WATERLOO - William "Ray" Gautney, 69, of Waterloo, died Friday, July 4, at Allen Hospital.

He was born June 30, 1939, in Sylacauga, Ala., son of William and Myrtle Lybrand Gautney. He married Evelyn Henkle on Aug. 3, 1992.

Mr. Gautney was employed with John Deere Waterloo Tractor Works for many years until his retirement. He played in various rock and roll and country western bands in northeast Iowa. He was inducted with the Eddie Randall and the Downbeats to the Iowa Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame. The Downbeats toured and shared the stage with many of the top recording stars of the day, including Jerry Lee Lewis, The Everly Brothers, Del Shannon, Conway Twitty and Buddy Holly. They played clubs and ballrooms from Chicago to Minneapolis to Des Moines.

Survivors include his wife, Evelyn; a son, Rick (Trisha Nichols) Gautney of Evansdale; two stepsons, Stuart (Fawn) Gee of Salt Lake City, Utah, and Clint Kirkpatrick of Cedar Rapids; a stepdaughter, Meling (Jamie) Whitley of Nokesville, Va.; eight grandchildren; his father, William A. "Bill" Gautney of San Antonio; and three half sisters, Toni (Fred) Baron of El Tempo, Texas, Michelle (Phillip) Moorad of San Antonio, Texas, and Rosie (Roger) Bower of Daytona Beach, Fla.; and stepsisters, Lori Miller of The Ozarks, Mo., and Leann Heideman of Waterloo.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Myrtle Ruth Schutzle; his stepmother, Maxine Gautney; and a sister, Rita Gail Lichty.

Services will be 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at Hagarty-Waychoff-Grarup Funeral Service on South Street, with burial in Garden of Memories Cemetery. Public visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home.

Memorials may be directed to the American Cancer Society.