Larry Tamblyn, a founding member and singer of the pioneering garage rock group the Standells, has died at 82.

Tamblyn’s nephew, Dennis Tamblyn, announced his death in March 21 Facebook post. “My uncle Larry Tamblyn passed away today. I have very fond memories of him and his family over the years,” he wrote. “He lived an incredible life. He was in a band called the Standells, whose hit song ‘Dirty Water’ is still played to this day whenever the Red Sox or the Bruins win a home game. They also played on an episode of The Munsters.“

The official Standells Facebook page shared three posts following Standell’s death on Friday: the first announcing his death and inviting fans to “leave your messages here”; the second a recent photo of Standell inscribed with his name and dates of birth and death; and the third a heartfelt post which read, “In life, we are given two dates. Our start date and our end date. In the middle there is a dash. Judging from the overwhelming show of love and support to Larry’s memory and that of his family, Larry made the very most of his dash. RIP Boss.”

Tamblyn was born February 5, 1943, in Los Angeles to Eddie Tamblyn, an actor with several dozen credits in Hollywood films of the 1930s, and Sally Triplett. His brother Russell “Russ” Tamblyn would follow in their father’s footsteps to even greater heights, earning an Oscar nomination for his role as Riff in West Side Story and appearing later on Twin Peaks.

Larry Tamblyn was also creative from the jump, but he veered into music, forming the proto-punk garage rock group the Standells with drummer Tony Valentino, bass guitarist Jody Rich, and drummer Benny King in 1962. Tamblyn claimed in an interview with Gary James that with their matching, floppy haircuts and rough-around-the-edges style, the band was billed early on as “America’s answer to the Beatles.”

Rich and King departed the band after only a couple of years, and in 1964 they added Dick Dodd, a drummer who sang lead vocals on the hit that would define the band in perpetuity, 1966’s “Dirty Water.” Though the snarling, blues-inflected track would seal the band’s place in rock n’ roll history (“Dirty Water” is still played to this day whenever the Boston Red Sox win a home game, thanks to the lyric, “Boston you’re my home”), the band was already a huge success by the time of its release.

Tamblyn and his bandmates provided music for and appeared in several B movies and exploitation films of the era, including Get Yourself a College Girl and the notorious Riot on Sunset Strip, which features the band playing the title song in a raucous underground club.

Several members of the Standells reformed in the 1980s as the Fleshtones, and Tamblyn, Dodd, and Valentino would get the band back together every now and then for a mini tour or benefit concert in the years that followed. Dodd died of cancer in 2013, three months after the band released its last album, Bump, its first since 1967’s Try It. Tamblyn released the memoir From Squeaky Clean to Dirty Water: My Life with the Sixties Garage Rock Trailblazers the Standells in 2023, and was inducted that same year into the California Music Hall of Fame by his brother Russ.

Tamblyn’s niece, the actress Amber Tamblyn, shared her reaction to her uncle’s passing in story posted to her Instagram account on Sunday. “Thank you everyone for their condolences to our family during this difficult time,” she wrote. “I’m hoping to write a tribute to my uncle very soon. He was a brilliant songwriter and I loved him very much.”

In 2011, gearing up for their comeback album and accompanying tour, Larry Tamblyn reflected on the enduring popularity of the music he made nearly five decades previously: “It goes to show you that music is timeless, it appeals to all ages, all genders, nationalities, political parties…. I am absolutely thrilled with the interest we’re receiving from new generations of garage/punk aficionados. Back in the ’60s I never would have dreamed that our sound would live on like it has.”