Vivienne Westwood has passed away

Punk fashion designer Vivienne Westwood has passed away. She was 81 and passed away in her home in London on Thursday, December 29. A statement released on her official Instagram page reads,

”29th December 2022. Vivienne Westwood died today, peacefully and surrounded by her family, in Clapham, South London.

Vivienne continued to do the things she loved, up until the last moment, designing, working on her art, writing her book, and changing the world for the better. She led an amazing life. Her innovation and impact over the last 60 years has been immense and will continue into the future.

Vivienne considered herself a Taoist. She wrote, “Tao spiritual system. There was never more need for the Tao today. Tao gives you a feeling that you belong to the cosmos and gives purpose to your life; it gives you such a sense of identity and strength to know you’re living the life you can live and therefore ought to be living: make full use of your character and full use of your life on earth.”

The world needs people like Vivienne to make a change for the better.

We send our condolences to Vivienne Westwood’s family and friends.

Terry Hall of the Specials has passed away

sadly, Terry Hall of the specials has passed away. He was 63. The cause of death was an unspecified illness. The band issued a statement:

"Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… the joy, the pain, the humour, the fight for justice, but mostly the love. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity."

Jet Black, founding drummer of The Stranglers, has passed away

Jet Black (aka Brian Duffy), drummer and founding member of The Stranglers, has passed away. He was 84 years old and passed away at his home in Wales on December 6 following “years of ill health”. The band announced his passing in a statement that reads In part,

”It is with heavy hearts we announce the passing of our dear friend, colleague and band elder statesman Jet Black. Jet died peacefully at home surrounded by his family. Fond adieu, fly straight JB.x”

The Stranglers formed in 1974 and Jet Black retired from performing live with the band in 2015 due to declining health. He played on 19 out of 20 Stranglers albums with the last one he played on being 2012’s Giants. We send our condolences to his family, friends, and fans. Read tributes from the band members below.

Keith Levene, founding member of The Clash and Public Image Limited, has passed away

Keith Levene, the co-founding member and guitarist of both The Clash and Public Image Limited, has passed away. He passed away at his home in Norfolk at the age of 65. He had been battling liver cancer. Author Adam Hammond released a statement on Twitter that reads,

"It is with great sadness I report that my close friend and legendary Public Image Limited guitarist Keith Levene passed away on Friday 11th November. There is no doubt that Keith was one of the most innovative, audacious and influential guitarists of all time. Keith sought to create a new paradigm in music and with willing collaborators John Lydon and Jah Wobble succeeded in doing just that. His guitar work over the nine minutes of 'Theme', the first track on the first PiL album, defined what alternative music should be. As well as helping to make PiL the most important band of the age, Keith also founded The Clash with Mick Jones and had a major influence on their early sound. So much of what we listen to today owes much to Keith's work, some of it acknowledged, most of it not. Our thoughts and love go out to his partner Kate, sister Jill and all of Keith's family and friends. The world is a darker place without his genius. Mine will be darker without my mate."

Keith Levene had just finished co-writing a book about Public Image Ltd with Adam Hammond and was working on new music. We send our condolences to Keith Levene's family, friends, and fans.

Nik Turner of Hawkwind has passed away

Sadly, Nik Turner of Hawkwind, Inner City Unit, and many other projects has passed away. He was 82. His social media platform released a statement: "We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of Nik Turner - The Might Thunder Rider, who passed away peacefully at home on Thursday evening. He has moved onto the next phase of his Cosmic Journey, guided by the love of his family, friends and fans. Watch this space for his arrangements."

Turner was an incredibly influential member of the music community. He co-founded seminal space rock band Hawkwind with Dave Brock in 1969 and went on to write and/or co-write some the bands biggest hits including "Master of the Universe." After leaving Hawkwind, he formed Inner City Unit, a band that merged Hawkwind's spaciness with new wave and punk. In the 90s and 2000s, he completed many collaborations, including works with Jello Biafra, Genesis P-orridge of Psychic Tv, Helios Creed of Chrome, and Nicky Garrett of Uk Subs. We send our condolences to Turner's Family, Friends, and Fans.

DH Peligro (1959-2022)

Sadly, DH Peligro of Dead Kennedys has passed away. He was 63. The cause of death was due to an accidental fall, which was confirmed by the DK's instagram. We send our condolences to DH's family, friends, and fans.

Jerry Lee Lewis has passed away

Sadly, Jerry Lee Lewis has passed away. The rock pioneer was 87. We send our condolences to Lewis' Family, friends, and fans.

Chris Carey of Poison Idea has passed away

Chris Carey, the bassist for Poison Idea and Burning Leather and the guitarist for Religious War and Dead Conspiracy, has passed away. He was 51 years old. Frankie Delmane released a statement that reads,

"I am beyond devastated by this loss. I am still processing this and am an emotional junkyard right now. I have no words to give other than extreme sorrow. Chris Carey was my best friend, my right hand man, the one who no matter what- always connected. We never fought, we never hated each other, we rarely disagreed. He was one of the most well loved people I have ever known, and his absence is so enormous and painful for me It's hard for me to stop from falling apart. I simply cannot fathom a world without my brother, my best man, my partner in music and life. He meant so much to all who knew him, and meant even more to me. Missed will never be the word. And I will never recover from this. I don't think I can. I will move on like everyone else, but with what purpose will remain to be seen in the coming months. I knew it would be difficult to write anything- and it is- but it also helps the pain a bit. No one is to blame, either. We all made every effort in every way to make sure Chris knew he was needed and wanted and loved and cherished. He really did know that. He just had demons on his back that I am afraid he could never shake. Good night sweet prince.

We send our condolences to Chirs Carey's family, friends, and fans.

Bassist Darryl Hunt of The Pogues passes away

Sadly, Darryl Hunt of The Pogues has passed away. He was 72. You can see the band's post below. We send our condolences to Hunt's family, friends and fans.

Gord Lewis of Teenage Head found dead in apartment, son charged with second-degree murder

Gord Lewis, founding member and guitarist of Hamilton punks Teenage Head, was found dead in his apartment on August 7. Police said that Lewis was found with "injuries consistent with foul play" and his son Jonathan has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder. Gord was 65. Gord's brother was asked for a statement by the Hamilton Spectator and said, "We ask that you respect our privacy at this time." Teenage Head also put out a statement on Facebook reading,

"We are heartbroken and still trying to process the loss of our friend, bandmate and brother Gord Lewis Our hearts are with his family and all that knew and loved him. Gord was a force and an inspiration to many. You were taken from us far too soon."

Gord Lewis formed the band along with Steve Park, Frankie Venom, and Dave Desroches in 1975. The band released eight studio albums (the last of which was Teenage Head with Marky Ramone in 2008), one live album, and a compilation album over the course of their run. We send our deepest condolences to Gord Lewis' family, friends, and fans.

Andy Fletcher of Depeche Mode has passed away

Andy Fletcher, keyboardist and founding member of Depeche Mode, has passed away. He was 60 years old. No cause of death has been made public. Depeche Mode released a statement that reads,

"We are shocked and filled with overwhelming sadness with the untimely passing of our dear friend, family member, and bandmate Andy "Fletch" Fletcher. Fletch had a true heart of gold and was always there when you needed support, a lively conversation, a good laugh, or a cold pint. Our hearts are with his family, and we ask that you keep them in your thoughts and respect their privacy during this difficult time."

He formed Depeche Mode in 1980 along with Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, and Vince Clarke. The band released fourteen studio albums the last of which was Spirit in 2017 and they were inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame in 2020. We send our condolences to Andy Fletcher's family, friends, and fans.

Ricky Gardiner guitarist for David Bowie and Iggy Pop has passed away

Ricky Gardiner, former guitarist for David Bowie and Iggy Pop, has passed away. He was 73. He had been battling a rare form of Parkinson's. His son Tom Gardiner released a statement on social media that reads in part,

"It's with great sadness and relief to announce the passing of my father Ricky Gardiner. Unfortunately he was suffering from a very rare form of Parkinson's known as PSP. Over the last 4 years I have been helping my mother in caring for him. It took every ounce of my energy body, mind, and soul to help attend to his every need. I have to be honest, I'm now completely exhausted. But much much wiser because of it. To know he was able to pass safely and peacefully at out family home was a huge comfort.
He was not only my dad, but my best friend and a huge inspiration. And I know it was the same for my sisters Annie and Lee, and my mother Virgina, and my nephews and nieces Jack, Harry, Izzy and Talula.

He may have been an inspiration to you too. In his professional life. He was a Guitarist, Composer, Musician. You can hear his work on Iggy Pops 'Lust for Life', and David Bowie's 'Low' Album. As well as his own band Beggars Opera who were signed to the famous Vertigo record label during the 70's.

After he finished touring he went on to write music for meditation. Including The Flood, Kumara, and his last work came in 2015's 'Songs For The Electric' which is a solo album. which really is beautiful

It was his spiritual side which really inspired and taught be so much. We would talk for hours and hours on end about the meaning of life, meditation, astrology you name it, it was always an open book.

He was also super funny and would make up comic nick names not only for me and my family, but alot of the time his friends too. A true piss taker, he taught me well btw…ha

Anyway, Dad If you can still here me, you've given me everything, and I can't thank you enough. See you on the otherside, where maybe we can catch a Jim Carrey film and have one last laugh together….

Take care my friend."

Iggy Pop also payed tribute writing,

"Dearest Ricky, lovely, lovely man, shirtless in your coveralls, nicest guy who ever played guitar. Thanks for the memories and the songs, rest eternal in peace."

Ricky Gardiner was self-taught and played on David Bowie's Low and Iggy Pop's Lust for Life. He playing can also be heard on Iggy Pop's live album TV Eye and compilation The Bowie Years. Ricky Gardiner also played in Beggar's Opera and released several solo albums. His last solo album was 2015's Songs For the Electric. We send our condolences to Ricky Gardiner's family, friends, and fans.