GARY MOORE, 1952 – 2011
BY ANDY ELLIS
ESTEPONA, SPAIN – Like so
many Premier Guitar readers
and viewers, we were shocked
and saddened to learn that
blues-rock legend Gary Moore
died on February 6 while vacationing in Spain. He was 58.
Autopsy reports confirmed
that Moore died of natural
causes in his sleep at the
Kempinski Hotel Bahia, a
resort in Estepona, located
on Spain’s Costa Del Sol.
According to reports, Moore
and his unnamed girlfriend
quietly enjoyed drinks at the
hotel bar and then retired to
his room around 11 p.m. His
death was reported at around
4:00 a.m.
Born in Belfast, Northern
Ireland, on April 4, 1952,
Moore discovered the guitar at age 8. Though he was
left-handed, he learned on a
right-handed instrument and
began playing in local bands as
a teenager. At age 16, Moore
moved to Dublin to play with
the blues-rock band Skid Row,
which featured Phil Lynott on
vocals. Lynott began playing
bass and subsequently founded
Thin Lizzy, and Moore joined
that band in 1973, replacing original guitarist Eric Bell. That was the first of three stints Moore had
with Lizzy during the ’70s.
Moore also played with jazz-rock drummer Jon Hiseman in Colosseum II and enjoyed a successful solo career. He toured extensively and recorded with such notables as Albert King, Albert
Collins, B.B. King, and George Harrison.
Moore had a deep connection to British blues legend Peter Green, who was something of a mentor to Moore as a teenager in Belfast. But Moore wasn’t just inspired by Green’s playing (the liner
notes to Moore’s gold 1990 album, Still Got the Blues, show him sitting amongst CDs that include
John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers’ A Hard Road, which launched Green’s career), he also bought
Green’s legendary ’ 59 sunburst Les Paul in 1972 and performed and recorded with it for many years.
When Moore tracked Blues for Greeny, his 1995 tribute to Peter Green, he used Green’s former
Les Paul exclusively on the album. This writer had the privilege of seeing Green play that guitar
with Fleetwood Mac, and then some two decades later, watched Moore perform an entire concert
with it. Within the first bars of the opening song, it was clear Moore had a complete mastery of
the instrument’s unique, phasoidal dual-humbucker sounds.
Moore played with a ferocious attack, a searing tone, and favored fast runs threaded with long,
sustained notes that drifted into feedback. Those wishing to explore or revisit Moore’s music and
fiery playing will enjoy the concert DVD Thin Lizzy—Live at Sydney Harbour ’ 78, as well as the
aforementioned Still Got the Blues and Blues for Greeny.
Gary Moore at the Manchester Apollo in 1985. Photo courtesy of
Harry Potts Photography
Charles H. Kaman,
Founder of Kaman
Corporation,
Dies at 91
BY REBECCA DIRKS
BLOOMFIELD, CT – Charles H.
Kaman, founder of Kaman
Corporation, died of natural
causes in his sleep at age 91 on
February 1, 2011.
Kaman was known as an
innovator in both the aviation and musical-instrument
industries. Kaman developed
the Ovation Roundback guitar
in 1965 and continued to push
boundaries with both his designs
and his use of production
materials throughout his career.
According to KMC Music, Inc.,
Kaman was the first to incorporate pickups and preamps in
the acoustic guitar, thus creating
the acoustic-electric instrument
category. He was also at the
forefront of composite-materials
use, as evidenced by the carbon-graphite-top Adamas models.
In addition to pushing the envelope of guitar design, Kaman
was committed to innovating
distribution for musical instruments. He eventually made
KMC the largest independent
distributor of musical instrument accessories.
A statement issued by KMC
Music said, “A visionary leader,
