GUITAR HERO

Andy Gill, Founding Member of Post-Punk Band Gang of Four, Dead at 64

The post-punk icon’s reps said he passed away after a “short respiratory illness.”

Andy Gill, a founding member and guitarist of influential English post-punk band Gang of Four, has died at the age of 64. According to Pitchfork, representatives said the musician passed away following a “short respiratory illness.”

The band, in a statement Saturday, said Gill was “still listening to mixes for the upcoming record” and “planning the next tour from his hospital bed.” “Andy’s final tour in November was the only way he was ever really going to bow out; with a Stratocaster around his neck, creaming with feedback and deafening the front row,” the statement read. Gill founded the band with original vocalist Jon King in the late 1970s, and served as the band's guitarist and producer for band’s nine albums, including their 2019 release.

His guitar style was an important development to post-punk going into the ’80s, and he was also a respected producer for other bands—including the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Gill is survived by his wife, Catherine Mayer, and his brother Martin.