The date September 7 has an ironic link to two famous rock music quotes associated with the deaths of two of rock’s most legendary bad boys.
On September 7, 1978, Keith Moon — the great, drum-kit-destroying drummer for the British band the Who — died of a drug overdose at age 31.
One of the Who’s first big hits, released in 1965, was “My Generation.”
That song includes a line that is well known and often cited by rock fans: “Hope I die before I get old.”
It’s in the first verse, which is repeated at the end of the song:
“People try to put us d-down
Just because we g-g-get around
Things they do look awful c-c-cold
Hope I die before I get old.”
As rock fans also know, Keith Moon was renowned for his self-destructive, drug-and-alcohol amped lifestyle.
Naturally, the famed “Hope I die...” line showed up in obituaries written for him in 1978 and in many articles and books later written about Moon and the Who.
In an odd coincidence, on September 7, 2003, exactly 25 years after Keith Moon passed away, American rock musician Warren Zevon died of cancer at age 56.
Like Moon, Zevon was legendary for his substance abuse and other excesses.
One of the best known songs from Zevon’s self-titled 1976 album is “I'll Sleep When I'm Dead.”
The lyrics were written in Zevon’s darkly humorous trademark style:
“I’m drinking heartbreak motor oil and Bombay gin
I'll sleep when I'm dead
Straight from the bottle, twisted again
I’ll sleep when I'm dead.”
Inevitably, the line “I’ll sleep when I'm dead” was cited in many obits, articles and blog posts shortly after Zevon shuffled off his mortal coil.
It was also used as the title of a book about him, compiled by his former wife, Crystal, and published in 2007.
The book’s full title is: I'll Sleep When I'm Dead: The Dirty Life and Times of Warren Zevon
Talk show host David Letterman was a longtime fan and friend of Warren Zevon and had him as a guest on The Late Show many times.
On October 30, 2002, Warren made his last appearance on Letterman’s show.
At that point, it was public knowledge that Zevon’s cancer was likely to be terminal in the near future.
His fan and friend Letterman asked Warren during the show if facing death had given him any new insights about life.
Zevon’s reply included three words that became another famous quote: “Enjoy every sandwich."
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