Bill Pitman, guitarist and member of the legendary session musicians The Wrecking Crew, has passed away at 102 years of age. According to Brooklyn Vegan, the musician passed away on Thursday, August 11, 2022, at his home in La Quinta, California.
Pitman came from a musical background – born February 12, 1920, his father was a staff guitarist for NBC in Rockefeller Center. Pitman himself took up the guitar from a young age, and the rest is history. He would go on to perform with Peggy Lee in 1951 and shortly thereafter became a highly sought-after guitarist throughout the ‘50s and ‘60s. His playing can be heard on some of the most well-known songs of all time, including “Good Vibrations”, by The Beach Boys, “Be My Baby”, by The Ronettes, “Strangers in the Night”, by Frank Sinatra, “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head”, by B.J. Thomas, and “The Way We Were” by Barbra Streisand.
He had an illustrious career which also spanned Hollywood productions; his playing can also be heard on well-known films and tv shows such as Goodfellas, M*A*S*H, Blue Hawaii, and more. Pitman will surely be missed, but his legacy will live on for ages to come.
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