WORDS AND INTERVIEWS BY JULIE BURNS
Ronnie Dawson was a rare rocking talent who seemed to operate in reverse: the man known as the Blond Bomber actually got better as he got older. He achieved regional success in his native Texas back in the 1950s, but it was between 1988 and his premature passing in 2003, that the singer enjoyed heroic cult status across Europe’s revivalist circuit. While many of his peers’ careers had packed up early, Ronnie burned more brightly second time round.
“Ronnie’s UK fans were very important to him,” his wife, Chris, tells Vintage Rock today. “He received more recognition from those fans than he ever received here in the US. Actually, all over Europe he was more appreciated than at home. I am so grateful for that, as was he.”