NBC News reports:
Ian Kilmister — also known as Lemmy, of the British heavy metal pioneers Motörhead — died Monday at age 70 of “extremely aggressive cancer,” the band said.
Kilmister — who legendarily survived diabetes and implantation of a heart defibrillator — was diagnosed with the disease just two days ago, the band said in a statement.
“There is no easy way to say this,” Motörhead said. “Our mighty, noble friend Lemmy passed away today after a short battle with an extremely aggressive cancer.
“He had learnt of the disease on December 26th, and was at home, sitting in front of his favorite video game from The Rainbow which had recently made it’s way down the street, with his family,” the band said. “We cannot begin to express our shock and sadness, there aren’t words.”
Motörhead had canceled several recent performances because of what the band said was a lung infection.
The band had to stop short its September 1st concert in Austin, Texas, with Kilmister telling the audience, “I can’t do it,” and walking offstage. The band blamed altitude sickness — Kilmister had recently spent time in Colorado — and said it was looking forward to going back out on the road in February.
Kilmister, a raw-voiced singer and powerful heavy metal bassist, formed Motörhead in 1975 and was its sole remaining original member. The band’s 22 albums included the landmarks “Ace of Spades” — and the hit single of the same name — Overkill and No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith.
Its most recent album, Bad Magic debuted at Number One in much of Europe and hit the Top 40 in the United States. The titles of several other of its hits and albums can’t be reproduced on a family-friendly website.
Prominent rock musicians have lobbied in recent years for Motörhead to be inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Acts like Black Sabbath and Green Day have said it helped to form their musical philosophies, citing it as a foundational influence in heavy metal and punk rock.
Lost one of my best friends, Lemmy, today. He will be sadly missed. He was a warrior and a legend. I will see you on the other side.
— Ozzy Osbourne (@OzzyOsbourne) December 29, 2015
#RIPLemmy A true rocker from beginning to end. We’ll all see you there, soon enough. pic.twitter.com/80wflIsTEf
— Joe Perry (@JoePerry) December 29, 2015
Lemmy RIP….@myMotorhead my condolences to his family..
— Billy Idol (@BillyIdol) December 29, 2015
source: nbcnews.com
17 Responses
No words can describe the original hellraiser. The most authentic personality in all of rock and a major influencer to many great bands. Rest In Peace Legend.
In a world without heroes, … there’s no place for me.
I will ways have a place for him and his music forever.he looked like my dad,lol he will never be gone.let’s all celebrate his life.most of us wanted to be like him,but there is only one lemmy.he kept the music going for 50 years .he is a icon and a humble rock and roll hero.I’m going to get bad magic and enjoy the gift he gave to us metalhead. We love you lemmy. Let’s keep rock in !!!
I love that picture of Lemmy & Ronnie sharing a toast. You know there’s a lot of that going on right now up in heaven, for sure. Rest in peace gentlemen, cheers!
My condolences to all those affected by this sad news. I love Lemmy and he will be missed. I’m not sure if Lemmy is in heaven though since he often stated he didn’t believe in God. For his sake I hope he had a last minute change of heart and made amends with God. He was a good man.
I’m sure God forgave him for that. Even for those who don’t believe in God, God still believes in them. Besides, that’s all in the past now. Today is a gift, that’s why it is called the present.
I was stunned I heard about on the main page of Wikipedia I saw Lemmy. No it cannot be clicked on it an bang there was his page. Major loss to rock world but he did what he loved till the end. R.I.P. Wish I saw ya live I can imagine the jam session up there!