RIP Ronnie Montrose, 1947-2012
The legendary guitarist sadly passed away over the weekend
One of the world's most underrated guitarist, Montrose had been suffering from prostate cancer for around five years and he passed away at his home in California on Saturday aged 64.
A note on his official website reads:
"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."
Montrose got his big break after playing on Van Morrison's Tupelo Honey in 1971 before briefly playing with Boz Scaggs and then the Edgar Winter Group where he played on the They Only Came Out At Night album (which included the hits 'Frankenstein' and 'Free Ride').
He then went on to form the brilliant Montrose, featuring a young Sammy Hagar on vocals on the first two albums. He performed with Montrose and as a solo artist for the rest of his life, and he played a few reunion shows with the original line-up of Montrose in 2004-2005.
At the time of his death he was working on the first official Montrose live DVD and, although he took two years off to fight his cancer from 2007-2009 he returned to the road and played more than 50 gigs last year.
Sammy Hagar paid tribute to Montrose on his website:
"Ronnie Montrose gave me my first break as a songwriter, as a front man, as a recording artist, as a touring artist, and for that I will always be grateful."Â
"I was looking forward to a reunion for my birthday bash in Cabo with Denny, Bill and Ronnie - one of the few bands from that era where all four original members were still able to do it," the former Van Halen frontman further added. "It's a shame to lose Ronnie and I'm so sorry for his loved ones. Rest in peace."
Slash, Dee Snider, Nikki Sixx and Kip Winger also paid tribute online.
RIP Ronnie