Beloved singer Jerry Miller, one of the founders of ska-godfathers The Untouchables, has died. The news was shared on the band’s Instagram account by Bubba Sanchez, the band’s keyboardist.
“The Untouchables are sad to announce the passing of our leader, our face, and the longest-running member, Jerry Miller, The EQ,” Sanchez wrote in a post on Oct. 3. “I had hoped to make a better, more formal announcement. However, news seems to already be spreading.
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“For those who do not know, Jerry has been dealing with health issues his entire life,” Sanchez went on to share. “For over the past 4 years, he has been addressing kidney and more recently heart issues. For the last year, he has been in and out of hospitals and skilled nursing facilities.”
“Yet, he always made sure and tried his hardest to make every single show no matter what. The band was everything to him. The band was his purpose and his drive,” Sanchez continued. “In recent years, we have had the pleasure of playing some fantastic and amazing shows and venues, and Jerry loved every minute of it. I could go on and on, but I just wanted to make sure we made some sort of announcement from the band.”
Sanchez letter went on to explain, “The Untouchables (with Jerry’s Blessing) will continue to carry the banner with Original Member, Chuck Askernese, on lead vocals. Preserving the memory and sound of so many members before us,” he concluded his message, “including eternal members Clyde Grimes AKA The City Gent and THE MAN THE MYTH THE LEGEND THE EQ, MISTER JERRY MILLERRRRRR!!!!”
Many of Miller’s peers have since come out to mourn his passing, including the members of Meet Me at the Pub, a ska/punk band from Venice Beach CA that he’d been close with. “Jerry lived and breathed music,” that band wrote in a memorial on Instagram. “That was his soul passion and you could see it especially when he played with The Untouchables. His energy was like no other and he played a mean tambourine!
The Untouchables have since announced a benefit concert in Miller’s honor, to be held on Monday, Oct. 28. In addition to the groundbreaking soul band, the concert will also feature iconic ’80s New Wave artists such as A Flock of Seagulls, Bow Wow Wow, and members of Oingo Boingo.
