)
*Brad Delp (Boston) (died 3/9/2007, age 55)
*Rick Wright (Pink Floyd) (died 9/15/2008, age 63)

~Ben

Where is Johnny Thunders and Stiv Bators?

They're in my post now.

You forgot

Gar Samuelson (Megadeth)1999
Dimebag Darrell (Pantera)2004
Eric Carr (KISS)1991
Kevin DuBrow (Quiet Riot)2007
Dead (MayheM)1991
Euronymous (MayheM) 1993

I never realized how young alot of them were when they died.

But the bigger question is, would some of these people be as iconic as they are now if they hadn't died? Especially the younger ones and/or the ones who died tragic deaths?

I think they would have been either more or less iconic, and in a completely different way than they are now. Alot of them are more famous than they probably would have been, just because of when and/or how they died.

The music would definately be alot different, but at the expense of these people's current iconic status, especially the younger ones who still had an entire career ahead of them. Some genres probably would never had existed if certain people hadn't died.

But for the older ones who had a full career, it wouldn't have made much of a difference when they had died, since they had already made their mark.

====
Dimebag Darrell (Pantera)2004
Eric Carr (KISS)1991
Kevin DuBrow (Quiet Riot)2007
====


Sorry to break it to you, but Kevin DuBrow and Quiet Riot were pretty much washed up by the time he died. So, I doubt he would have had any kind of continual influence on music at all.

Dimebag Darrell's contributions probably would have been minimal. I'm amazed how many people didn't even know who he was until he got killed.

Eric Carr was a good drummer, but let's face it...KISS would have still been KISS. I love KISS as much as the next guy, but they had mostly come as far as they were going to. I got big respect for Eric Carr, mind you...but unless he had left KISS, I don't see it changing much. Hell, he might have ended up getting shafted eventually when Peter Criss came back.