Legendary Guitarist Jerry Miller Of Moby Grape Passes Away At 81
Jerry Miller, the iconic guitarist and founding member of the psychedelic rock band Moby Grape, passed away suddenly on Saturday, July 20, at the age of 81. The news was confirmed by a representative of the band, although the cause of death has not been disclosed.
Born in 1943 and raised in Tacoma, Washington, Jerry began his musical journey in the Pacific-Northwest bar-band scene, alongside future legends like Jimi Hendrix. Reflecting on Hendrix in a 2021 interview with The Seattle Times, Jerry said, “He was good, but somehow you didn’t think of him as the man who’d reinvent the electric guitar. The main thing you heard in those days was that he played too damn loud. Like me, I suppose.”
Jerry was also a member of the Seattle rock band The Frantics, touring with Texas rocker Bobby Fuller and playing on an early demo of Fuller’s 1966 classic I Fought The Law. Before The Frantics disbanded, they moved to San Francisco, joining a burgeoning music scene that included the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane.
In 1966, Jerry, along with Bob Mosley and Don Stevenson from The Frantics, joined forces with guitarist Peter Lewis and former Airplane member Skip Spence to form Moby Grape. The band quickly made a name for themselves in the Bay Area’s psychedelic rock scene. Jerry was the lead guitarist and backup vocalist, contributing to many of the group’s iconic tracks, including Hey Grandma, 8:05, and Murder In My Heart For The Judge.
Moby Grape’s success was unfortunately short-lived, partly due to Skip Spence’s excessive LSD use, which led to a breakdown. Skip passed away in 1999 at the age of 52. Jerry reflected on the band’s potential, saying, “We could have had it all, but we ended up with pretty well nothing.”
After Moby Grape’s initial disbandment, Jerry moved on to form the Rhythm Dukes in 1969 with singer-songwriter Bill Champlin. The band released their only album in 1970 before disbanding when Moby Grape reunited for their 1971 album, 20 Granite Creek.
Throughout the years, Moby Grape experienced multiple breakups and reunions, but Jerry eventually shifted his focus to a solo career. In the 1990s, he returned to his hometown of Tacoma, Washington, continuing to perform live.
In 2010, Jerry reunited with the surviving original members of Moby Grape and Skip Spence’s son, Omar, to record an album. However, the album has never been released.
