El Paso rock legend dies, remembering his influence in the borderland

EL PASO, Texas– Rod Crosby, lead singer of the popular rock-and-roll band “The Intruders” in the 60’s and 70’s, died on April 4 at the age of 76.

Crosby moved to El Paso in the 60’s and graduated from Austin high school, he then continued to stay in El Paso and share his music.

Throughout the years, Crosby would lead the band to play all over the community from graduations to family parties.

Crosby is described by his friend and former co-producer, Rick Kern, as a musician that helped keep rock-and-roll music alive in El Paso.

“His talent is at the top of the list, I mean you can list so many things but I think his talent, everybody loved his music," said Kern.

In 2009 Kern said together they created “Border Legends of El Paso”, an annual event that allowed local rock bands to showcase their talent.

“El Paso needed something like this, nobody else was doing this and Rod and I decided, let's do this for El Paso, it was an annual event, we had a lot of fun with it, we kept the music alive,” said Kern.

Kern said his memory will stay alive.

“We’re going to keep the memories alive, we're going to keep the stories going, we’re going to music alive, that's one of the reasons why I have my podcast,” he said.

Memorial services are scheduled for Tuesday, April 12, from 4-8 P.M. located at Funeraria Del Angel Central, 3839 Montana.