Cheetah Chrome

Though he didn't manage to become rich and famous in the process, Cheetah Chrome was one of the first guitar heroes of American punk rock who helped give underground music a sorely needed kick in the ass in the mid-'70s as part of the vital Cleveland, OH, scene, while also helping launch the punk explosion at GBGB. Born Gene O'Connor in Cleveland, OH, Cheetah Chrome got his first guitar as a Christmas present after having his head turned around by seeing the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show, but he found his first major inspiration as a guitarist when he heard the song "Born t...