Terry Kath
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| Terry Kath | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 31, 1946 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | January 23, 1978 (aged 31)Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genre(s) | Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Guitarist |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar |
| Years active | 1967 - 1978 |
| Associated acts | Chicago |
Terry Alan Kath (January 31, 1946 – January 23, 1978) born in Chicago, Illinois, was the original guitarist and founding member of the rock band Chicago. He died in 1978 at the age of 31 from an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound.
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[edit] Career
A multi-instrumentalist who also played banjo, accordion, and drums. Kath played lead guitar in a band called "Jimmy and the Gentlemen" during the mid-1960s. He played bass in a road band called Jimmy Ford and The Executives. Kath's close friend, Walter Parazaider, played in these bands as well, and they were together in developing the band later to be called Chicago. Being a self-taught musician, he had little music-reading ability. According to interviews, Kath would hum his original compositions to bandmates.[citation needed]
Kath was an important contributor to Chicago, beginning with their first album The Chicago Transit Authority released in 1969. The album includes his composition "Introduction" which was described as "Terry's masterpiece" by later Chicago guitarist Dawayne Bailey.[citation needed] The song displays many varied musical styles, including jazz, blues, salsa, rock and roll, acid rock, and pop.
The same debut album includes an instrumental guitar piece entitled "Free Form Guitar", which was inspired by Jimi Hendrix. The album liner notes indicate that this nearly seven minute piece was recorded 'live' in the studio in one take.
The hit "Questions 67 & 68" contains lead guitar techniques that became staples of the Chicago sound.[citation needed] The song "Beginnings" includes acoustic rhythm guitar by Kath. Another of Kath's more notable highlights as a recording guitarist is his extended guitar solo in the middle of the Chicago hit song "25 or 6 to 4".
Fascinated by gadgets, Kath once owned nearly twenty guitars,[citation needed] though his early staples were a Gibson SG and a Fender Stratocaster. Kath was also one of the few well-known guitarists to make regular use of the unique 1969 Les Paul "Professional" model.[1] He utilized no special tunings or modifications. He is most associated with a specially decorated Fender Telecaster and was connected with Pignose amps.[2] He experimented with a wide variety of amplification and distortion devices and used a wah-wah pedal frequently.
Kath's singing was also an important feature of Chicago's sound.[3] In a group of many song composers who often let other members of the band do the lead singing on their compositions, Kath's vocal style can be heard in "Colour My World" and "Make Me Smile" , both from Chicago, as well as "Wishing you were here". His screaming in the live version of "Free" from Chicago at Carnegie Hall, released in 1971, is another example of his singing style.
[edit] Death
Kath reportedly had a history of using alcohol and drugs, including cocaine, in his last few years. Chicago bandmates have indicated that he was also increasingly unhappy.[citation needed] Bassist Peter Cetera even went so far as to say that Kath would have been the first to quit Chicago had he lived (and, according to then-producer James William Guercio, Kath was working on a solo album before he died).[4] But despite his personal problems, this was not the cause of his accidental death.
Around 5 p.m. on the evening of January 23, 1978, after a party at roadie Don Johnson's home in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, Kath — being a gun enthusiast — took a .38 revolver and put it to his head, pulling the trigger several times on the empty chambers. Picking up a semiautomatic 9mm pistol, Kath put the gun to his temple and pulled the trigger, infamously saying, "Don't worry, it's not loaded." (After showing the empty magazine to his friend.) However, one bullet remained in the chamber, killing him instantly — a week shy of his 32nd birthday. The circumstances of his death gave him the dubious distinction of being one of the first celebrities to earn a Darwin Award.[5]
Kath was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California. Terry and his wife Camelia Emily Ortiz (married 1974) had one daughter, Michelle, born in 1976. Camelia later married Kiefer Sutherland.
[edit] Discography with Chicago
- 1969 The Chicago Transit Authority
- 1970 Chicago
- 1971 Chicago III
- 1971 Chicago at Carnegie Hall
- 1972 Chicago V
- 1973 Chicago VI
- 1974 Chicago VII
- 1975 Chicago VIII
- 1975 Chicago IX - Chicago's Greatest Hits
- 1976 Chicago X
- 1977 Chicago XI
A tribute album, The Innovative Guitar of Terry Kath, was compiled by Chicago in 1996 containing songs from various Chicago albums featuring the guitarist. (currently out of print)
[edit] References
- ^ Bacon, Tony. 50 Years of the Gibson Les Paul. Backbeat Books, pg. 60. ISBN 0-87930-711-0.
- ^ The history of the Pignose Amplifier company
- ^ Kath's AMG biography by Greg Prato hosted by VH1
- ^ Chapter IX ~ Tragedy. Official Site of Chicago.
- ^ Guitars 'n' Guns, 1978 Darwin Award Nominee (Confirmed True by Darwin)
[edit] External links
- Terry Kath official website
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