’60s Rockstar Dies After ‘Short Illness’: Jeffery Morgan Was 80

Adrian Morgan, a ’60s rockstar who played bass guitar in The Cougars, has died. He was 80 years old. According to the Somerset Country Gazette, Morgan passed away peacefully on Dec. 7, following a short illness. He is survived by his wife Sharon Bale, daughters Maxine Trowbridge and Samantha Crowther, and grandson Caleb Bertis. A funeral service was held last Thursday, Jan. 11.

Morgan played with The Cougars — a short-lived band from Bristol, England — in the early 1960s. The rock band specialized in instrumental versions of pop songs and classical pieces. Mogan’s bandmates were Keith Owen (lead guitar), Dave Tanner (rhythm guitar), and Dave Hack (drums). In 1963, The Cougars signed a recording contract with Parlophone, after being noticed at a talent contest by a record company executive. 

One of the band’s first singles was “Saturday Nite at the Duck-Pond,” which used music from Swan Lake by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The track spent eight weeks in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at No. 33, but was at one point banned by the BBC for being “a travesty of a major classical work.” Other notable works by the band include “Red Square,” “Caviare and Chips,” “While The City Sleeps,” and “Sausage Roll.” The Cougars eventually disbanded in 1964, after only recording a handful of songs. The Somerset Country Gazette reports that, after The Cougars broke up, Morgan worked as a consultant engineer at EMI (Thales), and began his career as an apprentice. He worked at EMI for more than four decades.

News of Morgan’s death comes at the same time as the death of fellow rock musician, Benaiah Fiu. According to Australian News, the rocker died in his sleep just hours after performing a concert with his band, Strange Motel, on Friday night. No cause of death has been reported. Another band that Fiu performed with, Friction Control, reportedly memorialized the musician by sharing photos of him and captioning the post, “Until we meet again. Rest easy brother.”

In a statement on Fiu’s death, his sister took to Instagram to memorialize her late sibling. “On saturday we said goodbye to my big brother Benaiah. I’m devastated and in so much pain. It was a tragic morning, emotions are high, tears are constant, but there is so much love. so much love for Benaiah and the life he lived.” She continued, “Benaiah lived such a full amazing life. he loved so deeply, played, sung, and wrote so passionately, was so deeply intentional, had so much influence, and did whatever he wanted.”