Tai Remembers Dimebag Darrell On The 10th Anniversary Of His Death

On this day 10 years ago, a hole was torn in music and our hearts forever. Dimebag Darrell Abbott, former Pantera guitarist and at the time Damageplan, was starting the first song of their set at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio when he was murdered on stage by Nathan Gale, a former Marine and schizo.

Others were killed as well when Gale started firing into the crowd and at other members of Damageplan and their crew, including Dime's brother Vinnie Paul. But I'm not here to give you the horrid details of that night, I'm here to talk about the impact this murder had on me, and the impact that Darrell had on me as a musician.

December 8th, 2004 was just another regular day for me. I was playing for my former metal band Post at the time, and working at Walmart. The morning of December 9th, I had an unusual morning shift which began at 7am. It was already a bad day, I was hungover from the night before and didn't want to be at work. If you are a young musician, you know exactly how I was feeling.

I was working at the cash register when I got a personal phone call from my sister. When I answered the phone, I couldn't understand what she was saying because she was crying like we had lost a family member. That right there shows you the impact Dime had on his fans.

I was distraught and scared before I asked her what was wrong.

Then she told me.

At first, I angrily told her not to lie to me. When I realized that this was real and not a hoax, I immediately started crying also. Crying in front of customers that I don't even know.

Once I got home, I had to put it on the news to see it for myself. I felt like I lost a brother because that is the impact he had on me as a fan, musician and a person. Dimebag was my biggest influence in my guitar playing. As a young teenager, I listened to Pantera more than any other band. Dime and his guitar skills were way ahead of their time. Sometimes my bandmates would say, that sounds too much like Pantera.

Many guitar players who play metal will tell you that Dime is a major influence. Just watch this video below of him at the age of 18 and see for yourself!

I cannot believe it's been 10 years since we lost him. Time flies too fast. But I'm not here to talk about the negative, but the many positive things the man did. Many memories pop into my head. The first time I heard Pantera, my ears lost their virginity that day! The first time I saw their home videos (the first one I saw was Vulgar Video and to this day, it never gets old.) I own them on VHS and DVD.

The first time that I finally got to see Pantera was a night that I will NEVER forget. We actually got kicked out of the show at the end, but redeemed that by seeing them again a few years later. I can go on and on about this guitar player that I have never even met in person. He was also known for being the nicest person, but be prepared to do shots!

If you are a member of a younger generation who likes REAL metal, go buy a Pantera album and learn something. If you are my age or older, you already know. So, rest in peace brother Dime. I will have a Black Tooth for you today and will always be appreciative of the impact you have on me every day! Getcha Pull and Watch it Go!