‘He was meant for one thing — music.’ Beloved Charlotte drummer and studio engineer dies
Charlotte’s music community lost one of its steadiest drumbeats last week.
Chris Garges, whose talent as a musician and recording engineer was well-known and admired within Charlotte music circles, died Tuesday, Feb. 22 after a long battle with cancer. He was 48.
Music was a constant throughout his lifetime. Garges, as a drummer, played with many of Charlotte’s top musicians and, as a recording engineer, honed the sounds of others — most of whom couldn’t forget his talent and kindness.
After Garges’ death, that love was clear as tributes and homages flooded in from friends and colleagues.
“Death is inevitable, but that doesn’t make it less sad. It’s the loss. We lose family. We lose friends. When a musician dies, we also lose all the music he still has in him, and that’s what breaks my heart today,” bandmate Steve Stoeckel said on Facebook last Wednesday. “Chris leaves a mountain of great music behind.
“I was imagining so much more.”
Starting music
When Beth Garges pulled up to her parents’ house, the last thing she expected to see was her son Chris peering over a brand new blue drum kit.
“Mom, when you come over to Grandpa and Grandma’s house, you gotta bring the station wagon,” Chris had said over the phone to Beth. Now, it was clear why.
It was his 12th birthday, and his grandfather — after incessant pestering from Chris — finally got him a set. Beth was shocked; she expected it was just a passing interest for her son.
But four years of lessons later, Garges would meet Tim Smith, whose family owns Arthur Smith Studios.
Smith was teaching music to a class of high school students, and one asked if he’d help them produce some music with his high school band. Smith agreed and later brought them to now-shuttered Jay Howard Recording Studios. Smith remembers them being pretty good — but the drummer stood out.
“He looked about 12 years old, even though he was a sophomore,” he said. “But the first time Chris hit the snare drum, I knew he could play.”
Smith got Garges’ number and called him to play a few weeks later when the band’s drummer canceled. Garges’ first gig as a 16-year-old was at Whispers Bar at Park Road Shopping Center. His parents drove him to the show.
“It just kind of went from there,” his mom said.
Garges, who in his childhood participated in the Youth Orchestras of Charlotte, studied studio music and jazz at the University of Miami and trained under a drum instructor.
He returned to Charlotte after graduation, and he played regularly with artists and bands such as Mitch Easter, Big Octave, Bunky Moon and The Spongetones. He bought the recording studio Old House Studio in 2012.
“Chris was single-minded from the beginning,” his wife, Carrie Garges, said. “He was just so certain, so steady, and so sure.”
The Spongetones
Garges started playing with The Spongetones in 2014, making him the youngest member, by far, of the longtime Charlotte band.
Steve Stoeckel, who was almost three decades Garges’ senior, had watched him perform for years around Charlotte. When the band was in need of a drummer, they invited Garges in — and he shined.
“Chris was one of those guys that could just play anything. He was fearless,” Stoeckel said. “He never got that ‘deer in the headlights’ look because he’s that good. And we discovered that early on.”
Garges, who had first watched The Spongetones perform when he was a child in Freedom Park, was a perfect fit, Stoeckel said.
He showed up to practices and played the band’s songs better than they did sometimes, Stoeckel said. Garges was always sure to do his homework, he remembered, and could imitate the best drummers.
As the bassist, Stoeckel said he’s like the bridge between the drummer and the rest of the band. Garges made his job way easier — he told Stoeckel that once he counted the song off, he could leave the rest to Garges.
“The difference with Chris is that he listens to everything. He’s hearing the singer, the keyboard, the guitars — whatever’s happening as he would be if he were recording that song,” Stoeckel said. “It’s what we call ‘big ears’ in the band business. Some people have really, really big ears and Chris’s ears were the biggest of all.”
Stoeckel described being in a band “like a marriage,” in that for it to work, there has to be compromise, mutual respect and understanding. And not many bands have as good a marriage as The Spongetones, he said.
The group spends birthdays and nights together when they’re not playing — Stoeckel said they love each other as brothers. And to lose Garges has been a huge loss for them, as bandmates and friends.
“It was an honor, a privilege to play with this man,” Stoeckel said. “I can’t tell you how much as a bass player and a fellow musician this meant to me.
“Chris made me want to be a better musician and I can’t thank him enough for that.”
A steadfast friend, drummer
Despite being diagnosed with cancer in 2016, Garges didn’t let anything keep him from playing music.
Every time a new surgery was proposed or a new medication was prescribed, his wife said his question was always the same — ”Will it stop me from playing?”
And he was deeply committed to his hometown. Carrie said her husband saw the potential of Charlotte’s music scene and wanted it to thrive.
“Everyone keeps saying the same things — he made everyone feel so special and so important. Because he always was trying to give you the time and space to be to get to get where you could be,” she said. “He saw the potential and the importance and and took the time to do what he could to help you get there — whether you were a musician or a starting engineer or his wife, he wanted you to be the best you could be.
“That’s a powerful thing. I know he did that for me.”
Garges was sure about what he wanted. When he met Carrie 20 years ago, he knew immediately she was going to be his wife. When he picked up his first drumsticks, he knew he wanted to play for the rest of his life. And when he was diagnosed with cancer, he knew he was going to fight his hardest, Carrie said.
“There was nothing else he could be besides a musician. There was no other path for him. It was his soul, his sanity, his purpose,” she said. “He was certain because he was meant for one thing — music.
“And he got to do it. There are so few people that get to do that, to live that out. I’m so happy for him.”
A celebration of Garges’ life is being planned for a later date. The family requests any donations be made to begoodtoyourselfmusic.com, Youth Orchestras of Charlotte and Music Cares.
This story was originally published March 3, 2022 at 12:08 PM.
