Where do I start? I met Rick when I was 23, when he first came to California with Drive. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t immediately drawn to him, but he had a girlfriend at the time and I was his band’s manager’s little sister. We did become close friends very quickly and we would sneak off and talk all night long about the world, and the universe and music and art and love and life…he told me one day he was going to “take off my rose-colored glasses” and he did and he showed me how to find beauty in places I would never have otherwise looked.  He was the smartest and most creative guy I had ever met and even in our 20’s he possessed more depth than any man I have met to this day. He was a wordsmith and a poet and he spoke in song without even trying. He was so filled with passion and determination to make his art be heard.  He was intoxicating and it made people just want to be around him, he was not a rock star, he never wanted to be a rock star, he was an artist, he was a story teller, he was an eye-opener.

His band got a record deal and recorded two albums that Rick co-produced, which is almost unheard of for a new artist, but my guess is the powers that be at the record label saw his passion and gave him control of the producer’s board. They made the right choice, betting on him, because his words and music still resonate today. He toured the country with his bandmates and best friends and although they spent many nights sleeping on floors and many days eating bologna sandwiches, they also had the time of their life and so did the rest of us who got to be part of it.

Our connection was strong from the start and as time went on Rick didn’t have a girlfriend anymore and he stopped looking at me like I was his manager’s little sister and we became closer. That’s when I first fell in love with him.

But then life happened, his Dad was not well, there were shake-ups at the record label, the band members started to get restless, there were circumstances beyond our control, he moved back to Texas and I stayed in California. When his Dad passed away he took a part of Rick with him, and although Rick continued on, there was always a bit of sadness that never left him. Life took us on separate journeys. We kept in touch over the years and I remember he called me once and said “regardless of distance, there’s an invisible rope that holds us together, if you don’t let go, I won’t let go.” And we never did.

Rick was the kind of person who tried to find the beauty in everything and everybody, sometimes to his own detriment, but he was never afraid to take a chance. There were relationships, and marriages, and children were born and then we found ourselves both single again and finally at the same time.

When we re-united it was like no time had passed and there we were again staying up all night talking about the world, and the universe and music and art and love and life. Both a little weathered from things life had thrown at us but totally connected once again and even more so than before.

Rick loved his daughter Dakota and little Alex more than words can say and when my son was brought into the mix he immediately loved him too, unconditionally and like his own. He willingly would sacrifice anything for those kids. I fell in love with Dakota and Alex too and we worked to blend our new little family.

Rick was the guy that would give you the shirt off his back if you asked for it, I have literally seen him give somebody the shirt right off his back.

He loved his mom and always wished he could do more for her and he missed his Dad more than I can express. He was so proud of his brothers, he would say to me…”Henry is one of the smartest men I have ever known…don’t ever get into a debate with him because you will lose. Jesse was the protector who fought off anybody that dare mess with his brothers and sometimes took a beating for them if he had to, Manuel was the paramedic and firefighter, he would say “if you ever get hurt, Manuel is the one you want to come help you” and David, his baby brother, his “toy” when they were kids… the “brave firefighter, who would run into burning buildings to save people he didn’t even know.” He talked about how lucky his brothers were to have wives that were such strong and beautiful women.  He adored his nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephew and was so proud of all of them. He loved being Uncle Ricky. Even though he hated it when people called him Ricky.

His brothers in music and life…David Taylor (RIP,) Mike Guerrero, Valentin San Miguel, Mercy Valdez, Mike Conde, Carlos Cervantes & Mike Ribeiro.  He had infinite and never-ending love and respect for all of you.

If you truly knew Rick you knew that he was a force to be reckoned with, rough and tumble on the outside but on the inside, he had the heart of an artist.

He was a tough guy and a protector and if he loved you he had your back and was not afraid to be at the front of a fight. But he was also the guy who would go out to get the mail and come back to me with a flower he picked from the garden, the guy that would drive all the way to River Oaks from Northside in the morning because he knew I liked Dunkin Donuts coffee the best, the guy who would tell me I was beautiful even on my worst day, the man that would not just say “I love you,” but would always say “I’m in love with you”  and he was also the guy that would wake me up in the middle of the night and say “if I can’t sleep, you can’t sleep.”

He meant no harm and he took no shit. The world will always be a little darker without his shining light. 

Now we honor him, live our lives and I know he will be waiting on the other side with a song.

True love never dies… forever in love with you,

Dana Rose

Thank you to:

Melissa Lloyd for the beautiful drawing on Rick

Shari San Miguel for the amazing live shots of Drive

Henry and Jesse Chavez for helping me find more family photos