Dickie Peterson

Dickie Peterson
Dickie Peterson in Cologne in 2008
Background information
Born	(1946-09-12)September 12, 1946 Grand Forks, North Dakota, U.S.
Died	October 12, 2009(2009-10-12) (aged 63) Erkelenz, Germany
Genres	Blues rock, psychedelic rock, heavy metal
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Bass, vocals, guitar
Years active	1966–2009
Associated acts	Blue Cheer, Hank Davison Band, Mother Ocean

Richard Allan "Dickie" Peterson (September 12, 1946 – October 12, 2009) was an American musician, best known as the bassist and lead singer for Blue Cheer. He also recorded two solo albums: Child of the Darkness and Tramp.

Born in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Peterson played bass since the age of thirteen, and knew at the age of eight that he wanted to become a professional musician. He came from a musical family: his father played trombone, his mother played piano and his brother, Jerre Peterson, initially played flute. Drums were Peterson's first instrument.

Peterson spent much of his youth in East Grand Forks, Minnesota, the twin city to Grand Forks, North Dakota, where he was born. He attended Grand Forks Central High School from Grade 10 to Grade 12. His parents died when he was young, resulting in him living with his aunt and uncle on a farm in North Dakota, for part of his youth.

Peterson cited Otis Redding as a significant influence. He credited his brother, the late Jerre Peterson, as being his lifelong musical influence. Jerre Peterson was one of the lead guitarists in the initial lineup of Blue Cheer (the other being Leigh Stephens) and played with various formations of the band in later years.

Peterson spent much of the past two decades preceding his death based in Germany, playing with Blue Cheer and other groups on occasion. In 1998 and 1999, he played various dates in Germany with the Hank Davison Band and as an acoustic duo with Hank Davison under the name "Dos Hombres." He appeared on the album, Hank Davison and Friends - Real Live. In 2001 and 2002, Peterson played, principally in Germany, with Mother Ocean, a group he formed that included former Blue Cheer guitarist Tony Rainier, as well as brother Jerre Peterson. There are 4 tracks by Mother Ocean available for listening through their Myspace page.

Throughout his life, Peterson's relationship to music had been all-consuming. Peterson provided the following self-description: "I've been married twice, I’ve had numerous girlfriends, and they’ll all tell you that if I’m not playing music I am an animal to live with. ...Music is a place where I get to deal with a lot of my emotion and displaced energy. I always only wanted to play music, and that’s all I still want to do."