Gabriel “The Gun” Gonzalez, the original trumpet player for the Gwen Stefani-fronted band No Doubt, has died. Gonzalez tragically lost his life in a motorcycle accident in Hermosa Beach, California, on Thursday, Sept. 12, a family representative confirmed to SPIN. Further information wasn’t disclosed. Gonzalez was 57.
Born on July 11, 1967, Gonzalez grew up in Anaheim, California, where he played trumpet in the Loara High School band. It was there that he met Stefani and her brother Eric, also students at the school. In 1988, the trio – Stefani on backing vocals, Eric on keyboard, and Gonzalez on trumpet – formed No Doubt along with John Spence (lead vocals), Jerry McMahon (guitar), Chris Leal (bass), Chris Webb (drums), Alan Meade (trumpet), and Tony Meade (saxophone).
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“We were all into Madness and Prince Buster and all the Trojan s—, so Eric started banging out some upbeat ska s— and we were just goofing off writing music and we’re like, ‘let’s form a group.’ Bing bang boom, that’s how it happened,” Gonzalez recalled to SPIN in January.
After practicing in Eric’s parents’ garage, the group started to perform live shows before releasing their debut album in 1992. The Beacon Street Collection followed in 1995, with the band’s diamond-certified album Tragic Kingdom coming that same year.
In addition to playing trumpet, Gonzalez helped compose many of the band’s original early songs and is credited as a co-writer on No Doubt’s “Total Hate” (featured in The Beacon Street Collection and the Boom Box compilation) and “Paulina” (from No Doubt). Reflecting on the group’s music, he said, “we all kind of knew that we were creating something different, and being in the mod-ska scene in the early mid-’80s was a pretty spectacular thing
After playing with No Doubt throughout the ’80s, Gonzalez went on to attend the prestigious Berklee School of Music in Boston. Outside of No Doubt, Gonzalez also played in bands including Save Ferris, the Untouchables, the Skeletones, and Kingston A Go Go.
News of his passing sparked a wave of tributes online, with one person writing on Reddit, “Gabriel ‘The Gun’ Gonzalez was a legend and a huge part of No Doubt’s early days. His trumpet playing was fire and he had such a cool stage presence. RIP to a true OG. “
Gonzalez is survived by his three children.
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