Vale Bruce Jackson sound genius.

[Allan Black]

As a student at his Sydney high school, Bruce built a radio transmitter in his folks basement and at night broadcast music for his mates in the district. But it was powerful enough to be picked up in other parts of Sydney and the feds picked it up, called his folks and made him stop. He dropped out of Uni to start JANDS with a mate, it was the first outfit to stage big Australian concerts for rock groups with Bruce’s designed amps and concert speakers.

I remember this like it was yesterday …

In 1974 the day before Bruce Jackson drove out to Mascot airport to fly to the U.S.A. to join Elvis he came into the ATA back studio and says to me, “Would you like to buy my 2 JBL 4311B speakers?” I says “Ok how much are you selling them for?” Bruce says “$400” “Ok! sold!”

Bruce says, “Tomorrow morning I’ll stop by with the speakers in the back of my friend’s car, can you have the 400 ready in cash?” I says “Sure!”

And that’s what happened, I gave him the cash and helped him carry them in.

At the time they were worth at least $1500 and in 2002 I sold them together with my studio.

Then Bruce flew off to fame and fortune with Elvis, Bruce Springsteen and others. I once read where Barbara Streisand wouldn’t move without him.

It’s now exactly 15 years since BJ was lost in his plane crash on 29 Jan 2011.

Here’s part of the NTSB report …

Bruce Jackson accident NTSB narrative …
WPR11FA114 HISTORY OF FLIGHT On January 29, 2011, at an undetermined time, a Mooney M20J, N50BJ, impacted terrain near Furnace Creek, California. The owner/pilot was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The certificated private pilot was fatally injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage by impact forces.

The report also contains the following findings for tested drugs: Rosuvastatin was detected in liver and urine. I know Rosuvastatin is a medical drug with some very bad side effects, so maybe that was the cause of his crash.

Bruce was 61.