Link Wray Dead at 76
Posted on November 22, 2005
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He invented the power chord, he paved the way for the Ramones, the Sex Pistols and Green Day. He gave us Rumble and with it he garnered the singular distinction of having the only instrumental song ever banned from radio.
He is Link Wray and he is dead at 76:
“He is the king; if it hadn’t been for Link Wray and Rumble, I would have never picked up a guitar’,” Townsend wrote on one of Wray’s albums.
Neil Young once said: “If I could go back in time and see any band, it would be Link Wray and the Raymen.”
According to Wray’s official website, he invented the fuzz tone by deliberately punching holes in his amplifier speakers.
- Link Wray, 76
I had the pleasure of seeing Wray play at the Horseshoe a few years back. It was an amazing show. The place was packed, he was effortlessly schooling the two other session guitarists he had on stage with him (whom he decided to both call “Tom” instead of whatever their names actually were) and at 2am when I could barely stand and decided to call it a night, he was still going strong into his second encore.
Turn your speakers up, click on Rumble and remember Link Wray.
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