Robert F. Scott passed away on Wednesday, August 8, 2007. He was at home in his RV in Livermore, California, watching a movie with his wife, Terri. She left the room for a few minutes and returned to find him dead of an apparent heart attack.
Robert F. Scott passed away on Wednesday, August 8, 2007. He was at home in his RV in Livermore, California, watching a movie with his wife, Terri. She left the room for a few minutes and returned to find him dead of an apparent heart attack.
Rob was 50 years old, born August 19, 1956, in Tejunga, California. He was the son of Bill and Dorothy Scott. Bill Scott was famous as the voice of Bullwinkle the Moose and many other characters in the cartoon show, “Rocky and Bullwinkle,” creator of the “Tom Slick” cartoon show, and author of many of the scripts on both shows.
Rob first visited St. John in the summer of 1991, quickly hooking up with Michael Beason and James Julien in the well-known band, The St. John Iguanas. He was an amazingly versatile musician, playing saxophone, flute, harmonica, keyboards and guitar. He sang lead and high harmony. He was also a gifted composer and arranger. Rob could play in almost any style, with almost any band, and he did just that on St. John. On his first visit, which lasted just seven weeks, he played mostly with the Iguanas, but after his return in 2002, he also played regularly with Steve Simon’s Jazz Jam on Sunday afternoons, with Ike Eichenberg at the Banana Deck, and with Koko and the Sunshine Band. Eventually he played with almost every musician and band on St. John. It never ceased to amaze his friends how he could play with an acoustic band one day, a scratch band the next day, and a jazz band the day after that.
During his second stay on St. John, from 2002 to 2005, he arranged 20 a capella songs that became the most exciting part of the Iguanas’ shows. He was also a marvelous actor, performing in numerous Epiphany Theater Company productions. He portrayed El Gayo in The Fantasticks, Bernard in Feiffer’s People, Dionysus in Garrison Keillor’s The Midlife Crisis of Dionysus, and numerous other roles during his three-year stay on St. John.
His high intelligence and quick wit made him a favorite with band members and audiences alike. When working with James and Michael in The Iguanas, the snappy repartee became an essential part of the show. On one memorable night someone, hearing the tight harmony that was a trademark of their music, asked for some Beach Boys. James replied that really none of them could be called boys anymore. Michael added that they’d have to be called the Beach Geezers now. Rob chimed in with a chorus of, “She’ll have fun fun fun ‘till her daddy takes the walker away,” and Michael came back with, “I get by with a little help from Depends.” That’s the way it went at Iguanas shows.
After leaving St. John in June 2005, Rob and Terra purchased an RV and went touring the USA, which had always been his dream. They visited Alaska, Oregon, Colorado and many places in between. More details may be had by visiting their Web site at: http://www.geocities.com/turfwaddle2/.
Alas, Rob was the third member of The St. John Iguanas to die in the last nine months. Last December, James Julien succumbed to liver disease, and in May, Andy Gordon, founder of the band, passed away at his home overlooking Calabash Boom. It has been a tough year for Iguanas on St. John.
Rob Scott is survived by his wife, Terri Scott, his sister Barbara and brother John, and his godfather Bill Wells. He is also survived by a worldwide family including all the actors and musicians that have ever worked with him. We are heartbroken that he will never play with us again, and intensely grateful that we had the opportunity to work with such a remarkable performer, and such a wonderful human being.
There was a memorial service for Rob on Sunday, August 19, which would have been his 51st birthday. Steve Simon generously offered up the Sunday Jazz Jam at the Beach Bar in Cruz Bay as the venue for his memorial.