Legendary English guitarist John Sykes (TYGERS OF PAN TANG, THIN LIZZY, WHITESNAKE, BLUE MURDER, SYKES) has died at the age of 65.
Earlier today (Monday, January 20),the following statement was posted on Sykes‘s social media: “It is with great sorrow we share that John Sykes has passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer. He will be remembered by many as a man with exceptional musical talent but for those who didn’t know him personally, he was a thoughtful, kind, and charismatic man whose presence lit up the room.
“He certainly marched to the beat of his own drum and always pulled for the underdog. In his final days, he spoke of his sincere love and gratitude for his fans who stuck by him through all these years.
“While the impact of his loss is profound and the mood somber, we hope the light of his memory will extinguish the shadow of his absence.”
Back in July 2021, Sykes released the official Parker Thibault-produced music video for a new song called “Out Alive”. The track, which was recorded at least four years ago, was expected to appear on Sykes‘s long-awaited new solo album, “Sy-Ops”.
“Out Alive” was the second song from “Sy-Ops” to be released in 2021. Back in January 2021, Sykes dropped a video for “Dawning Of A Brand New Day”, also produced by Thibault, with additional footage courtesy of Natasha Gregory and James Sykes.
In 2020, Sykes parted ways with Golden Robot Records without releasing a single record through the label.
Sykes‘s partnership with the Australian company was first announced in January 2019. At the time, John promised that his first album in two decades would arrive before the end of 2019. However, things apparently went south shortly after the signing, with Sykes later accusing the label of making “little attempt to move things forward despite our best efforts and patience.”
“Sy-Ops” was expected to include such other tracks as “Believe In Yourself” and “My Guitar”.
Speaking to Reality Check TV at the January 2019 Hall Of Heavy Metal History event in Anaheim, California, Sykes stated about his absence from the rock scene: “I’m looking forward to getting out on the road and playing again. I kind of go underground and stay there for a while. I don’t know, man. Sometimes I just take off and shut it all down. But I’m getting the itch, I’ve been having the itch to get back out and play, so I’m looking forward to that.”
Asked about the musical direction of his new record, Sykes said: “It’s kind of got flavors of old and new. But I think it’ll be pleasing to a lot of people to hear it. I think it’ll touch a fair few people if they check it out. It’s a good, solid album — it’s not just a couple of tracks and a load of fillers.”
Sykes‘s band for his tour was expected to include his onetime BLUE MURDER bandmate Tony Franklin (bass) and Fred Boswell Jr. (drums).
John‘s best-known work was when he joined WHITESNAKE and co-wrote the band’s self-titled seventh studio album, released in 1987. It produced a major power ballad hit, “Is This Love”, along with the No. 1 hit “Here I Go Again”. The album was a major crossover hit, eventually selling over eight million copies in the U.S. alone.
Sykes announced his departure from THIN LIZZY in July 2009, explaining that “I feel it’s time to get back to playing my own music.”
Back in 2012, Sykes pulled out of a planned collaboration with DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Portnoy and MR. BIG bassist Billy Sheehan. In 2011, the project demoed more than a dozen songs at a Los Angeles studio, with Portnoy describing one track as “copping the [LED] ZEPPELIN/[BLACK] SABBATH vibe” and another as “[PINK] FLOYD meets [DEEP] PURPLE!!! Some serious old-school classic rock.”
Two years ago, Sykes‘s former BLUE MURDER bandmate Carmine Appice told SiriusXM‘s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk” that he had no contact with Sykes despite repeated attempts to reach out to the guitarist. “I think he’s done [playing music],” the drummer said at the time. “I send him texts; I don’t hear nothing back. I don’t know. Maybe he’s pissed off at me for some reason. But I talk with [BLUE MURDER bassist] Tony [Franklin]; he hasn’t heard from him either.”
BLUE MURDER was formed by Sykes and released two studio albums — 1989’s self-titled effort and the 1993 follow-up, “Nothin’ But Trouble” — before calling it quits.
Sykes co-wrote nine of the tracks on WHITESNAKE‘s classic 1987 album “Whitesnake”, including mega-hits “Still Of The Night” and “Is This Love?”
Sykes found himself thrown out of WHITESNAKE, alongside bassist Neil Murray and drummer Aynsley Dunbar, even before the album had been released. WHITESNAKE singer and leader David Coverdale then assembled an entirely different, MTV-friendly group to tour the record.
Back in 2017, Sykes admitted that he was still “very bitter” about how Coverdale treated him. “David said nothing to any of us about having decided to kick us out of the band,” the guitarist told Rock Candy magazine, claiming he only found out he was no longer a member of WHITESNAKE when he asked the band’s A&R man John Kalodner what was going on.
“I was furious and wasn’t about to accept this,” said Sykes. “So I went down to the studio where David was still recording his vocals, prepared to confront him. Honest to God, he ran away, got in his car and hid from me!”
Sykes claimed Coverdale blamed record company Geffen for forcing him to change band members. “I knew he was fucking lying,” said Sykes. And he insists Coverdale‘s claims to have written 95 percent of the album’s guitar parts are also false. “When I knew him, David could barely play the guitar,” Sykes said.
Sykes also ruled out the possibility of collaborating with Coverdale in the future, saying: “I know David has been saying recently that he and I have been talking about working together on a project outside of WHITESNAKE. That’s completely false. I really have no interest in ever talking to him again.”
It is with great sorrow we share that John Sykes has passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer. He will be…
Posted by John Sykes on Monday, January 20, 2025
