Happy Birthday Gustavo Cerati ! He is one of the most important and influential figures in Latin American rock and an Argentinian rock legend. He was born on August 11, 1959 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. From an early age Cerati showed an interest in music, and he also enjoyed drawing. His first musical influences were groups like The Police (Cerati recorded “Bring on the Night” for a tribute album featuring Andy Summers on guitar and Vinnie Colaiuta on drums), Queen, The Cure, David Bowie (whose chameleonic musical versatility widely inspired Cerati's aesthetics), Brian May, Ritchie Blackmore and Deep Purple.
As he was growing up, he played in different bands including, "Savage," a rock and blues group, "Vozarrón," a fusion band, and a trio called "Triciclo" (tricycle). But it wasn’t until 1982, when he reconnected with Héctor “Zeta” Bosio , a fellow advertising major from the University of Salvador, when they decided that they should get together and form a band. Zeta and Gustavo shared the same musical tastes and had the same aspirations. They wanted to integrate the new wave sound of The Police (which had toured Argentina earlier that year), with their own sound. They also wanted to sing in Spanish.
Charly Alberti was recruited as drummer and they formed Los Estereotipos . After a brief period in which several musicians were tested, they decided to remain as a trio and changed their name to Soda Stereo, which critics say it’s the most important and influential band of Latin rock. They recorded seven studio albums, Soda Stereo (1984), Nada Personal (1985), Signos (1986), Doble Vida (1988), Canción Animal (1990), Dynamo (1992) and Sueño Stereo (1995). Cerati continued to have a very successful solo career, and it was during one of his concerts in Venezuela, that he suffered a stroke that left him in a coma on May 15, 2010.
He was admitted to Centro Médico La Trinidad in Caracas, Venezuela, after what was reported as an "ischemic vascular event" and was later transferred to Argentina and was hospitalized in the FLENI Neurological Institute in Buenos Aires on June 7, 2010 after undergoing surgery. On June 8, 2010, Doctors reported extensive brain damage due to a stroke. Cerati remained in a coma until he experienced a respiratory arrest that led to his death on September 4, 2014. Throughout his career, he was nominated for various Grammy, MTV, and Gardel awards. In 2007, he reunited with his band, Soda Stereo , for their “Me Verás Volver” Tour.
Here are 10 of his quotes to remember him on what would’ve been his 57th birthday.
1. "To say goodbye is to grow" -- Gustavo Cerati
2. "Even I have the sun to kiss your shadow." -- Gustavo Cerati
3. "I know the devil haunting loneliness." -- Gustavo Cerati
4. "What attracts usually comes from a place you'd never think." -- Gustavo Cerati
5. "When there is nothing else to say, I go for a smoke" -- Gustavo Cerati
6. "If anything I stopped is because I understood everything except the distance." -- Gustavo Cerati
7. "After a brain bath was ready to be loved over time and now I think the void is a normal place.." -- Gustavo Cerati
8. "I want to do the impossible." -- Gustavo Cerati
9. "I spent my life imagining, this is no time to be a coward." -- Gustavo Cerati
10. "Our future depends on how we understand the past." -- Gustavo Cerati
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