Garry Roberts
The foundational guitarist whose sharp, urgent riffs defined the early sound of The Boomtown Rats and helped ignite Ireland's punk and new wave scene.
1954–2022 (age 68)·Irish guitarist and sound engineer·Birthday: June 16·Baby Boomers
Biography
Before Bob Geldof became a global figure, he was the frontman for a Dublin band built on the musical backbone of Garry Roberts. A skilled sound engineer and guitarist with a taste for wiry, cutting tone, Roberts was there at the very beginning, co-founding The Boomtown Rats with keyboardist Johnnie Fingers. His guitar work, heard on explosive early hits like 'Rat Trap' and 'Looking After No. 1,' provided the tense, energetic drive that separated the Rats from their British punk contemporaries, injecting a dose of rhythm and blues swagger into the Irish new wave. Roberts was part of the machine that broke Ireland onto the international rock scene and scored a UK number one. He stayed with the band through its initial late-70s explosion and its mid-80s commercial peak, including the worldwide phenomenon of 'I Don't Like Mondays.' After the Rats first disbanded, he stepped away from the spotlight, returning only for periodic reunions. Roberts was less a showman and more a craftsman, the steady hand whose riff-making was essential to the band's gritty, intelligent attack.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Garry was born in 1954, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Garry Was Born
The biggest hits of 1954
#1 Movie
White Christmas
Best Picture
On the Waterfront
#1 TV Show
I Love Lucy
Garry's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1954Born
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1959Started school
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1967Became a teenager
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1970Could drive
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1972Could vote
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1975Turned 21
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1984Turned 30
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1994Turned 40
Nelson Mandela elected president of South Africa
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $90,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"The Sign" — Ace of BaseBest Picture: Forrest Gump
2004Turned 50
Indian Ocean tsunami kills over 230,000
Gas: $1.88/galHome: $157,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Yeah!" — UsherBest Picture: Million Dollar Baby
2014Turned 60
Russia annexes Crimea; Ebola outbreak in West Africa
Gas: $3.37/galHome: $160,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Happy" — Pharrell WilliamsBest Picture: Birdman
2022Died at 68
Russia invades Ukraine; Queen Elizabeth II dies
Gas: $3.97/galHome: $348,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"As It Was" — Harry StylesBest Picture: Everything Everywhere All at Once
Key Achievements
- Co-founded The Boomtown Rats and served as their lead guitarist from 1975 through their initial breakup in 1986.
- His guitar work contributed to several UK Top 10 hits, including the number-one single 'Rat Trap'.
- Performed at the historic Live Aid concert in 1985 as a member of The Boomtown Rats.
- Worked as a sound engineer for the band and on other projects, applying technical expertise to their studio recordings.
Did You Know?
He was known for his distinctive 'burst' Gibson Les Paul guitar.
Before the Boomtown Rats, he played in a Dublin band called The Nightlight Thieves.
He was a qualified electrician before committing to music full-time.
He rejoined The Boomtown Rats for their reunion tours in the 2010s.
“The sound of a Telecaster through a cranked AC30 is the sound of truth.”
