I've seen several references to my Father Pat Foster. It's nice to know he is remembered. I thought I would provide the details of what happened to him

Pat passed away at age 61 in 1990 in Seaside CA at his Mother's home of a sudden heart attack after years of alcohol and tobacco abuse.

As those who knew Pat, he could be a very "difficult" person. When drinking he was downright unpleasant and when sober he was at best miserable.

Pat and my Mother divorced when I was a baby due to their being arrested in LA in regards to child neglect and abuse. I looked him up and finally met him when I was 14 years old. He was living with his then Wife Harriet in Sausilito CA and by that time he had pretty much stopped gigging.

When I turned 18 we took a road trip in a VW bus to Yellowstone and we played some impromptu sets in a few small bars and bistros along the way. Pat was drinking quite heavily and trip ended when he wound up in the hospital in Yellowstone from a pancreatic attack.


He went on to live many more years that he was supposed to spending his last years in the persona of a Catholic Priest of the American Catholic Church in the Salinas and Monterey area. His ashes are buried next to his Mother Hazel and his Uncle Robert Greene in the cemetery overlooking the lighthouse at Pacific Grove CA.

I had the opportunity to produce and record Brownie McGhees final record just before Brownie passed away and in passing I ask him if he had know Pat. He said nothing but he gave me such a dirty look, I decided to drop it. Those who knew Pat probably understand. He was a great talent but he wasted it. He led a tortured existence due to some very bad experiences in the service of the OSA as a teen and I am comforted that in his passing he is finally at peace.

Kurt Foster