Dr James 'Jim' Marshall, a.k.a The Lord of Loud, sadly passed away (April 5th) at the age of 88.
The iconic man is known for founding Marshall Amplification, one of the biggest names in music equipment today, back in 1962 – 50 years ago. He started his long career performing as a singer and drummer during World War Two, when he first built his own amplification system – to help his quiet vocals compete with his drumming.
He went on to continue playing in bands, designing his own amps and tutoring others until he had enough money to start Marshall in 1962 – and managed to become one of the most recognised names in the game. Marshall was known as The Lord of Loud or the Father of Loud, and was the first to include a volume selection that went to 11 instead of the usual 10.
A statement on his website reads: “It is with profound sorrow that we announce the passing of our beloved founder and leader for the past 50 years, Jim Marshall. While mourning the Guv’nor though, we also salute a legendary man who led a full and truly remarkable life.
“Jim’s ascent into the history books as ‘the Father of Loud’ and the man responsible for ‘the Sound of Rock’ is a true rags-to-riches tale. Cruelly robbed of his youth by tubercular bones, Jim rose to become one of the four forefathers responsible for creating the tools that allowed rock guitar as we know and love it today to be born. The ground breaking quartet also includes the late, great trio of Leo Fender, Les Paul and Seth Lover – together with Jim, they truly are the cornerstones of all things rock.
“In addition to the creation of the amps chosen by countless guitar heroes and game changing bands, Jim was also an incredibly humble and generous man who, over the past several decades, has quietly donated many millions of pounds to worthy causes.
“While the entire Marshall Amplification family mourns Jim’s passing and will miss him tremendously, we all feel richer for having known him and are happy in the knowledge that he is now in a much better place which has just got a whole lot louder! Rest in Peace & thank you Jim.”
RIP Dr Jim Marshall
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