Duane Eddy, who became the first stand-alone rock 'n' roll guitar star with a string of instrumental hits in the late '50s and early '60s, including the theme to TV series' Peter Gunn' and 'Rebel Rouser,' died at 86.
Eddy's wife, Deed Abbate, told the Associated Press that the Grammy-winning musician passed away from cancer at Williamson Health Hospital near his home in Franklin, Tennessee.
A representative said that Eddy has inspired a generation of guitarists the world over with his unmistakable signature "twang" sound. He was the first rock and roll guitar god, a genuinely humble and incredible human being.
Eddy developed the "twangy" rock and roll sound that influenced guitarists from Bruce Springsteen to George Harrison. He did this using hand claps, hollers, and his unique rhythmic sound.
He also established that the guitar's lower strings recorded better than its higher ones.
Between 1958 and 1963, the guitarist scored 16 top 40 hits, nearly single-handedly solidifying his rock 'n' roll guitar icon status.
Kyle Young, chief executive of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, said to Variety that instrumentalists only sometimes become famous but noted that Eddy's electric guitar was a voice all its own.
Young described his sound as muscular and masculine, twangy and tough. He shared that Eddy scored more than 30 hits on the pop charts.
Furthermore, he claimed that his style had inspired thousands of hillbilly cats and downtown rockers, including the Ventures, George Harrison, Steve Earle, Bruce Springsteen, and Marty Stuart, to learn how to rumble and move people's hearts.
Eddy recorded more than 50 albums throughout his lifetime, including reissues, most of which were completed before his retirement in the mid-1980s. He was admitted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.
