Gerald Weber, who built guitar amplifiers under the Kendrick brand and was a longtime contributor to Vintage Guitar, died at his home April 17 after battling cancer for two years. He was 71.

Weber grew up in Port Arthur, Texas, and fell in love with music at an early age. His mother sponsored a teen club where, at age 11, Weber began attending events with his older sister acting as chaperone. Among the acts he saw there was Billy Gibbons in Moving Sidewalks. He started playing in local bands at 14 and was first-chair drummer in the school band; he eventually took up other instruments.

After spending most of the 1980s operating direct-to-consumer meat companies in Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, and Florida, in ’88 he began building amplifiers in a small shop on his property in Pflugerville, Texas. There, he learned to design and wire circuits by studying books about tube amplifiers written by Ken Fischer and others. He spent many hours on the phone with Fischer, talking about amps and other music topics. In February of 1991, he began writing the “Amps” column in VG, followed later that year by the “Ask Gerald” Q&A column. He compiled some of that material and further research while authoring five books on tube amplifiers.

“Gerald was committed to building the very best amplifiers he could,” said Jill Weber, his wife of 30 years. “He continually researched and designed circuits in pursuit of the best tone he could get from his designs. He had very high standards and was always willing to speak with people about their tone and amplifiers, and very much enjoyed sharing his knowledge with everyone. He had a weekly webinar that brought him a lot of joy because he could speak with people who had the same passion.

“He was always genuinely interested in everyone he met, and was willing to help all.”

This article originally appeared in VG’s July 2024 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.