Former OVERKILL Guitarist Remembers DEBBIE ABONO

May 19, 2010

Former OVERKILL guitarist Bobby Gustafson has issued the following statement regarding the passing of Debbie Abono, a well-respected and much-loved manager and promotional machine behind some of San Francisco Bay Area's strongest metal bands (POSSESSED, FORBIDDEN, EXODUS, VIO-LENCE, SKINLAB):

"For Debbie Abono and I, it all started back in '93 when I was in the Bay Area checking out the scene. I was alone, so Debbie asked if i wanted to move into her house. On the second day I was there, her kitchen caught on fire. Nancy (her daughter) and I saved the house from burning down by throwing a few pots of water on it. And for the next two years, every day was just as exciting as that one.

"Typical Debbie, she just laughed at us. But from then on, I was part of the family. Debbie treated me like one of her own and even took me on vacations with everyone family and friends to Hawaii and New Orleans.

"At an age when most people ease into retirement. Debbie does a 180 and starts to book shows, manage metal bands, and help musicians in the Bay Area. She easily could have done nothing but enjoy her golden years, but instead did something that she said kept her young.

"Well, it worked and she beat her first bout with cancer for the past 17 years.

"I once heard someone ask me to think of 10 people in the course of your life that have changed you for the better or put you on a path better than what you were on previously. Debbie Abono is definately in my top three. She took me in and changed my whole way of thinking.

"An honest person in the music biz, Debbie did life on her own terms and in her own way and she did everything on a handshake; she hated lawyers.

"Those were two of the best years of my life, giving me lifelong friends and an adopted family.

"Every once in awhile, the powers that be place a rare gem of a person in this world, one that will touch a multitude of people and make them better for knowing them. For me that person was my second mom, Debbie Abono.

"I love you. I miss you. So glad we were able to talk one last time on Mother's Day. And I know you're giving someone shit somewhere.

"Forever grateful to have been in your presence.

"Your son, Bobby..."

Find more on

Prev More News Next

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).