RIP Gerry McGee (the Ventures)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by bRETT, Oct 12, 2019.

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  1. bRETT

    bRETT Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Boston MA
    Gerry McGee was the second great lead guitarist in the Ventures, joining for "Hawaii Five-O" and playing on scads of records and tours. He is also the son of Cajun music legend Dennis McGee. His passing was confirmed today by Ric Nesbitt of the Chamber of Commerce in Eunice, LA.


    Ric Kahuna Nesbitt
     
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  2. Dr. Funk

    Dr. Funk Vintage Dust

    Location:
    Fort Worth TX
    Thanks for the music Gerry.
     
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  3. beccabear67

    beccabear67 Musical omnivore.

    Location:
    Victoria, Canada
    Aw crud... sorry to hear he's gone, loved the albums he was on, especially the originals!

    Gerry also played with Beefheart and recorded with the Monkees.
     
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  4. GoodKitty

    GoodKitty FloydM

    Location:
    Pacific
  5. beccabear67

    beccabear67 Musical omnivore.

    Location:
    Victoria, Canada
    The first Ventures album he's on was titled The Horse, from late 1968. He's on the cover photo. I don't know though if he might've played on Flights Of Fantasy (the album before it) or not though, Edwards is credited on the original compositions for that one.
     
  6. Glenn Christense

    Glenn Christense Foremost Beatles expert... on my block

    Aw, that’s sad.
    I saw the Ventures with Jerry at the House of Blues in 1998 when Bob Bogle was still with them also .
    They were really great and fun to see.

    RIP Jerry
     
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  7. BradOlson

    BradOlson Country/Christian Music Maven

    RIP Gerry, your guitar playing lives on
     
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  8. Sidewinder43

    Sidewinder43 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Lavaca County, TX
    Oh no. Very sad. I was lucky enough to see him with Mel, Bob and Don in 1988. Also played with John Mayall and Rita Coolidge.
     
  9. stereoguy

    stereoguy Its Gotta Be True Stereo!

    Location:
    NYC
    My Gosh, this is sad . Saw Jerry a few times when The Ventures played NYC. A great guitarist who also played on The Monkees first album.
     
  10. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    Oh no! I love me some Ventures, great surf/instrumental rock.
     
  11. beccabear67

    beccabear67 Musical omnivore.

    Location:
    Victoria, Canada
  12. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    rest in peace...Gerry.
     
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  13. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    the thing that keeps us going after our favorites are gone; their musical legacy...small or large it's all the same....and I'm thrilled to have it.
     
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  14. longdist01

    longdist01 Senior Member

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    RIP Gerry McGee, terribly sad news tonight...thank you for all the music.

     
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  15. Frank Discussion

    Frank Discussion Forum Resident

    Location:
    Phoenix, AZ
    Sorry to hear of his passing.
    Thought he played on the second Delaney and Bonnie and Friends album. The spelling of his name was Jerry...............same person?
     
  16. Rick Bartlett

    Rick Bartlett Forum Resident

  17. melstapler

    melstapler Reissue Activist

    Incredibly sad news. With all the RIP threads, this forum isn't much fun anymore. Gerry's style was unique and yet noticeably natural, which brought new life to the artists he played with. Gerry's playing in a live setting was just as tight as it was on the recordings. Before Dwight Yoakam met Pete Anderson in the 1980s, Gerry was playing guitar for Dwight. Gerry was a longtime friend of guitarist Nokie Edwards, whom he replaced on and off in The Ventures. We lost Nokie just last year and both guitar legends were fairly close in age. RIP Gerry
    [​IMG]
    Gerry McGee played on Dwight Yoakam's "Blame The Vain" album

    Gerry performing in Japan with Nokie in 1984
     
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  18. melstapler

    melstapler Reissue Activist

    Last Fall, I saw Dwight Yoakam perform live only days after Gerry's death was announced. I hoped that Dwight would've done some sort of tribute either verbally or musically, but there was no mention.

    Apparently, Gerry collapsed onstage at what became his final concert while on tour in Japan. When not touring with The Ventures, Gerry utilized a solo band, which enabled him to perform some of his own material and favorites in addition to essential songs from The Ventures. Out of respect to the man, footage of his onstage death was pulled from the web, but here is a video of a show from the same tour filmed about 8 days prior to that tragic event.
     
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  19. Clarkophile

    Clarkophile Through the Morning, Through the Night

    Location:
    Oakville, ON
    Very sad to hear this. I interviewed Gerry in 2013 and he was a warm, down-to-earth guy.
     
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  20. Clarkophile

    Clarkophile Through the Morning, Through the Night

    Location:
    Oakville, ON
    Gerry told me he was very proud of his solo on the title track of No Other (starts at approx 2:23)
     
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