George Kooymans, guitarist/songwriter/co-founder of the Dutch rock band Golden Earring, died July 22 in his hometown of Rijkevorsel, Belgium. He was 77 and succumbed to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), generally often known as Lou Gehrig’s illness, which pressured his retirement and the disbanding of Golden Earring in 2021.

Kooymans was born March 11, 1948, in The Hague, Netherlands. In ’61, he and neighbor/bassist Rinus Gerritsen fashioned The Tornadoes, which modified its identify to The Golden Earrings. An early lineup had successful in 1965 with “Please Go” earlier than the band simplified its identify to Golden Earring.

Vocalist Barry Hay quickly joined and drummer Cesar Zuiderwijk adopted in 1970. The basic Kooymans/Gerritsen/Hay/Zuiderwijk lineup remained intact for 51 years.

Vastly profitable within the Netherlands, Golden Earring was finest identified within the U.S. for the 1973 rocker “Radar Love” from the gold-selling album Moontan and the moody #10 hit “Twilight Zone” from 1982’s Lower. All advised, the band launched 25 studio albums.

Some proceeds from sold-out January 2026 farewell live shows will profit ALS analysis. – Bret Adams

This text initially appeared in VG’s October 2025 problem. All copyrights are by the writer and Classic Guitar journal. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.