Forty-five years ago today, Bobby Fuller — one of my all-time musical heroes — was found dead in his car in Hollywood, under extremely questionable circumstances. It was a tragic and unjust end to a really promising career, and to the life of an enormously talented young gent who truly lived for his music.
I wish I had time right now to write more about who he was and what his music has meant to me, but I'm on a crazy deadline. Still, even though I'd rather pay tribute to my heroes on their birthdays, the anniversary of Bobby's death deserves some reflection. Watch the Shivaree clip above, if you have a chance — sure, they're lip-synching, but it gives you a great idea of Bobby's charisma, as well as the way he fused the '50s rock of Buddy Holly with a contemporary '60s groove and sound. And he was really just getting started.
And if you want to delve a bit into the mystery of his death, this E! Mysteries & Scandals episode from the late 90s is a good introduction — and it features some talking-head interjections from a younger, thinner version of yours truly. (If you have the scratch, you can also pony up for an out-of-print copy of Never to Be Forgotten: The Mustang Years, which I wrote the liner notes for.) The great Miriam Linna of Kicks fame has a book coming out soon that will reportedly shed new light on what happened; I can't wait to read it.
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