San Francisco Chronicle

Obituary: Paul Revere, leader of the Raiders rock band

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LOS ANGELES— Paul Revere, the organist and leader of the Raiders rock band, has died. Hewas 76.

Roger Hart, manager for Paul Revere and the Raiders, said he died Saturday at his home in Garden Valley, Idaho, from cancer. Mr. Revere was born in Harvard, Neb., Hart said.

“He’d been quiet about it for some time,” Hart said. “Treated at the Mayo Clinic, Paul stayed on the road as long as he could, then retired recently back to Idaho, where he and his wife, Sydney, always kept a home.”

Mr. Revere, born Paul Revere Dick, became known as “the madman of rock ’n’ roll” for his theatrical colonial wardrobe and infectious onstage persona with the band.

“From day one, we’ve always been a party band that accidental­ly had some hit records and accidental­ly got on a hit television series,” Mr. Revere told the Associated Press in a 2000 interview.

The group became popular in 1963 with its rendition of Richard Berry’s “Louie, Louie” before releasing its own hits, such as “Kicks,” ‘'Hungry” and “Good Thing.” The band’s biggest smash came in 1971 with “Indian Reservatio­n.”

Paul Revere and the Raiders served as the house band for the Dick Clark TV show “Where the Action Is” and made an appearance as themselves in the “Batman” TV series starring Adam West.

While the band’s lineup changed over the past 50 years, Mr. Revere remained a constant presence with the group and he continued touring until this year.

“I don’twant to get into the details but let’s just say, it ain’t fun,” Mr. Revere wrote last year of his battle with cancer. “It’s been rough getting through the last few shows, but Iwould dowhatever it takes to avoid missing a show. I’m giving it my all, and then some, and the band tells me I’ve been even more awesome than usual.”

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 ?? Jeremy Harmon / Idaho Press-tribune 2003 ?? Paul Revere (right), who died of cancer, hugs Vietnam veteran Gary Ryska on the steps of Nampa (Idaho) City Hall in 2003.
Jeremy Harmon / Idaho Press-tribune 2003 Paul Revere (right), who died of cancer, hugs Vietnam veteran Gary Ryska on the steps of Nampa (Idaho) City Hall in 2003.

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