There’s something tragically romantic about the passing away of rock and roll stars. They rarely seem to die of natural causes. Death by auto erotic asphyxiation, alcohol abuse and acute depression seem commonplace. Throw in the occasional suicide and the end seems to guarantee many of them legendary status. A glamorous lifestyle does bring the risk of excess. But I have another point — does the supremely talented artiste have a death wish? Does he know instinctively that he’s performed his greatest works at a very young age and it’ll all be downhill from there? At 27, did Jim Morrison have anything left in the tank after those four iconic albums? Why live an ordinary life after that? Or Janis Joplin at 27? Or Amy Winehouse at 28? Or Jimi Hendrix at 28? It’s almost like Kurt Cobain was created to destroy Glam Rock, build a Seattle sound called Grunge in its place and then he was gone also at 27. (I’m being cynical when I say, would he have been the ‘immortal genius’ he is considered today if he hadn’t died). Bob Marley, dead at 36, is much revered and still mourned for basically 10 hit songs. Would we have eulogised him as much if he’s just been a washed up, aging Wailer?

Illustration /Uday Mohite