Kevin Gilbert was a rock musician from southern California who made music as a member of several projects during the late eighties and nineties. He was a skilled performer who could capably play many instruments (primarily keyboards), sing, and also write dense, multi-layered compositions that offered catchy pop hooks spliced together with nuanced musical elements that intrigued the ear. In addition to writing and producing his own projects, Gilbert did production and songwriting work for musical stalwarts such as Madonna, Michael Jackson, Sheryl Crow and Eddie Money.
Kevin Gilbert was also… Ok, I hear the snickering out there so I guess there’s something I should get out of the way right now. Some of you are saying, “Waitasec! Isn’t Gilbert one of these dudes who killed himself by autoerotic asphyxiation? Like he was wanking it while choking himself and it all went bad? Ha!” Sigh… yes, by all accounts this is true. But if you only think of Gilbert as a guy who jerked himself off to death then you are missing the much bigger and more important story.
As I write this article, I am presuming that most of my readers are unfamiliar with the career of Kevin Gilbert and that’s just plain sad; few people were more deserving of a successful turn in the music industry. Gilbert had the talent, skills, music philosophy, intellectual lyrics, stage presence (and good looks) that are often precursors to fame and fortune. Additionally, during his twenties, he built up a track record of composing great music. However, for a variety of reasons, Gilbert never got his big break and never became a household name.
Gilbert’s music career started early. He was barely into his twenties when he was touring and recording with pop rocker Eddie Money (and this is back when touring with Eddie Money actually meant something.) A short while later he joined in the formation of the synth-prog project, Giraffe. Giraffe recorded two cds and won the 1988 Yamaha Soundcheck competition, beating out thousands of other bands. (Interestingly, the first Giraffe album was the first ever independently pressed music CD, kicking off a trend that tens of thousands of bands would participate in during the coming decades.)
By Wil Forbis
Kevin Gilbert was a rock musician from southern California who made music as a member of several projects during the late eighties and nineties. He was a skilled performer who could capably play many instruments (primarily keyboards), sing, and also write dense, multi-layered compositions that offered catchy pop hooks spliced together with nuanced musical elements that intrigued the ear. In addition to writing and producing his own projects, Gilbert did production and songwriting work for musical stalwarts such as Madonna, Michael Jackson, Sheryl Crow and Eddie Money.
Kevin Gilbert was also… Ok, I hear the snickering out there so I guess there’s something I should get out of the way right now. Some of you are saying, “Waitasec! Isn’t Gilbert one of these dudes who killed himself by autoerotic asphyxiation? Like he was wanking it while choking himself and it all went bad? Ha!” Sigh… yes, by all accounts this is true. But if you only think of Gilbert as a guy who jerked himself off to death then you are missing the much bigger and more important story.
As I write this article, I am presuming that most of my readers are unfamiliar with the career of Kevin Gilbert and that’s just plain sad; few people were more deserving of a successful turn in the music industry. Gilbert had the talent, skills, music philosophy, intellectual lyrics, stage presence (and good looks) that are often precursors to fame and fortune. Additionally, during his twenties, he built up a track record of composing great music. However, for a variety of reasons, Gilbert never got his big break and never became a household name.
Gilbert’s music career started early. He was barely into his twenties when he was touring and recording with pop rocker Eddie Money (and this is back when touring with Eddie Money actually meant something.) A short while later he joined in the formation of the synth-prog project, Giraffe. Giraffe recorded two cds and won the 1988 Yamaha Soundcheck competition, beating out thousands of other bands. (Interestingly, the first Giraffe album was the first ever independently pressed music CD, kicking off a trend that tens of thousands of bands would participate in during the coming decades.)
