Earlier this month, the sad news came down that Jerry Abbott, father of late Pantera legends Vincent "Vinnie Paul" Abbott and "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, has passed away at 80 years of age.

Mr. Abbott's close friend, Danny Wood Sr., shared the news via social media on Wednesday, April 3 writing, "I'm very sad to tell everyone of the passing of a close friend  Jerry Abbott. He died last night in a Denton care giving facility. His Family is having a private Funeral for Family and close Friends with a Memorial Service being planned. Details soon."

This morning, Pantera's Rex Brown and Phil Anselmo took to social media to pay tribute to Jerry Abbott.

"Rest in Peace Jerry Abbott

"Jerry was the father of Vince & Darrell & was a huge influence on us, in our formative years. He passed down an incredible legacy of his own. He was a great songwriter and a much sought after engineer & producer. He managed the band from ‘82-‘89 & taught us a lot. We can look back now & see that without him; we might not have ever made it out of Tejas. But we did...

"Hearing the news of his passing, we immediately thought of all the great times we had with the “LD”, a nickname we gave him, and all the things that made him so very special!! This cannot be said enough, he was one of the good ones & will be missed!!

"He’s in a much better place now... God Bless." - Rex Brown & Philip Anselmo ‘24

In addition to being a country music songwriter and record producer, Jerry Abbott was also Pantera's first manager. He produced the band's albums Metal Magic (1983), Projects In The Jungle (1984), I Am The Night (1985) and Power Metal (1988).