On this day five years ago (March 3. 2012), guitarist Ronnie Montrose died.

Ronnie Montrose was a well respected rock guitarist who performed with and did session work for artists including Sammy Hagar, Van Morrison, Edgar and Johnny Winter, and many others. When the first Montrose album was released in 1973, it was often cited as ‘America’s answer to Led Zeppelin’, and also labeled ‘the first american heavy metal album’ by some critics. Ronnie Montrose mainly used a Gibson Les Paul, and has been highly regarded as one of the most influential guitarists in hard rock.

Montrose died at the age of 64. It was initially thought that the cause of death was due to prostate cancer returning but it was later confirmed that the rocker had taken his own life after a lifetime of battling depression. We can credit Ronnie Montrose for starting the great career of 'The Red Rocker' Sammy Hagar.

Check out Montrose ‘Bad Motor Scooter’ featuring Sammy Hagar on vocals.

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