The Dubliners, Barney "Banjo" McKenna 1939 -2012 ...

Barney "Banjo"  McKenna, 72, the last original member of the Irish folk band the Dubliners, died Thursday while having a morning cup of tea with a friend. He had just marked his 50th year with the troupe.

Irish classical guitarist Michael Howard, who was with Mr. McKenna when he died, said he was talking with his longtime friend at his kitchen table, when "all of a sudden Barney's head dropped down to his chest. It looked as if he'd nodded off." Howard said paramedics over the phone talked him through emergency revival procedures, but Mr. McKenna "was pretty much gone."

Bluegrass Legend & Banjo Pioneer Earl Scruggs 1924 - 2012 ...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Bluegrass legend and banjo pioneer Earl Scruggs, who helped profoundly change country music with Bill Monroe in the 1940s and later with guitarist Lester Flatt, has died. He was 88.

Scruggs' son Gary said his father died of natural causes Wednesday morning at a Nashville, Tenn., hospital.

Earl Scruggs was an innovator who pioneered the modern banjo sound. His use of three fingers rather than the clawhammer style elevated the banjo from a part of the rhythm section — or a comedian's prop — to a lead instrument.