Kate McGarrigle died she was 63

Kate McGarrigle, CM ^[2] died she was 63. McGarrigle was a Canadian folk music singer-songwriter, who wrote and performed as a duo with her sister Anna McGarrigle.^[3]

She was the mother of singers Rufus Wainwright and Martha Wainwright from her marriage to American singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III, which ended in divorce.^[4][3]

(February 6, 1946[1] – January 18, 2010)

In addition to her musical career, Kate McGarrigle took engineering courses at McGill University.^[5]Kate and Anna's 1975 self-titled debut album was chosen by Melody Maker as Best Record of the Year.^[6] Their albums Matapedia (1997) and The McGarrigle Hour (1999) won Juno Awards. In 1999 Kate and Anna received Women of Originality awards and in 2006 SOCAN Lifetime Achievement awards.^[7]

In 1993, she was made a Member of the Order of Canada.^[1]

When her son Rufus was featured on Elvis Costello's 2008 TV show Spectacle: Elvis Costello with..., McGarrigle appeared and sang the final song of the show with him.^[8]

McGarrigle was diagnosed with cancer in 2006 and established The Kate McGarrigle Fund at the McGill University Health Centre, which she set up in 2008 to raise awareness of sarcoma, a rare cancer that affects connective tissue such as bone, muscle, nerves and cartilage.

She died of clear cell sarcoma on January 18, 2010, aged 63 at her home in Montreal, according to her brother-in-law, Dane Lanken.^[9] Her sister Anna wrote on their website: "Sadly our sweet Kate had to leave us last night. She departed in a haze of song and love surrounded by family and good friends. She is irreplaceable and we are broken-hearted. Til we meet again dear sister." [1]

She made her last public appearance, with Rufus and Martha Wainwright, at the Royal Albert Hall in London, just six weeks before her death. The show raised $55,000 for the Kate McGarrigle Fund.

To see more of who died in 2010 click here