Grayson Minney Of Columbia Fields Dies In Early Morning Car Crash by NICK CAITO on MAY 11, 2013 · 

Grayson Minney, lead singer and guitarist for Columbia Fields, died in an early morning car crash. (Nick Caito)

Grayson Minney, the lead singer and guitarist for the group Columbia Fields, was killed in a car crash early Saturday morning, State Police said. Minney was 28 years old.

According to police, Minney was on Route 85 in Hebron just south of Route 94 around 3:40 a.m. when he apparently lost control of his car. The car struck a guardrail, went airborne, and crashed into two large trees, police said.

Columbia Fields, and Grayson Minney, have long been fixtures on the Connecticut music scene. According to the group’s bio, they were formed in 2002 by Minney and keyboardist Eric Heath. Over the years they’ve played just about everywhere from big venues like The Webster and Toad’s Place to bars like Main Pub and Black Eyed Sally’s.

“He was full of energy. A really well liked guy, had a lot of friends. He just brought a life to the party,” Heath told Fox CT’s Crystal Hall in an interview Saturday night. “It still hasn’t hit me. I don’t really feel it’s happened yet. I don’t think it’s going to hit me for a while, it’s really hard to process.”

Grayson Minney, left, plays on stage at the Mohegan Sun Arena in 2010, when Columbia Fields opened for Bon Jovi. (Nick Caito)

In 2010 the group won a competition to open for Bon Jovi at the Mohegan Sun Arena. Columbia Fields also won the Hartford Advocate’s “Best Indie Band” award in 2008, 2009, and 2010.

More recently, Grayson Minney was involved with the “Downtown Rocks For Newtown” benefit. Minney played an acoustic set with keyboardist Heath and drummer Bryan Kelly.

“Grayson and Columbia Fields are one of the best local and regional bands who represent Hartford, they always were,” said Cory Sims, one of the organizers of the benefit. “Grayson was one of the nicest, and talented too, guys in the local scene.”

That sentiment is echoed by Brian Verderosa, a fellow musician, as well as friend and fan of Minney. “On stage and off the stage, he just beamed with confidence and love,” said Verderosa, who played immediately before Columbia Fields at the “Downtown Rocks For Newtown” benefit. “He knew the commodity of playing music out was rare, and having people who love it as much as you do is rare, and he never took that for granted.”

The two developed a friendship at Columbia Fields’ shows, and Verderosa helped him out with gear while working at Guitar Center. “He played [his guitar] so hard that he had blood residue in the sound hole of the guitar. His blood is literally in the instrument,” Verderosa said. “That’s the passion he has for music and what he brought to it.”

By midday Saturday, posts on the group’s Facebook page paid tribute to Grayson.

“Their fans loved them, not in a fleeting boy band kind of way but in an eternal way. I watched them play and I thought, ‘This is the kind of impact I want my band to have,’” posted Trent Gerbers, of the band Addison Station.

“We’ve played many shows together and I was honored to share the stage with him. God’s choir gets an incredibly talented musician but I wish we could have had his gift here on earth a little longer.”