Friday, October 07, 2005

Farewell Kokomo

Tim "Kokomo" Gunther, the drummer well-known in Atlanta as The Shuffle King, passed away in a van accident the morning of Sunday, October 2nd 2005. He was riding with The Breeze Kings, returning from a show in Florida. Below is a snare drum that I passed around the gathering at Northside Tavern on Oct. 6th. It was signed by many of Atlanta's blues elite. The drum will be presented to Carlos Capote of The Breeze Kings. I spent a few hours at his viewing today. There was no service, he will be cremated. Tim was laying in an open casket with his famous beret hat, a pair of drum sticks in his hands. Attendees included many friends and fans from the Atlanta Blues Society. Big Bill Morganfield hurried back from a show in Mississippi to be here for the viewing. Sean Costello, Chicago Joe Jones, Larry Griffith, Ab the Flagman, Frank Lombardo, Theron Peterson, and many more notables had arrived by the time I left. Tim was a great player, and a great guy. You can tell by the turnout and respect he got from the musical family that he was respected and loved and will be missed greatly.

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