Rick Derringer RIP. He was 77.

This hurts me so much. Rick Derringer has always been one of my favorite players. Always!
I have followed him since I was 15 years old - not long after the McCoys (Hang on Sloopy). A lot of folks thought that was a teeny-bopperish pop song - which it was, but Rick and the band were first rate players. His move up came when the entire band became Johnny Winter's backing band (Johnny Winter And - "and" meaning the McCoys).
Johnny recorded several of Rick's songs, most notably Rock and Roll Hootchie Coo - which contained the line about Dickey Betts band, the Jokers. He also wrote Cheap Tequila and a few others. At the same time, his production skills kicked in - producing records for both Johnny and Edgar Winter and several others.
Steely Dan discovered him and hired him out for Chain Lightning and Show Biz Kids. He produced some pretty schlocky stuff during the Wrestle-Mania craze and even worked with Weird Al Jankovick (or whatever his name is). Also produced and played behind Cindi Lauper.
According to all who knew him, he was just a natural. Kind of like Derek Trucks - a month or two after picking up a guitar for the first time he was playing over the heads of seasoned professionals.
I was taken aback when he became a "conservative Christian" and loaned his talents and support to Donald Trump. I was still interested in him as a guitar player, though.
Farewell to one of the finest, most complete guitar players to come down the pike.



Don't know if this will load or not - link to Rick's kind words on Face Book on Dickey at the time of his passing.
Didn't work! Google "Rick Derringers tribute to Dickey Betts video" and it should take you to Rick's FB.
ACTUALLY JUST CLICK WHERE IT SAYS VIEW ON FACEBOOK!

@rusty Here is Dickey in 1963 in Indiana where Rick met and became friends with Dickey playing with The Jokers.
The bass player on the left is Tom Kiefaber. Rick, I'm told, first met Dickey after seeing him on stage with the Jokers in Indiana. Dickey decided to move to Indiana from Florida in the early 1960's but moved back to Florida in a couple of years.
Dickey is on the right and is 19 in this picture.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Fd4viwRr49dQ8Eb4A

Johnny Winter And with Rick. Some crazy camera angles, but you can tell that he covers a lot of the lead guitar:

Rick Derringer with the Dickey Betts Band. Warren introduces Rick for his solo. Rick is a fine guitarist!!
Probably nothing wrong with Rick becoming a conservative Christian. Pope Leo XIV was on the Catholic channel Sunday and the new Pope said he is a conservative Christian.

@robertdee "Probably nothing wrong with Rick becoming a conservative Christian. Pope Leo XIV was on the Catholic channel Sunday and the new Pope said he is a conservative Christian. "
Of course not. Any person's political beliefs and dogma are entirely up to him. Watching Rick through the hippie days of peace, love and rock and roll - the freedom to do your own thing and all that - just kind of disappointed me that he lent his talents to the campaign of someone with the lack of humility of Trump. Growing up in the south this also includes most of my family and life-long friends. That's another ball of wax. Please! Let's not get away from losing Rick Derringer. I apologize for tossing that ball into the mix.

@rusty Trump finally said something that seems to make sense. " Putin has gone crazy! He's killing people and I don't like it"
I saw Edgar Winter live and he did Frankenstein. About 1974 I think.
Edgar played sax and keys and percussion as the song progressed.

@robertdee I'm still honoring and holding onto the memory of Rick Derringer here. But Donald Trump knows a thing or two about "crazy". 😉

@rusty Rick's passing made the newscasts last evening and CBS News this morning. Clips on Hang On Sloppy and Rock And Roll Hoochie Koo.
I wonder if Dickey, being a friend, ever considered Rick for the ABB? Of course Gregg, Butch and Jaimoe would have to agree.
I doubted Trump would win last November to such a degree that I didn't watch the returns on TV. Next morning I was surprised.
I just checked and as of right now still no cause of Rick's passing.
I remember when Rick was opening for Van Halen years ago and Eddie had Rick kicked off the tour because Rick was employing that two hand tapping technique in a solo or something like that.
You remember that?
Look here.

@robertdee I've read accounts from Rick and Eddie over the incident. Both were phenomenal players and both had egos to match. Rick says that Eddie had been a life-long fan and was influenced by him. Eddie says that Rick was stealing licks from him. I am not a Weird Al fan at all, but Rick played (produced, even) his parody of Michael Jackson's, "Beat It" ("Eat It"). Rick certainly mimics Eddie's chops on that. I'm sure their beef was deeper than that.
It's like when John Warren Giles - aka J.Giles died and the news said that he'd be remembered for "Centerfold". The news clip I saw (CNN) only mentioned the Weird Al stuff. Rick could play ANY style. He played guitar, pedal steel, bass, etc. He worked with artists from Barbra Streisdand to Johnny Winter - and artists with every style in between. He should probably be remembered for his role as a producer more so than a guitarist, but he was one helluva guitar player!

@rusty Reminds me of the several times over the years I've heard advertising for a Gregg Allman solo concert and among the songs played on the commercial is Ramblin' Man:)
Yes been thinking about Rick. He was 77. I'm 78. Wish I knew what took Rick.

@robertdee He had open heart surgery several weeks ago. I'm guessing that maybe he had complications or reactions?
I turn 68 next month (God willin'). So glad to read that 77 is considered young! 😉

From Warren Haynes:
RIP Rick Derringer.
Derringer was a badass guitar player, a cool singer, and wrote some classic Rock and Roll songs. Songs like "Still Alive and Well,” "Cheap Tequila," and "Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo" were part of the soundtrack to my life when I was a teenage musician soaking in all the music I could wrap my ears around. Being a big Johnny Winter fan I discovered Derringer early on, through their work together, and that music made a big impression on me. The energy coming from those recordings was fantastic. The way the two of them fed off of each other was amazing—two completely different styles that meshed together, bobbing and weaving like two boxers sparring. Some people forget that before Rick became a very successful solo artist he and Johnny introduced the Rock and Roll world to some ground breaking, electrifying music and I was lucky to be a young impressionable guitar player at that time.
I loved his work with Edgar Winter as well. Seems like Rick was everywhere back then— in the center of a lot of amazing music. Fast forward: the only time we ever played together was with the Dickey Betts Band in the late 80’s. Rick sat in with us and played and sang tremendously. I remember him telling a story before we played "Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo," about how the line “There was a group called The Jokers / They were laying it down” was in reference to a band called The Jokers that he used to go see in Ohio that Dickey Betts was part of. I never knew that bit of rock and roll trivia until then and felt lucky and enlightened to find out that way—on stage with both of them. I love it when the dots connect. Rick Derringer connected a lot of dots.- WH

I was fortunate enough to see Rick live twice. First time was with Johnny Winter And which also had on the bill The James Gang while Tommy Bolin was in that group. Winter, Derringer & Bolin that night, pretty hard to top. The second time was at a Tommy Bolin Fest in Spirit Lake, Iowa. I went to see my friend Les Dudek's band and Rick also had a band playing that day. As a bonus, Les jammed with Rick on several tunes. Unique that Tommy Bolin (in some fashion) was involved both times. The Bolin Fest (put on by Tommy's surviving brother Johnnie) was at the same ballroom that Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, The Big Bopper & Waylon Jennings played the night those first three died in a plane crash after the show.
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