William Dennis Gent
William Dennis Gent
1950 - 2002
Bill was one of the three best drummers I 've ever worked with, and
one of my oldest friends. He was a true musician, not just a banger,
as are so many other rock drummers. He also played guitar, sang,
and wrote a few tunes, some of which appear on the Bacchanalia
CD. Bill and I went to Seacrest High School in the 60's; we were
friendly rivals, always in different bands. I was jealous of him
for a while - it seemed as though he never had to study, but always did
really well in school, whereas I had to really try hard to keep up with
him. He was the person who turned me on to Jimi Hendrix for the first
time. I remember sitting in his bedroom being totally blown away
by Hendrix's first album. Bill and Michael Osborn were just about
the smartest guys I knew for a long time. After Bill graduated from
Seacrest, he moved to Wisconsin and enrolled as a double-major in Music
and Physics. Not the easiest academic path to take. More important,
Bill was a really nice guy. Life kicked him around quite a bit, but
he never seemed to lose his positive attitude. Whenever we were working
together, he was always full of energy, ambition, and drive, and had a
great sense of humor. I had lost touch with him for the last couple
of years before his death, so I was a bit surprised to hear that he had
returned to his Epicople roots, (his mother was very active at St. Paul's
Episcople Church in Delray Beach). Bill was a grand guy, and I'll
always miss him.