The King of The Surf Guitar has passed away. http://californiarocker.com/2019/03/17/rip-dick-dale-king-of-the-surf-guitar-passes-away-at-82/
A huge influence, a phenomenal player, a great rock n roll raconteur, and from my very brief interaction with him after a set, a really nice guy.
Damn. I’m a fan of surf music and Dick Dale.
I admit I had him in the Celebrity Death Pool several years ago. 
Wow, I guessed he was older than that when I saw the title of the thread. I loved surf music back in the day…it just feels like soooooo long ago. Nothing better on the car radio on a hot summer day driving to the beach.
82 is a good run. Not as good as the runs in “Miserlou,” but good.
Here he is giving the surf treatment to Smoke on The Water: Guitar Center Session: Dick Dale
And when he still had (big) hair: Pipeline with Stevie Ray Vaughn
Aw fuck.
RIP Mr. Dale; you done good.
Aww man… I knew he was in poor health, so not completely unexpected, but still… damn!
Here’s Dick Dale covering Ghost Riders In The Sky. Ride on, Dick!
I knew he was in poor health, so this was coming.
I saw him a couple of decades ago when he could still rip it, and played several songs of his in a surf band I was in. He was the greatest. RIP, Dick!
I used to do folk dancing in college, which included a Middle Eastern dance called “Miserlou”; the music was a slow, beautiful and melodic tune. :eek:
I never knew that Dale played a right-handed guitar left handed and without swapping the strings. The guy had a monster, relentless attack on the thing. Another huge loss to music.
Miserlou is is one of the greatest songs ever.
RIP, Dick.
I saw him live several times. His guitar had a pick dispenser attached, and he’d use a new one every song or so. His style carved a groove into his pick very rapidly, and he would give them away during the show, usually to the prettiest girl he saw.
So I recruited a very attractive friend to come with me to his show. She turned up dressed like a naughty schoolgirl. About halfway through Dale’s set she disappeared into the crowd near the front. I saw him finish a song and reach into the audience to give a pick away. Moments later my friend triumphantly presented it to me.
Well, his birth name was Richard Monsour, and he was Lebanese. He was heavily influenced by Arabic music styles, transferring those to his slashing guitar style.
I saw him live a couple of years ago. He was a great storyteller, and played a few instruments, not just guitar. His wife/manager was on stage with him the whole time, just keeping an eye on things.
I had never heard of him beforehand, but my boyfriend is a huge guitar fan so I went along. It was such a pleasant surprise to be in the middle of this great show, when I had no idea what I was getting into.
His wife/manager and I have exchanged a couple of emails because they wanted to be able to get the word out directly to fans rather than wait for venues to promote him. I will send something to her.
Maybe they’ll finally induct Dick Dale into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame now that he’s dead. RIP.
I had never heard of him until one day in the early 1990s when a former roommate let me know that she would be in town to see him, and invited me to go with her.
It was a bar gig, with not all that many people there, and she was sitting on the stage bowing down to him. I was totally embarrassed! Anyway, he made it look so easy, and yet it wasn’t.
RIP, Mr. Dale!
Aww, you shouldn’t have been embarrassed. 
Dick Dale was probably the rock star most worthy of prostrating yourself before. We were lucky to have walked the earth at the same time he did.
Well, he was the King of the Surf Guitar, after all.