Ex-Pantera TERRY GLAZE On DIMEBAG's Death: 'It Didn't Hit Me Until I Saw The Dirt'

Summary

• Terry Glaze recalls the moment Dimebag Darrell’s death felt real, ‘It didn’t hit me until I saw the dirt.’
• Glaze shares memories of reconnecting with Darrell post-Pantera, including a limo demo of ‘Mouth For War’.
• Despite mixed feelings on the current lineup, Glaze supports fans celebrating Pantera’s legacy live.

Former Pantera vocalist Terry Glaze has shared a personal account of how he learned about the death of guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott and the emotional aftermath that followed.

Speaking in a new interview with The Hair Metal Guru (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET), Glaze reflected on the 2004 shooting at Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, and the surreal experience of attending the funeral for his former bandmate.

“I was here [at home]. I was asleep. The phone rings. It’s my best friend, Buddy Blaze. He says, ‘Turn on your…’ whatever,” Glaze recalled. “And [my reaction was one of] disbelief.” He described a moment of shock that only deepened as he attended the memorial service alongside other early members of Pantera, including bassist Tommy Bradford.

But it was a quieter, more solitary moment that ultimately broke through the numbness. “The next morning or the next day, I go back and it didn’t really hit me until I saw the dirt,” Glaze said. “And that’s when I [felt], ‘This is real.’”

Dimebag Darrell, who formed Pantera with his brother Vinnie Paul in the early 1980s, was shot and killed onstage while performing with Damageplan. The incident, which also took the lives of three others, sent shockwaves through the metal community and remains one of the most tragic episodes in modern rock history.

Glaze, who fronted Pantera through their first three albums (Metal Magic, Projects in the Jungle, and I Am the Night), had long parted ways with the band by the time of Dimebag’s death. But the connection, personal and musical, remained.

In the same interview, Glaze spoke warmly about Darrell’s energy and passion for music. He shared a story of reconnecting in the late ’80s, when Darrell visited a Lord Tracy show and played him early demos from Vulgar Display of Power. “He’s got a limo, and he’s got a cassette and he starts playing me tracks from the next [Pantera] record. And he plays me ‘Mouth For War’, me and him in the backseat after the gig. And he’s sitting there air-guitaring it, and he goes, ‘Van Halen, right?’”

That kind of enthusiasm, Glaze said, was just who Darrell was.

More broadly, Glaze offered a grounded perspective on Pantera’s legacy and the band’s evolving lineup. He compared the current Pantera reunion, featuring surviving members Rex Brown and Philip Anselmo alongside Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante, to seeing Van Halen without Eddie. “It would be difficult for me to think that that was Van Halen without Eddie Van Halen,” he said. “It’s just hard for us old people.”

Still, Glaze was careful to avoid gatekeeping. “More power to them to celebrate music,” he added. “Anything that gets people out, live together for rock and roll, that’s a good thing.”

The interview also touched on the band’s early discography, albums that remain out of print and rarely acknowledged by the band’s post-Cowboys From Hell era. Glaze has expressed interest in seeing those early recordings officially reissued, suggesting they offer a chance to hear a different side of Darrell’s playing. “You could do a big box with everything,” he said. “It would just be cool.”

Despite past tensions and divergent paths, Glaze remains proud of his time in Pantera, grateful for the experiences, and respectful of the band’s growth after his departure. And when it comes to the legacy of Dimebag Darrell, Glaze leaves no ambiguity: “I feel so lucky to have been part of that.”

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