A requiem for 2016: Music to remember the year's many fallen stars

The dead can't speak, but they can go on singing as long as people remember their music

We lost several beloved stars in 2016.
(Image credit: Images courtesy Getty Images, AP Photo, ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy Stock Photo)

So many historical figures and famous artists died in 2016, we often had to be reminded that years do not kill people.

Every facet of public life saw prominent losses: John Glenn, Fidel Castro, Antonin Scalia, Shimon Peres, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, and Nancy Reagan in politics; Muhammed Ali, Arnold Palmer, Gordie Howe, and Pat Summitt in sports; Harper Lee, Umberto Eco, Edward Albee, Dario Fo, and Elie Wiesel in letters; Morley Safer, John McLaughlin, and Gwen Ifill in news broadcasting; and actors Gene Wilder, Carrie Fisher, Alan Rickman, Garry Shandling, Garry Marshall, Abe Vigoda, Patty Duke, Alan Thicke, Zsa Zsa Gabor, and Florence Henderson; among far too many others.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.