Eugene Richard O'Connor, aka Cheetah Chrome passed yesterday.
I've listened to "Young, Loud & Snotty" and "We Have Come For Your Children" twice a month for almost 50 years. That's no lie. I was listening to "Young, Loud & Snotty" just a few hours before hearing the news. Another truth. I'm stunned.
I knew Cheetah for a few years in the early 80's. We shared a rehearsal space on The Bowery across from Phebe's, lovingly called The Pit. He'd pop in and out with his then girlfriend Gyda. It was always a blast. The band I was playing with at the time, The Bandits, with my long time friend Frank De Stefano and bassist Janet Rage, loved hearing him jam with with the guys in the back- Lower East Side legends Shebo, Mugsy and Elda Stilletto--and we particularly latched onto a Cheetah original called "Used To Be Fun," which we were lucky enough to play with him. (Somewhere out there is a cassette with some of that crazy shit.) "Fun," if memory serves, was also the name of Cheetah's dog. Cheetah was a wild man and he was also a sweetheart.
This hit me hard. It was unexpected. But then, it always is.
4 comments:
Aww man this is a tough one. He really was a sweetheart, our kids went to school together here in Nashville years ago and we would sit and talk at school functions. I knew these other parents had no idea who he was, so it was a treat to get to know him. Then he was just gone one day, never appeared again. A hell of a life, and a hell of a guitar player.
Thanks for the info. Always loved his guitar playing with The Dead Boys and his affiliation with James Williamson
Very sorry for your loss. I'll give Young, Loud & Snotty a listen in his honor.
Sorry to hear of his passing - that's cool that you knew him. Nice anecdote too, Tumblingdice70.
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