Ronnie Montrose ~ 1947-2012 A few months ago, we held a surprise party for Ronnie Montrose's 64th birthday. He gave an impromptu speech, and told us that after a long life, filled with joy and hardship, he didn't take any of our love for granted. He passed today. He'd battled cancer, and staved off old age for long enough. And true to form, he chose his own exit the way he chose his own life. We miss him already, but we're glad to have shared with him while we could. http://www.ronniemontrose.com
Yes - on this one it hits way closer to home. I saw him play last Labor Day weekend and he was in very good spirits... he had been sick and I thought he was on the mend... He did play with so many famous musicians and then some but he was just a regular guy to us who had an extraordinary background. Thoughts go out to his immediate family and then some. it's a sad time...
Though he was on the mend, was there any realistic indication that he'd pass away? After all, according to those who knew Davy Jones (another musical peer who recently passed away, and was even close to the same age), Jones' death came as a complete surprise.
He was treated for cancer in 2007... he was in very good spirits when the fam and I saw him perform, plus he was in the process of going back on tour this year--he's had some other setbacks in recent weeks but this one was off-guard... I would not have expected this but again, since he was treated for cancer we would have been thinking he would be back on the road this year and he'd be recovered... I can tell you that his health could have gone either way but yeah--it's a sad time...
Was about to go on a bike ride with my wife when I heard on the radio. Absoluely floored when I heard the news. Montrose and Gamma were major components of the sountrack of my youth and Ronnie was a phenominal guitar player. While we were out riding, sun in my face, all I could hear in my head were "Rock the Nation" and "Voyager". Sighh.
