Ting Ho Dung Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 http://californiarocker.com/2019/03/17/rip-dick-dale-king-of-the-surf-guitar-passes-away-at-82/ Dick Dale, known as “King of The Surf Guitar,” has passed away, sources said on Sunday. Dale, who had been quietly suffering health issues for many years, was considered a leader in the surf guitar genre. Dale was 82. Born Richard Anthony Monsour, his famous songs, like “Miserlou,” and many others have become part of the American music fabric. Dale created the sound of the surf guitar by working with Middle Eastern music scales applied to a driving beat. He performed up until the very end and once told CaliforniaRocker.com that performing was what was keeping him alive. “They say ‘Why don’t you retire, Dick?’” Dale said. “Well, there are two reasons I don’t retire: Playing music keeps me alive, and my music helps others.” Read our interview with Dick Dale here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
django49 Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 It has been a long time, but I am pretty sure I took lessons from that bass player. Which explains a lot....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
princeofdarkness56 Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 Sad to see that. He was a phenomenal player. Some of his licks are just a wow 50 plus years later. A lefty and I think he strung his guitar upside down if I recall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willie G. Moseley Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 ^^^^He was indeed a "lefty-strung-righty" a la Glen Burtnik and Jimmy Haslip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubs_42 Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 21 minutes ago, Ed Rechts said: There is a lot to be said for a Strat through a loud clean Fender that can make your balls drop. So True! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutchman Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 His music sold thousands of japan manufactured strat copy’s. Maybe 100’s of thousands. As a kid if you could play like Dick Dale you where something!! RIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARM OF HAMER Posted March 18, 2019 Share Posted March 18, 2019 A few years later....................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTMN Posted March 18, 2019 Share Posted March 18, 2019 I saw him about 10 years ago and it was a "must see that guy play" reason I went. Even scored a guitar pick during the show. Not much for the style of music but to watch the man create was cool. And YES IT WAS LOUD!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceM Posted March 18, 2019 Share Posted March 18, 2019 RIP. I saw this news yesterday, and coincidentally read the chapter in The Birth of Loud about Dick Dale's collaboration with Leo Fender, last night before bed. In the summer of 1960, Dick Dale had a regular gig at the Rendezvous Ballroom (packed to a capacity of 3000) on the Balboa Peninsula where he was honing his craft with a Fender Strat and whatever Fender, Gibson or Standel amps were available. He kept blowing his amps and speakers, and headed to Leo's nearby Fender shop asking for better LOUD amps. Leo went to see him perform, and according to Dale, kept asking him "Why do you have to play so loud?" (which is also the name of the chapter of the book). He built the Fender Showman with a 15" speaker for Dale, and the book says that it's one of the first stack amps with a separate head and cabinet. It still wasn't loud enough, and he still kept blowing speakers. At one point during this process of creating an amp durable enough to withstand Dale's technique and volume, Dale accidentally bumped or played his guitar when Leo had the amp turned up to 10, and also had his head next to the speaker to listen for hum. He blew out his left eardrum. His hearing in that ear never recovered. This after a childhood accident in which Leo had lost one eye. They ended up with the Dick Dale Showman, sporting 2 15" durable JBL speakers, which was sold through the Fender catalog. A young Brian Wilson was in the audience during Dale's shows as well, and would sit in during an intermission to play a couple of songs with his new band. At Dick Dale's request, Leo took a Hammond reverb tank and placed it in a box, and experimented plugging it in to both a vocal mike and the guitar. The rest is history. This is a very good book, btw. I'm about half way through. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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