Singer Julee Cruise, David Lynch collaborator and B-52s tour stand-in, dead at 65
Singer Julee Cruise, who often collaborated with filmmaker David Lynch and was a tour stand-in for the B-52s in the 1990s, has died, multiple news outlets are reporting. She was 65.
According to The Guardian, Cruise’s husband, Edward Grinnan, shared the news in a Facebook post late Thursday.
“For those of you who go back, I thought you might want to know that I said [goodbye] to my wife, Julee Cruise, today,” he wrote to members of a B-52s fan group. “She left this realm on her own terms. No regrets. She is at peace.”
>> Read the Facebook post here
Although Grinnan’s post didn’t specify how Cruise died, The Guardian reported that she had lupus.
In 1986, Cruise collaborated with Lynch for the first time on “Blue Velvet,” according to the newspaper. She later sang a vocal version of the “Twin Peaks” theme “Falling,” for which Lynch wrote the lyrics, and two songs on the 1990 TV show’s soundtrack, NME reported. She released four albums during her career: “Floating Into the Night” (1989), “The Voice of Love” (1993), “The Art of Being a Girl” (2002) and “My Secret Life” (2011).
Cruise also gained fame as a B52s tour stand-in for band member Cindy Wilson from 1992 to 1999, Rolling Stone reported.
“Having had such a varied music career, she often said that the time she spent as a B filling in for Cindy while she was having a family was the happiest time of her performing life,” Grinnan wrote on Facebook. “She will be forever grateful to them. When she first stepped up to the mic with Fred [Schneider] and Kate [Pierson], she said it was like joining the Beatles. She will love them always and never forget their travels together around the world. I played her ‘Roam’ during her transition. Now she will roam forever. Rest In Peace, my love, and love to you all.”
Here are some memorable photos of the B-52s through the years.
1980: Portrait of members of American New Wave group the B-52s as they pose in front of a fireplace, 1980.
1989: The B-52s on September 27, 1989, in Munich.
1990: Actor Alec Baldwin, left, is shown during rehearsals at "NBC’s Saturday Night Live," with musical guests the B-52s, Keith Strickland, second from left, Kate Pierson and Fred Schneider, partially obscured, in New York on April 19, 1990.
1992: Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider and Julee Cruise of the B-52s perform in Brielpoort, Deinze, Belgium, on Dec. 3, 1992.
2002: Recording artists B-52s perform at the "Star 98.7 Not So Silent Night 2002" concert at the Shrine Auditorium on December 14, 2002, in Los Angeles.
2003: The B-52s perform during the Nextel All-Star Saturday reception on February 1, 2003, at the Westin Diplomat Hotel in Hollywood, Florida.
2004: Kate Pierson and Fred Schneider of the B-52s perform onstage at the 2004 Music Has Power Awards at The Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Allen Room on November 29, 2004, in New York City. The awards are presented by The Institute for Music and Neurological Function.
2005: Singing group the B-52s arrive at the Hero Awards on April 21, 2005, in Atlanta.
2007: Singers Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider and Cindy Wilson of the B-52s perform onstage at Roseland Ballroom on October 31, 2007, in New York City.
2008: Keith Strickland, Cynthia Leigh Wilson, Fred Schneider and Kate Pierson of the music group The B-52s perform live on NBC’s "Today" Show on May 26, 2008, in New York City.
2009: Musicians Kristian Bush of Sugarland, Fred Schneider and Kate Pierson of the B-52s, Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland and Cindy Wilson of the B-52s perform "Love Shack" on stage during the 2009 CMT Music Awards at the Sommet Center on June 16, 2009, in Nashville, Tennessee.
2012: The B-52s perform during the "B-52s With the Wild Crowd" panel during the PBS portion of the 2012 Winter TCA Tour held at The Langham Huntington Hotel and Spa on January 4, 2012, in Pasadena, California.
2016: Cindy Wilson, Fred Schneider and Kate Pierson of the B-52s perform at UNICEF’s Evening for Children First to Honor Ted Turner on March 30, 2016, in Atlanta.
2017: Singer Fred Schneider (left) and singer Kate Pierson (right) of the B-52s perform on stage at the Growlers 6 festival at the LA Waterfront on October 29, 2017, in San Pedro, California.
2019: Kate Pierson, Keith Strickland and Cindy Wilson of the B-52s attend the opening night of the broadway show "Jagged Little Pill" at Broadhurst Theatre on December 5, 2019, in New York City.
2020: Kate Pierson of the B-52’s performs onstage as Woman’s Day Celebrates the 17th annual Red Dress Awards on February 4, 2020, in New York City.
