Argentine music in mourning: national rock legend Willy Quiroga died

Wilfrido Aníbal Quirogafounding member of Vox Dei and better known as Willy Quirogadied at the age of 84 at the Trinidad Clinic in Quilmes as a result of a long illness that kept him away from the stage in recent years.

Quiroga was born in Río Cuarto, Córdoba, on May 17, 1940, life led him to settle in the Buenos Aires city of Quilmes, where He was declared an Illustrious Citizenand where he died this Thursday morning, at the Trinidad Clinic in that town.

Willy Quiroga: Vox Dei, The Bible and music

Willy Quiroga formed in 1967, together with Rubén Basoalto, Ricardo Soulé and Juan Carlos Godoywhich would be, along with The Cats, Manal and Almendraone of the founding bands of national rock. Willy started out on guitar in that first Vox Dei lineup, but then he switched to bass (his definitive instrument) and left the guitar to Soulé.

At the beginning of 1970, they began to record their second album The Biblewhich was completed in January 1971 and was quickly released as a double album by the Disc Jockey label. Godoy leaves the band after completely finishing all the arrangements and compositions for The Bible.

The band was in the middle of an internal conflict between Soulé and the other members. Given Soulé’s resignation from the band, Godoy decides that he should be the one to step aside to decompress the situation. One of the problems had been Mandioca’s move to Disc Jockey, which had left the record company that had trusted them when the big labels had not done so in a compromised situation.

In March 1971, The Bible was released on double vinyl. conceptual cut loosely based on the Holy Scriptureswhich is very well received and would become a national rock classic.

He was the author of classics such as Compulsion and Total what (from the 1970 album Caliente), just a man from 1971, Tonight it doesn’t seem the same and Jeremiah feet of lead -the latter written with Soulé (from the album Jeremías pies de lead from 1972), It’s a Cloud, there is no doubt and Crazy, make her shut up (from the album It’s a cloud, there is no doubt from 1973), I won’t let it live in me (from the album Gata de Noche from 1978).

In April 1981, together with Ricardo Soulé and Rubén Basoalto, he performed the last Vox Dei recital at the Obras Sanitarias Stadium.

After the separation of Vox Dei, form destroyerwith Juan Antonio Ferreyra and Polo Corbella. After just one show, the staff changes and they arrive Luis Valenti (The Clock) on keyboards, Beto Topini on battery and Palo Penayo on guitar and voice with which they would record a single LP in 1982, released by the Surco Label. The group was part of the “Pan Caliente Festival” along with Los Abuelos de la Nada and Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota and then the “Festival de la Falda” in 1982, although they did not achieve greater success.

Then it would form Willy Quiroga and the Forcewhere he changes his usual role as bassist for that of keyboardist and also the Willy Quiroga Trío, where he would play with Rubén Basoalto.

In 1985, he reunited with Soulé and Basoalto again to return to Vox Dei.and since then he continued playing with Vox Dei until 2017, when due to a lawsuit from Soulé he had to start performing as Willy Quiroga Vox Dei.

He was the only member of Vox Dei who has participated in all of the group’s albums.

In August 2024, at 84 years old, announced his definitive departure from the stage due to COPD that he had been suffering from for years and that made it difficult for him to continue singing. His last show was with Willy Quiroga Vox Dei on July 27 at the Mr. Jones Pub in the town of Ramos Mejía, province of Buenos Aires.