John Sykes of Thin Lizzy performs on the Thunder and Lightning tour in 1983. Photo: Pete Still/Redferns
John Sykes, a beloved guitarist who performed with Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake in the 1980s, has died at age 65 from cancer. The news was confirmed in a statement on Skyes’ official Facebook page.
“It is with great sorrow we share that John Sykes has passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer,” the statement read. “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.”
Sykes was best known for his work co-writing Whitesnake’s seventh album, 1987, which included hit singles “Still of the Night” and “Is This Love.” Throughout his career, he performed with Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, and the Tygers of Pan Tang, and fronted his own band Blue Murder. He released four solo LPs and a live solo album.
Born in Reading, England, in 1959 and raised partially in Spain, Sykes began playing guitar in his teens. He began his professional music career with a group called Streetfighter in the late 1970s after moving to Blackpool, England, and later left to join English heavy metal band Tygers of Pan Tang. He appeared on three of Tygers of Pan Tang’s albums and departed in 1982.
Sykes auditioned unsuccessfully for Ozzy Osbourne’s band before Tygers of Pan Tang producer Chris Tsangarides connected him with Thin Lizzy’s Phil Lynott. The pair collaborated on 1982 single “Please Don’t Leave Me.” Sykes officially joined Thin Lizzy that same year. He performed on the group’s 1983 LP Thunder and Lightning, for which he co-wrote the single “Cold Sweat,” and on their live album Life.
“Thin Lizzy were one of my all-time favorite bands anyway, and to be asked to join them was like a dream come true” Sykes reflected in an interview in 2008. “It was an honor and a privilege. In fact, it’s still an honor and privilege now to sing those songs that Phil wrote. To be picked by Phil is probably the highlight of my career, and it doesn’t really get much better than that. I was young and what I lived for was being involved in Rock ‘n’ Roll. That was a wonderful time in my life, and I was only about 22 years old at the time.”
Thin Lizzy officially disbanded in 1983 after touring on Thunder and Lightning, leading to Sykes joining Whitesnake in early 1984. He recorded guitar parts on the band’s 1984 album Slide It In and co-wrote most of their highly-successful LP 1987 with singer David Coverdale. Coverdale fired all of his band members, including Sykes, before the release of the album, which eventually landed at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart.
Sykes moved on to form hard-rock band Blue Murder bassist Tony Franklin and drummer Carmine Appice. The group released their self-titled debut in 1989 and underwent numerous lineup changes before unveiling Nothin’ But Trouble in 1993. Blue Murder disbanded shortly after, with Sykes pursuing a solo career, which kicked off with his 1995 LP Out of My Tree. His most recent solo effort, live album Bad Boy Live!, arrived in 2004, however Sykes released several one-off singles in the year since, including 2021’s “Dawning of a Brand New Day.”
In the meantime, Sykes, Brian Downey, Scott Gorham, and Darren Wharton formed a new version of Thin Lizzy after Lynott’s death in 1986. Sykes continued to perform with this edition of Thin Lizzy until 2009.
Coverdale shared photos of himself with Sykes on X, writing, “Just heard the shocking news of John’s passing…My sincere condolences to his family, friends & fans.”
From Rolling Stone US.