ROCK PROMOTOR DON KIRSHNER PASSES AWAY
January 18, 2011 3:05 PM 
He had the golden ear and has worked with some of the biggest names in the business, Billy Joel, The Eagles, Prince, Lionel Richie and many more. He passed away today at 76.
Rock promoter Don Kirshner, whom Time magazine once dubbed the “Man With the Golden Ear,” died Monday in a Florida hospital, a close friend and business associate said. He was 76.
Promoter Jack Wishna told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Kirshner was in a hospital in Boca Raton being treated for an infection.
“Donny Kirshner would take a kid off the street, bring him up to his office in the Brill Building and turn him into Neil Diamond, Carole King, James Taylor, on and on,” Wishna said. “I haven’t spoken to anyone in the music business that Donny hasn’t either discovered, promoted, or touched in some way.
“I’ve never seen anybody like this in my life,” he said.
Kirshner was behind “Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert” in 1972, and gave national exposure to musicians including Billy Joel, the Police. The show also boosted careers of comics including Billy Crystal, Arsenio Hall and David Letterman.
The show also featured artists Kirshner helped launch including Prince, The Eagles, Lionel Richie and Ozzy Osborne.
The Brill Building was a hit factory — notable for attracting songwriters, agents and others as tenants. More than 160 of its tenants were in the music industry by the early 1960s, according to New York’s Landmarks Preservation Commission.
Wishna said Kirshner was a mentor who knew the art of discovering talent and cared about the artists he worked with.
More from KOOL 101.7
HIghway 123 Bridge Project Near Sandstone Starts June 19th
Dick Beardsley, Grandma’s Marathon Record Holder, Talks About Memories And Racing In The Marathon
Here’s Everything You Need To Know For Grandma’s Marathon Race Times and Traffic Closures
Leave a Comment