Gerry Niewood and Coleman Mellett, members of the Chuck Mangione band, were two of the victims killed in yesterday’s Continental Flight 3407 crash near Buffalo, New York.
Niewood has been with Mangione since the early 70s. He has also played with Liza Minnelli, Grover Washington Jr, Patti Austin and Simon and Garfunkel. He played sax and flute.Guitarist Mellett joined the band in 1998.
At his official website, Mangione has left the statement “I'm in shock over the horrible, heartbreaking tragedy of the crash of Flight 3407 which took the lives of my dear friends and band members Gerry Niewood and Coleman Mellett. I am grieving and praying with their families and friends. That's all I can say for now”.
