Bob Bogle(1934-2009)

Robert Lenard Bogle was born on January 16, 1934 near Wagoner, Oklahoma. When Bob was 12, his older brother Clarence bought an acoustic lap-steel guitar. It had a large square neck and, as with all steel guitars, was played with a small hand-held steel bar. Bob learned to play chords almost immediately as and soon learned to accompany himself, singing simple songs with only 3 chords, like most of the country songs of the time, and continued playing that instrument for a couple of years. At the age of 23, Bob took a job as foreman for a construction company in Seattle, Washington. After a few months, Bob met Don Wilson who was working as a salesman in a car lot. The two found they had a mutual interest in the guitar. On weekends, they began to practice together, and decided to purchase electric guitars, starting with used guitars they found in a pawn shop. After finding Walk, Don't Run on a Chet Atkins album, Bob and Don decided to record the song, which almost instantly became their first world-wide hit record. Although Bob continues to play lead guitar on some songs, he switched to bass guitar a short time after the Ventures became a hit group.