Last Sunday afternoon, Gary Pratt, a legendary local musician who played in some of the most well-known bands in the Hilton Head area and helped lead worship at Hilton Head Island Community Church, died after an 18-month long battle with ALS, a fatal neurodegenerative disease.
Locals would recognize Gary from his performances at the Tiki Hut on Sunday afternoons, Captain Woody’s on Thursday nights, Scott’s Fish Market, Calhoun’s or Big Bamboo. He played in local bands like JoJo Squirrel & The Home Pickles and Low Country Boil. He was a well-rounded, multi-instrumentalist — he played the bass, guitar and keyboard — with a vocal range that “didn’t know space and time,” according to the musicians that played with him throughout the years.
Off stage, Gary was a dedicated and loving father to his two daughters, Abbey, 16, and Mallory, 13, and husband to his wife, Connie. He was the youngest of eight siblings.
Mike Kavanaugh, who has played music on Hilton Head Island for 40 years and played with Gary for more than 20 of them, described Gary as a “musician’s musician,” or someone other musicians hold in the highest regard.