- Born
- Died
- Birth nameVincent Gambella
- Nickname
- Vinnie Bell
- Vincent Bell was born on July 28, 1935 in Brooklyn, New York City, USA. He was a composer, known for Suicide Squad (2016), Point Blank (2019) and Stetsasonic feat. Force MDs: Float On (1988). He died on October 3, 2019 in Tenafly, New Jersey, USA.
- He also helped design a number of electric guitar models with the company Danelectro for its Coral line of instruments, including the "Bellzouki" electric 12-string guitar, and the electric sitar, which was used, not necessarily by Bell, on such hits as "Cry Like a Baby" by The Box Tops, "Green Tambourine" by The Lemon Pipers, and a cover of the love theme from the 1970 film, Airport.
- In the '70s, Bell was personally requested to play on recording sessions for Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, and in the 80's, for the band Anthrax.
- In addition to recording albums of his own, Bell's guitar work was admired by artists as diverse as Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa. Hendrix once called Bell at home to ask how he achieved his many unusual guitar effects. Hendrix told Bell that he loved his electric sitar sound and soon after, Bell personally supervised a custom left-handed electric sitar, made especially for Hendrix.
- He recorded occasionally under his own name, his albums including The Soundtronic Guitar of Vincent Bell (Independent Record Company, 1960), Whistle Stop (Verve, 1964), and Pop Goes the Electric Sitar (Decca, 1967).
- In the late fifties he developed his characteristic "watery" guitar sound, popular in instrumental recordings in the 1960s.
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