Duane Eddy, Grammy-Winning Guitarist, Died at 86
Duane Eddy, the rock and roll guitarist, died at 86 on April 30 in Franklin. In his last breath, he was surrounded by his Wife, Deed, and his family. His manager confirmed his death, stating that he had inspired a generation of guitarists with his unmistakable ‘Twang’ sound and would be missed badly.
According to the press reports, his cause of death was cancer, and he died at the Williamson Health Hospital in Franklin. Shortly after his demise, news was out, and many people were paying condolences to the guitarist.
The CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Kyle Young, said, “Instrumentalists don’t usually become famous. But Duane Eddy’s electric guitar was a voice all its own.”
Eddy was born in April 1938 in Corning, California. He started playing guitar at the age of five. He grew up in Arizona with the dream of singing on the Grand Ole Opry, and later, in 1958, he signed with Jamie Records situated in Philadelphia. They released Eddy’s song “Rebel-’Rousers,” which became his breakthrough hit and reached number six on the chart of Billboard Hot 100.
He has recorded over 50 albums in his career and sold over 100 million records worldwide. His many hits became the theme of the TV drama Peter Gunn, including “Rebel Rouser,” released in 1958.
Eddy invented a technique for playing the guitar’s bass strings to produce a low “twangy” sound. In 1986, he won the Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental. In the same year, Eddy said in an interview that he had a distinctive sound that was recognized by people and stuck pretty much with that. He was not the best among the technical players, but he sold the best.
Eddy’s twang also influenced the name of his albums, including “Have Twangy Guitar Will Travel,” released in 1958, his debut album, and “Twang Thang: The Duane Eddy Anthology” in 1993. “Have Twangy Guitar Will Travel” reached number five and remained in the same position for 84 weeks in the album charts.
Eddy also worked with movies to score theme music, which includes “Because They’re Young,” “Gidget Goes Hawaiian,” and “Pepe”. He revealed that he turned down the offer to compose the James Bond theme song because there wasn’t enough guitar music.
He appeared in several films, including Because They’re Young, Kona Coast, The Wild Westerners, and The Savage Seven. He also acted in the television series Have Gun-Will Travel.