The Bay Area music community is coming together to produce "A Concert for Ronnie Montrose - A Celebration of His Life In Music" for the legendary San Francisco guitarist, who passed away recently from complications of prostate cancer. It will be held at the Regency Ballroom in San Francisco on Friday, April 27. Tickets go on sale on March 30 at 10:00 am.
"A Concert For Ronnie Montrose - A Celebration of His Life In Music" will feature the original Montrose lineup (Sammy Hagar, vocals; Bill Church, bass; and Denny Carmassi, drums), performing the landmark first Montrose album, with special guest Joe Satriani on lead guitar. The original Gamma lineup (Davey Pattison, vocals; Glenn Letsch, bass; Denny Carmassi, drums) will also be on hand, with special guest Marc Bonilla on lead guitar. There will also be an All-Star band, comprised of many of the great musicians that Ronnie played with over the years. Some of the confirmed artists include: Neal Schon from Journey, Steve Smith formerly from Journey, members of Tesla, Eric Martin from Mr. Big, Rickie Philips from Styx, Eric Singer from KISS, Tommy Thayer of KISS and Jimmy DeGrasso from Y & T and Alice Cooper.
Ronnie Montrose was born in San Francisco and moved with his family to Colorado when he was two, returning back to his native home when he was 19 years old. In 1969, he started a band with Bill Church called Sawbuck, but that project got sidetracked when Ronnie was hired to do studio work with Van Morrison (Tupelo Honey), Boz Scaggs, Edgar Winter, Herbie Hancock, and others. In 1973, he formed his own band, Montrose, who recorded two albums together. The debut Montrose album went platinum and has been called the “first American heavy metal album.” In 1979, Ronnie formed Gamma, who recorded four albums. Ronnie continued to record through the 1980s and 1990s, and Gamma put out their fifth album in 2005.
This is from Leighsa Montrose, Ronnie’s beloved wife: “Ronnie was the kindest man I had ever met. I am honored that he was my husband and best friend as well. We slept together, we woke each morning together and we shared every meal together. We savored every moment that we had together. I am so proud of him for the man he was, which extended far beyond his musical abilities. I am full of joy to have been a part of his life, and I'm so happy that he was a part of mine. I dearly thank all of you for your friendship and love you shared with him. I know it meant everything to him.
All love,
Mrs. Leighsa Montrose”
Sammy Hagar stated, "One of my top priorities this year was a Montrose reunion. Ronnie and I planned to do it in Cabo in October. I am so sad it won't happen, but on April 27th, Joe Satriani, Denny Carmassi, Bill Church and I are going to play the hell out of some Montrose!!!"
Tickets to "A Concert For Ronnie Montrose - A Celebration of His Life In Music" will go on sale on March 30 at 10am. General admission tickets are $55.00 and VIP Reserved tickets are $175.00. www.AXS.com and www.goldenvoice.com
A portion of the proceeds from the concert will benefit the Ronnie Montrose Fund for San Francisco Bay Area Musicians through www.SweetRelief.org.
Guitar Player magazine will be providing a special limited edition, eight page program for the evening’s events.
BamMagazine.com is a media sponsor for the "A Concert For Ronnie Montrose - A Celebration of His Life In Music" benefit concert.
Here is a link to Sammy Hagar’s Rolling Stone remarks on Ronnie Montrose:
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/sammy-hagar-remembers-ronnie-montrose-20120306
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