'Played with swagger': Winnipeg musician Gerry Atwell dies

Gerry Atwell, a man well-known and well-loved in Winnipeg’s music circles, has died after a heart attack. (Source: Facebook/ Gerry Atwell)

WINNIPEG – Gerry Atwell, a man well-known and well-loved in Winnipeg’s music circles, has died after a heart attack.

While many Winnipeggers may remember Gerry Atwell as a Juno-award winning musician and the keyboardist in the band Eagle and Hawk, his bandmate said he remembers Atwell as one of his closest friends and confidants of over 35 years.

“He played with swagger. He had chops and carried himself professionally on stage,” Vince Fontaine, the co-founder of Eagle and Hawk, told CTV News Winnipeg. “After shows, he always had a positive energy. He brought that positive spirit.”

Fontaine said Atwell had a heart attack Friday night, and died surrounded by his friends and musicians in his last hours at the hospital.

“We had to say our goodbyes,” Fontaine said. “We gathered together, with friends and fellow musicians. There was talk and stories, some shared songs. We hovered around Gerry as our closest, dear friend.”