Photo: Kevin Kane/WireImage
Don Wilson, a founding member of the pioneering surf rock groupThe Ventures, has died. He was 88.
“Our dad was an amazing rhythm guitar player who touched people all over world with his band, The Ventures,” his son Tim said in a statement. “He will have his place in history forever and was much loved and appreciated. He will be missed.”
Born Feb. 10, 1933, in Tacoma, Wilson founded The Ventures with his friend Bob Bogle in 1958. The quartet shot to international fame after dropping their first wide-release single “Walk, Don’t Run” in 1960, which was later inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for its lasting significance.
“We never set out to be a surf band,” Wilsontold PEOPLEin 2020. “Honestly, I love playing surf music — it’s very fun and it makes you feel good. But we never really considered ourselves a surf band. It was just all these things coming together — the surf culture, the electric guitar, Americana — when we were coming up in the early 1960s. Kind of a happy accident, I guess you could say. We play all kinds of music, though, including our ‘Venturizing’ of everything from classical to disco.”
Michael Ochs Archives/Getty
The Ventures had 14 singles on theBillboardHot 100 and sold over 100 million records. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008. Groups likeThe Beatles,Beach Boys,Go-Go’s, and evenKisshave cited The Ventures as inspiration, withGene Simmonshaving been in the band’s fan club andGeorge Harrisonsaying he liked the sound of their guitar.
The instrumental group is also known for their tracks “Hawaii 5-0,” “Wipeout,” and “Perfidia,” as well as for writing songs feature in movies likePulp Fiction,Zoolander,Kangaroo Jack, andDogtown and Z-Boys.
Until his retirement in 2015, Wilson remained an active member of the group and never missed a tour with The Ventures. He continued to record with the band’s current lineup and produced the 2020 documentaryThe Ventures: Stars on Guitarswith his family.
RELATED VIDEO: Rock Legend Meat Loaf Dead at 74
“This is the first actual documentary about The Ventures, if you can believe,” hetold PEOPLEat the time. “It means so much to me that my kids made this.”
source: people.com
