We lost a good friend recently. Our beloved Bass Player Gary Fountaine died of cancer on Dec 28, 2023, at the age of 66.
Gary was just a kid when we first met him, thirteen or fourteen. He already knew he wanted to be a bass player, but he didn’t have his own bass yet. I can still picture him the day we met; he was playing Stanley Clarke riffs on a beat-up Harmony Sovereign. Back then, he had this crazy one-finger technique.
We lost track of him for a while. In the meantime, Gary developed into the accomplished bass player we know and love. He played in a million bands. There were lots of places to play in those days. Gary didn’t read music. He told me once that he kept track of all the different set lists by compartmentalizing them in his brain.
Gary used funny terms like “Ice Cream Changes” and “Lumpty Gigs.” He also taught me things about being a father, things I remember to this day.
There are certain players and singers who put out 110% every night, whether there’s five people in the audience or 50,000. THEY LEAVE IT ALL ON THE STAGE. There are a lot of clips of Gary on YouTube right now. (You'll find a special one below.) You can see the joy that emanates from his corner of the stage, whatever band he’s playing with. He’s so happy to be there. He loves his instrument. He loves the music and the audience. It was never fake.
Everybody knows the real thing when they see it, and Gary Fountaine was the real thing.
Goodbye, old friend.