Dave Burgess might not be a name that most modern music fans recognize, but they certainly might know his hit song.
Burgess, best known for his time as the rhythm guitar player for the rock group The Champs, is credited with helping write the group’s hit song, “Tequila,” which rose to the top of the charts all the way back in 1958.
Sadly, Burgess died back on October 19 in Tennessee, according to TMZ. He was 90.
The outlet said that Burgess is credited with writing more than 700 copyrighted songs.
“Tequila” was the biggest, though. The song won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance in 1959 and reportedly went on to sell more than a million copies.
Nearly 30 years later, the song had a rebirth of sorts as it was featured in a scene of the hit movie, “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.” Pee-wee Herman fires up a biker gang in a bar in the scene when he shushes them while using a phone. The bikers surround Pee-wee and boot him from the bar at which point he promptly knocks over their bikes outside. They drag him back into the bar and debate how bad they are going to hurt him, but Pee-wee is able to scramble to the jukebox where he puts “Tequila” on and begins dancing. That was enough to win the bikers over and give a new generation of fans an appreciation for the song in the process.
To his credit, Burgess kept the fire going late into his life, leading a reunion of The Champs in 2020. The group put out a new album that year as well, “Tequila Party.”
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