FAIRMONT — Steve Murphy, a legend of the Fairmont music scene and throughout the Midwest, passed away recently.

Two of his lifetime friends — Tom Tourville and Jerry Clark — have offered a synopsis of his life and contributions to music. An edited version of their thoughts follows:

Since Steve was in grade school in Fairmont, he always had the dream to be a musician, play the guitar and, someday, be a rock ‘n’ roll star. He accomplished all three.

By the time Steve was in junior high school, he formed his first band, the Volcanoes, one of the first rock groups to play Fairmont’s former youth center.

By the early 1960s, Murphy and his friends formed one of Fairmont’s best young rock groups, the Pacers. The other dominant band in Fairmont at the time was the Corvairs. The two groups soon teamed up to create the Epicureans.

The Epicureans (“Eps”) were so popular they toured Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and South Dakota. In 1966, they recorded at the IGL Studios in Milford, Iowa, with their release of “Baby Be Mine.” John Senn, owner of IGL Records, said “Baby Be Mine” was the second-largest selling record to come out on the label. The Epicureans were together until 1971, when Murphy created the popular band Highway.

Murphy, who moved to Mankato, played all across the Midwest with Highway. In 1977, he would form the Murphy Brothers Band with his brother, Mike Murphy, a long-time KSUM radio personality. When not performing alongside his son Jade, Steve kept the Murphy Brothers Band flourishing into 2020, playing live throughout southern Minnesota and northern Iowa while releasing two CDs.

Murphy, along with Epicureans and the Murphy Brothers Band, was inducted into the Minnesota Rock & Country Hall of Fame. The Eps are slated to be inducted into the Iowa R&R Music Association’s Hall of Fame in early 2021. In 2014, Steve received a well-deserved induction into the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame.

Tourville, a longtime Minnesota music historian and author stated: “There is no question that Steve Murphy is in the top 10 rock guitarists to ever come from Minnesota. That is why he stands alongside Prince and [Bob] Dylan in the MMHOF.”

“With Steve’s passing, so many longtime music fans lost Fairmont’s first true rock ‘n’ roll star,” he said. “Watching Steve play and sing was just captivating. He played the guitar like it was a part of him. It was just soulful.”

The Murphy Brothers Band put out this statement: “Steve was our music brother. We spent so many years of our lives together sharing our love of music. He will never be replaced, but remembered for giving so much to so many. He looked at all of his music fans as his friends.”