By NEIL RAMOS
Pinoy Rock legend Wally Gonzalez, guitarist and found member of the Juan dela Cruz band, has passed away.
He was 72.
The news was confirmed by his son, John, in a Facebook post on Friday.
He wrote, “My father Wally Gonzalez Full passed away peacefully in his sleep earlier this morning. To his friends in the music industry and off, we are arranging for a short wake so that you can visit him post-cremation, as was his last wishes. I will be posting updates soon.”
Gonzalez started his music career in the ‘60s with the Jungle Cats.
But it was along with Mike Hanopol and the late Joey “Pepe” Smith that he made huge leap forward and became a full-fledged rock star, spearheading the Pinoy Rock movement of the ‘70s with Juan dela Cruz band etching a number of huge hits, including “Balong Malalim,” “Beep Beep,” and, of course, the iconic “Himig Natin.”
Dubbed “the quiet Juan dela Cruz” for his inclination to simply let his guitar do the
talking for him, Gonzalez further made inroads as a solo musician making an indelible mark in Pinoy Rock history with his signature instrumental “Wally’s Blues.”
