Many of you may not have known who he was, but -- Wes Wehmiller, R.I.P.

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Those of you who have paid any sort of attention at all to what I've posted here and at ILE since I started posting know that I'm a huge Duran fan. You may have heard me wax poetic about the concerts of theirs I attended from 1999 - 2001, how I thought their concerts from that era were so amazing and kickass and how much fun I had at them. Well, as you well know, the band's longtime bassist John Taylor had departed company with the band in early 1997, so in the meantime Warren Cuccurullo picked up the bass-directed slack on the records and, in the concerts, Berklee School of Music grad and veritable Renaissance man Wes Wehmiller performed admirably on the bass. So great was the mutual show of respect Wes and John Taylor had toward each other that Wes openly stated in interviews that John was one of his greatest influences, and John embraced and acknowledged Wes's presence at the former's solo club gigs in L.A.

I got a chance to have a Wes encounter in 2000, shortly after one of the Duran concerts in Vegas. He was strolling through the open casino area at the Mandalay Bay, home to the House of Blues, i.e. the venue the band played in Sin City in 2000 and 2001, and I was about to make my way toward the shuttle area to take me back to my hotel room. Still giddy and on a concert high, I spotted him and shrieked out his name, then practically ran toward him. I gave him a huge hug and expressed my appreciation for his bass work. He was very kind and cordial toward me, never pulling away from me, never looking at me disapprovingly or as though I were some crazed fan nut. I still remember that, to this day.

John Wesley "Wes" Wehmiller, born September 12, 1971, was found in his apartment on January 30 (i.e. yesterday) after having passed away in his sleep. Speculation is that he finally succumbed to the thyroid cancer he had recently fought off.

One might choose to trivialize this passing by saying that he was just a member of a touring act, that he wasn't really a member of the band. But to me and to other diehards who continued to be fans of the band during this time, he was, for all intents and purposes, a real, true, full-fledged member of Duran Duran. If John and Roger hadn't wanted to come back into the Duran fold, we would've happily accepted Wes and (Duran touring drummer) Joe Travers as regular members of the lineup and not felt as though we were missing out on anything.

R.I.P.

― Samantha Baker (Dee the Lurker), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 03:12 (twenty years ago)

This is what Nick Rhodes has had to say about Wes's passing:

It was with real sadness that I learned my dear friend Wes had died. It was only weeks ago that we were chatting and laughing over lunch on Sunset Boulevard. He always stuck to a rigorous fitness regime and strict diet, for months after we first met I never saw him eat anything but protein bars, but at lunch last time I saw him, he was both happy and amused to order two different fish on the same plate. He seemed full of hope for the future, despite having had a very difficult couple of years.

Wes was an extraordinary person. He used to spend a lot of time alone in his room when we were on tour - it took me quite a while to figure out what he was doing for hours on end - and then eventually he showed me his computer... He had stored and meticulously catalogued thousands and thousands of images, including many beautiful photographs that he had taken himself. This turned into a real passion, so Wes and I shared the desire to capture that elusive moment every day on film. He was in the digital domain, but I stuck firmly with celluloid. I also admired other great wonders in Wes's archival collection, such as the curious 'Toxic Mullet'.

He had many other seemingly conflicting talents, hockey and chess come to mind. It was the latter for which I frequently threw down the challenge, often at my expense, the former I could not comprehend, yet Wes assured me that it was not simply an excuse to whack someone really hard with a stick.

Wes was fragile, sensitive and intelligent, all great attributes for an artist to have. As a musician he was able to play virtually any instrument to a remarkable standard. During the time he spent on the road with us, I don't ever remember him making a single mistake. I know how much he enjoyed playing the shows, Duran Duran had become an important chapter in his life, yet when the time came to part company he could not have been more gracious. He came to almost every concert we played in California since putting the original line up back together and always came back to see us afterwards filled with generous compliments about the performance.

I have so many fond memories of our times together, but most of all we laughed and laughed. In the darkest moments Wes could always find humour. One story that he told has always remained with me, I'll leave you with it too....

Wes was really late and speeding down a highway in LA, when to his great dismay he saw a traffic cop waving him down. He pulled over and the smug cop said to him "I've been waiting for an asshole like you all day." Without missing a beat Wes responded "I'm sorry, I got here as fast as I could."

― Samantha Baker (Dee the Lurker), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 03:13 (twenty years ago)

(Oh, and here's his online photography portfolio.)

(Sorry. Last post I'll make to this. I'm actually shedding a real tear right now.)

― Samantha Baker (Dee the Lurker), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 03:18 (twenty years ago)

That's a cool answer (to the cop) and it makes him the coolest one of Durran in my book. RIP dude.

― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 09:19 (twenty years ago)

Now that's a tribute and a half, well done. It's a good reminder of how many (relatively) anonymous people there are in music that still keep it all going, without whom etc.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 1 February 2005 13:51 (twenty years ago)

Yeah. I suppose someone who might be working in a "tour musician" capacity might not think about their impact upon the fan experiences of the passionate fans in the audience, but if someone is there doing the work that a departed member of the band would normally do, believe you me, the fans of that particular band will definitely take notice. And that notice can and is quite positive if the work is even competent; Wes's bass playing measured up to John's, which thrilled all of us in the audience at the concerts Wes played in, and he did it while being friendly and kind to the fans.

I timer recorded Duran's appearance on "Good Morning America" this (er, Tuesday) morning. I just got a chance to view it. Simon dedicated "Save a Prayer" to Wes on the program. It won't make up for his habitual denial, in interviews, that the band existed from 1986 - 2001, but it's one small step toward that goal.

― Surreal Addiction (Dee the Lurker), Wednesday, 2 February 2005 07:06 (twenty years ago)

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