Allen Lanier, founding guitarist and keyboardist of classic-rock band Blue Oyster Cult, has died at age 67, after losing his battle with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. The rest of the band broke the sad news on their official Facebook page.
Lanier was a major creative force behind the band’s music, co-writing classic tacks like “Lonely Teardrops” and “True Confessions.” As a founding member, he played with Blue Oyster Cult from 1967 until the band’s 2006 retirement, barring a brief absence in the 1980s.
Luckily, Lanier was able to play with his bandmates one last time in November, reuniting with B.O.C. for their 40th Anniversary show in New York.
“We love you and miss you,” the band says in their post. And we’re sure Cult fans will echo that sentiment.
The band’s frontman, Eric Bloom, also penned a touching tribute on his Facebook page.
“I’ll miss the guy even though we hadn’t spoken in awhile,” he wrote. “He was so talented as a musician and a thinker. He read voraciously, all kinds of things, especially comparative religion. We drove for years together, shared rooms in the early days. We partied, laughed, played. All BOC fans and band members will mourn his death.”