GREAT FALLS SIP N DIP FULL

'She hated to have anybody back there playing with her unless they won her over in the first minute she worked with them,” said Thares.

Local musicians often asked to play with Pat, but she was picky. On any given night, you could hear everything from Sinatra-era crooners to outlaw country by Johnny Cash to lighthearted Jimmy Buffet’s “Margaritaville.” If you asked her, though, she might even play some of the more raunchy tunes she knew. If you requested it and she knew it, she'd play it.

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Inside Pat's head was a virtual jukebox full of songs. 'She would always laugh and say, 'I don’t know why people always make a fuss over me,'” said Thares.Īnyone who's ever been to see her knows why, though. Thares caller her a gracious and humble person. We lost somebody that we loved very much.”ĭespite national and even global attention, Pat never considered herself a celebrity. 'It’s a work family,' Thares said. 'We didn’t just lose a coworker. Thares and many of the Sip 'n Dip's staff had been together with Pat for 25 years. She also had a bad fall in 2020 that put her in intensive care, but Thares said she had recovered well. Sip 'n Dip owner Sandra Thares said Pat last performed in February 2020, but she was optimistic about being able to return to her piano. Rest In Peace beautiful music girl.” 'We will absolutely 100% miss her'ĭuring the COVID-19 pandemic, Pat stayed home. “We loved her very, very much. Our hearts are broken. “It is with tremendously sad hearts that we tell you that our beloved Piano Pat passed away peacefully last night,” the Sip ‘n Dip wrote. On the Sip 'n Dip's Facebook page, more than 700 comments and climbing sit beneath the post announcing her death. Twitter immediately filled with dozens of posts from Montanans, ex-Montanans, politicos and journalists who came to know Pat and mourn her passing. The Sip 'n Dip Lounge will never be the same. Patricia 'Piano Pat' Sponheim has played her last notes, passing away Tuesday in her mid-80s. At a tiny tiki bar in Great Falls, generations of Montanans yelled 'bum bum bum' to 'Sweet Caroline' and 'Where's the salt?' to 'Margaritaville' crooned in a low, husky voice by a woman who spent almost 60 years as a beloved local legend.

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