John Sykes, Legendary Rock Guitarist of Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake, Dies at 65
Rock star John Sykes passed away at 65 after battling cancer. His incredible guitar playing helped shape Whitesnake’s breakthrough 1987 album, which sold a staggering 20 million copies worldwide.
“John was and is an incredible talent,” said David Coverdale on Facebook. “Our musical chemistry was great, but it didn’t work personally. The truth of the matter is no matter how incredible of an album that we made together, we were unable to connect as people.”
His music career kicked off in 1980 with The Tygers of Pan Tang. Two years later, he got his big break by joining Thin Lizzy, where he made his mark on “Thunder and Lightning” and two live albums.
With Whitesnake, he stamped on both “Slide It In” (1984) and their huge 1987 album. The power ballad “Is This Love” climbed to number two on American charts. Sykes helped write most of the songs on the record.
After Whitesnake, he formed Blue Murder with Tony Franklin and Carmine Appice. Between band work, he put out five solo albums.
By 1996, he became lead singer for a new lineup of Thin Lizzy, staying until 2009. “You know, we go out and pay our respects to Phil Lynott,” Sykes said in 1999. “He wrote damn good songs. It’s just a great pleasure to go out and play and think of him.”
In 2017, fans were treated to a loaded 30th anniversary edition of the 1987 Whitesnake album. It came packed with rough demos and behind-the-scenes photos from the recording.
The message on Facebook also said, “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.”
At the end, he wanted fans to know, “In his final days, he spoke of his sincere love and gratitude for his fans who stuck by him through all these years.”