Farewell 'Father of Loud'

Sad, if inevitable news given his age, of Jim Marshall's death today.

There will be lots of obituaries on other web sites, and in papers and magazines worldwide, so I'll not repeat it here. Suffice it to say that without Marshall amps the history of rock would have been quite different.

The wide publicity that Marshall's death will get, given his fundamental place in the pantheon of rock, might also stimulate 'the powers that be' (in this case the West London Borough of Ealing) to think about erecting a plaque on the original Marshall shop on Hanwell High Street. It would be a welcome addition to one plaque that this rock heritage rich borough does have, identifying the site of the Ealing Blues Club. The history of the two sites are inextricably linked. The club was formed basically as an alternative to the more folksy Roundhouse in Soho where amplification of guitars was not allowed. Many of the Ealing club's performers (like Clapton, Townsend, Jack Bruce, Cyril Davies)later become indelibly associated with Marshall's equipment.

Incidentally, April 7th marks the 50th anniversary of Mick Jagger's performance at the club (with band Little Boy Blue and the Blue Boys, and the meeting with Brian Jones that would lead three months later to the first performance of the Rolling Stones at the Marquee.