In reference to last post: From Sun-Times.com

Derek Frigo, 37, rock guitarist

June 9, 2004

BY RUMMANA HUSSAIN Staff Reporter Advertisement

Years before he gained fame as the ax man for the Chicago-based psychedelic glam band Enuff Z'Nuff, Derek Frigo's songwriter father, Johnny, offered him advice:

"Don't ever take a puff on a cigarette, because once you do, it's going to haunt you for the rest of your life."

But the "by the book" hedonistic lifestyle of an MTV star, soaked in chemical dependent debauchery, enraptured the young musician and lingered well after his career peaked in 1990.

Mr. Frigo, the longtime Enuff Z' Nuff guitarist, died of an apparent drug overdose May 28 outside a friend's apartment in Los Angeles. He was 37.

Just seven months ago, Mr. Frigo sent a desperate paean on the dangers of addiction to his father, vowing sobriety. The lanky, brown-haired hockey aficionado blamed drugs for destroying relationships, his career and "the most valuable years" of his life.

"Dear drugs and alcohol. . . . You have managed to keep me in your grasp far too long. . . . But you have not managed to blind me from the light of God, a higher power or my family, which shine much brighter than you," Mr. Frigo wrote. "From this day on, this light will stay on, so your darkness cannot enter my being anymore. Drugs and alcohol, I have to say goodbye to you forever."

Although he grew up with the jazz virtuoso Johnny Frigo, who penned "The Chicago Cubs Song'' ("Hey, Hey, Holy Mackerel") and a singer-actress mother, Brittney Browne, Mr. Frigo was determined to pursue a career in plastic surgery. However, after watching Kris Kristofferson in "A Star Is Born," his interests changed and soon he mastered the "hammer-on" and "banshee wailing" techniques of his hero Eddie Van Halen, boastfully pounding out the licks with the same zealous intensity of the 1980s guitar god.

Mr. Frigo, a former North Sider, secured "LeMans," his first album on a major record label, when he was only 19. A few years later, he joined Enuff Z'Nuff, whose debut self-titled album scored the hit singles "New Thing" and "Fly High Michelle."

"No major labels were willing to sign us up until Derek played with us," said Chip Z'Nuff, the Blue Island native who founded the band. "He was such a great guitar player. He's totally irreplaceable."

The band enjoyed marginal success and gained noted fans like Howard Stern and David Letterman. Enuff Z'Nuff was named the "hot new band" of 1991 by Rolling Stone magazine. Critics often noted the Aqua Net doused hair and lipsticked pouts the quartet adopted during the height of their popularity in the 1990s belied their unique "Beatlesque" sound.

Mr. Frigo admired his father's musical expertise, showing him off to the likes of Jon Bon Jovi. He even invited Johnny Frigo -- 50 years his senior -- to play violin on one of band's albums, and had the then tuxedo-clad 73-year-old play at the band's show at the Park West in 1990, so the two could perform together.

"I love my dad's music, even though some of it is a bit corny. I steal licks from him all the time," Mr. Frigo told a local newspaper at the time.

Mr. Frigo was currently playing guitar with local Los Angeles bands and was helping former Stone Temple Pilots members with their new material, according to friends. He officially left Enuff Z'Nuff in 1992, but played on the band's upcoming album "?" and was planning to join its members on their upcoming tour of Japan and Europe.

"He was a gentle, sweet-loving guy. He was courteous to grownups," Johnny Frigo said.

Mr. Frigo is also survived by his stepbrother, Rick Frigo.

A memorial service is scheduled for June 16 at the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple, 17190 Sunset Blvd., Pacific Palisades, Calif.