RIP Gary Richrath
 

Growing up in the Midwest, these guys were the bomb in their day. He was totally under-rated as a guitarist.

My dad was/is a huge REO Speedwagon fan. I remember when he got his first CD player, that was the CD he would blast every night when he got home from work.

RIP.

Played onstage with Gary a few times back in the late 1980's/early 1990's.

Saw REO last year at The Orleans (without Gary)...they still sound great, very tight.

Rest in peace Gary.

Who??
.....

Hi-Infidelity was a must-have vinyl back in the day.

The wife and I had tickets a few years back for triple-bill REO, Leppard and Styx - but the show was canceled 'cuz Joe Elliott had throat problems.

RIP Gary.

Brings back memories,he was a great guitarist.RIP Gary

R.i.p :(

Your dad has good taste in music then. :)

That's so cool, Robbie. Sounds like a great time!

Totally agree. :thumbsup

Gary grew up about 15 miles down the road from me. He's a local legend around here and I've seen him play many times on open mic jam nights around town. He really was a great person and very down to earth.

I was kind of hoping when I went to go see REO a few years back at the Peoria Civic Center that Gary would show up and do an impromtu guest appearance with the band, but alas he didn't.

If you think REO is great in concert, you should hear them when they come home and play for basically what they consider to be their original fan base from college. They pump it up a few notches to say the least.

Needless to say, there will be a lot of REO being selected on the Touch Tunes around here for a few weeks I'm sure...

Thought I recognized the name. Not only was he a highly underrated guitartist but he was a pretty decent songwriter as well. From the early 70's and throughout the 80's they were always among my favorites. Several anthems of the times came from them. His solo album wasn't bad either.

I worked the outdoor concert and rock festival circuit around the province for over 10 years doing stage security, saw many hundreds of great acts but regretfully REO wasn't one of them. They're on my short list of bands I wish I'd had occasion to see live.

Dead at 65. No word yet on cause of death.

You can still see them live. Gary had been out of the band for years.

But the band still sounds great. Super tight. I saw them earlier this year at The Orleans Casino here in Vegas.
Here are there tour dates:
REO Speedwagon