December 14, 1938 | May 25, 1990
Songwriter, producer, arranger, and occasional singer Gary Lee Usher was a significant figure in the California rock music scene of the 1960s. He was born in Los Angeles, California, on December 14, 1938. Gary grew up in New England; he attended Norcross Grammar School and graduated from Westborough High School in Massachusetts in 1957. After service in Korea, Usher moved back to California in the late 1950s and was a musician in several bands before hitting his stride in the early 1960s.
He has written over 300 songs and collaborated on more than 30 songs with Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys; he co-wrote the band’s classic “409” (the substantial success of this particular song was a significant influence on the whole California-based hot-rod music genre of the 1960s),
“The Lonely Sea,” and the song loved by millions, the timeless “In My Room.” He was involved as a producer and songwriter with many surf/hot-rod groups of the period, which include The Hondells, Jan & Dean The Competitors, The Quads, The Road Runners, The Super Stocks, The Four Speeds, The Silly Surfers, and The Surfaris. In addition, Usher also worked with such artists as Frankie Avalon, Donna Loren, Gene Clark, Dick Dale, Wayne Newton, Annette Funicello, Gram Parsons, Chad and Jeremy, Sons of Adam, The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, Keith Allison, Bill Champlin, Glen Campbell and his own group, Sagittarius. Gary produced three albums for the noted folk-rock band The Byrds: “Younger Than Yesterday,” “The Notorious Byrd Brothers,” and the Americana classic “Sweetheart of the Rodeo.” Usher discovered the comedy group The Firesign Theatre and produced their first album, “Waiting for the Electrician or Someone Like Him.”
He also created Together Records in 1969 and became Vice President of RCA Records in 1970. Usher took a lengthy hiatus from the music industry in the mid-1970s. In 1982, he recorded the Grammy-nominated album “Sanctuary.” Gary collaborated again with Brian Wilson in 1986, releasing “Let’s Go to Heaven in My Car” featuring Gary Usher Jr. on lead guitar. Gary produced several songs for the soundtrack of the “Beach Party” reunion movie Back to the Beach (1987) , Featuring the surf classic “Pipeline” as he brought 2 legendary guitar heroes together: Stevie Ray Vaughn and Dick Dale. Usher had previously composed the scores for the 1960s comedy romps Muscle Beach Party (1964), Ski Party (1965) , and The Girls on the Beach (1965). The Usher music catalog continues to be a source of material as artists such as Pearl Jam, Fiona Apple, Brandy Carlisle, Roger Daltrey, Laura Branigan, and the Commodores have cut his songs.
Gary Usher died from cancer at the tragically young age of 51 on May 25, 1990, in his home in Calabasas, California. He is survived by his 3 sons, Gary Jr., Dehmian, and Braden, and daughter, Dawn.
Gary Usher, Jr. and Gary Usher in the studio
Gary Usher meditating on top of the Pyramid of the Sun, Teotihuacán, Mexico, circa 1972.
Gary Usher in the studio.
GARY USHER DISCOGRAPHY
