Whitesnake and Thin Lizzy guitarist John Sykes dies

John Sykeshard rock guitarist and singer who played with Thin Lizzy before joining Whitesnake for their hit 1987 album and then forming Blue Murderdied of cancer. He was 65 years old.

The news was confirmed on Sykes’ Facebook page, but no other details, including the date of death, were provided.

“Many will remember him as a man with exceptional musical talent, but for those who did not know him personally, andwas an attentive, kind and charismatic man whose presence illuminated the room” reads part of the statement. “He certainly marched to the beat of his own drum and always supported the underdog.”

Born on July 29, 1959 in Reading, England, Sykes began playing guitar as a teenager, inspired by the legion of British guitarists of the late ’60s. He played with the metal band Tygers of Pan Tang in the early 80s before joining Phil Lynott in Thin Lizzy for their twelfth album. Thunder and Lightning reached the Top 5 in the UK, boosted by the Top 30 single “Cold Sweat”which Sykes co-wrote, but sold poorly in the United States. The 1983 set would be Thin Lizzy’s last studio album, and the band disbanded at the end of the year.

The following year, Sykes was contacted to join the band. Whitesnake of the former singer of Deep Purple, David Coverdale. After some discussions, he agreed to play with the new group and record some tracks for the US release of their 1984 album Slide It In. It was the group’s fifth of eight consecutive UK Top 10 albums and their first to go platinum in the US, boosted by the blues success of FM “Slow An’ Easy”.

But the band was on the verge of achieving its greatest commercial success, with Sykes playing a major role, despite having been officially fired from the group.

John Sykes, one of the hit makers in Whitsnake

Coverdale and Sykes began writing the songs for what would become Whitesnake’s seventh album. It was released with several titles in different parts of the world, but arrived in the United States as a self-titled work. Sykes co-wrote all but two of the songs on the 1987 album, including the No. 2 pop ballad. “Is This Love?”.

That album also included the power ballad “Here I Go Again”which went to number one in the US, along with hard rock songs like “Crying in the Rain”, “Still of the Night” and “Give Me All Your Love”. Whitesnake spent 10 non-consecutive weeks at No. 2 in the US, where it has sold over 8 million copies, and reached the Top 10 in the UK.

But before recording and release, Coverdale fell out with Sykes and the rest of the band and fired them all. Despite their great musical chemistry, the lead singer and star guitarist did not get along and would not work together again.

Sykes then recruited former member of The Firm Tony Franklin on the bass and the veteran of Vanilla Fudge Carmine Appice to form Blue Murder. The trio debuted in 1989 on Geffen Records with Sykes as lead vocalist and spawned American mainstream rock success “Jelly Roll”which reached the Top 70 in the US and the Top 50 in the UK. A next album, Nothin’ but Trouble 1994, featured Sykes and a new opening act, but failed to chart on either side of the pond.

Sykes left Geffen later that year and would release the first of five solo sets in 1995, but none could match the sales he had seen earlier in his career.