# Dick Dale RIP **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** celebrity-death\ **Created:** [March 17, 2019, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274 "2019-03-17T19:58:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/1 "2019-03-17T19:58:11Z")
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/](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. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/2 "2019-03-17T20:04:52Z")
Damn. I’m a fan of surf music and Dick Dale. I admit I had him in the Celebrity Death Pool several years ago. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/3 "2019-03-17T20:37:09Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/4 "2019-03-17T22:18:29Z")
82 is a good run. Not as good as the runs in “[Miserlou](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKpsuGMeqHI),” but good. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/5 "2019-03-17T22:26:29Z")
Here he is giving the surf treatment to Smoke on The Water: [Guitar Center Session: Dick Dale](https://youtu.be/yjXXKxbUG8s?t=205) And when he still had (big) hair: [Pipeline with Stevie Ray Vaughn](https://youtu.be/56SAxtf-RTg) ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/6 "2019-03-17T22:27:13Z")
Aw fuck. RIP Mr. Dale; you done good. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/7 "2019-03-17T22:41:11Z")
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](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5367CsDAkf8). Ride on, Dick! ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2019, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/8 "2019-03-17T22:59:21Z")
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! ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2019, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/9 "2019-03-18T14:32:25Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2019, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/10 "2019-03-18T16:10:03Z")
Miserlou is is one of the greatest songs _ever._ RIP, Dick. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2019, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/11 "2019-03-18T17:51:03Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2019, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/12 "2019-03-18T17:51:54Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > 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: 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. ---
**Author:** ![Mithril](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mithril/32/3517_2.png) [@Mithril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mithril)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2019, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/13 "2019-03-18T20:58:55Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![bmoak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@bmoak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bmoak)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2019, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/14 "2019-03-18T23:25:46Z")
Maybe they’ll finally induct Dick Dale into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame now that he’s dead. RIP. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2019, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/15 "2019-03-19T04:01:34Z")
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! ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2019, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/16 "2019-03-19T05:11:07Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2019, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-dale-rip/831274/17 "2019-03-19T15:57:53Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > she was sitting on the stage bowing down to him. I was totally embarrassed! > > > [@scabpicker](#): > > > > Aww, you shouldn’t have been embarrassed. 🙂 Well, he was the [**King** of the Surf Guitar](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQA0CJlfN3Y), after all.