English guitarist John Sykes — who played with the likes of Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, Tygers of Pan Tang and more — has died following a bout with cancer. The musician’s death was confirmed yesterday (January 20th) through his official Facebook page. He was 65 years old.
“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,” reads the statement.
It adds: “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.”
Born in Reading, Berkshire, Sykes started his recording career off after writing and playing lead guitar on UK rockers Streetfighter’s “She’s No Angel,” a song off 1980’s New Electric Warriors compilation. He’d move on to perform with NWOBHM figures Tygers of Pan Tang for a pair of albums, and then he linked up with the iconic Thin Lizzy for their 1983 swan song, Thunder and Lightning.
In 1984, Sykes joined up with Whitesnake, and appeared later that year on the band’s sixth studio album, Slide it In. It’d be 1987’s Whitesnake, however, that brought Sykes and the rest of the band into the upper tier of rockdom. The multi-platinum album, steered by re-recorded versions of the band’s “Here I Go Again,” as well as several songs Sykes had co-authored with vocalist David Coverdale, has gone on to ship more than 25 million copies.
Coverdale, however, fired the rest of the players on Whitesnake’s self-titled album that same year, including Sykes. Sykes would go on to form hard rockers Blue Murder in 1987, featuring Vanilla Fudge/ Cactus drummer Carmine Appice, and released three albums with them until their break up in 1994.
Sykes released five solo albums between 1995 and 2004. By 2011 he began recording new music with Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy, but their songs hadn’t progressed past the demo stage.
Sykes last pieces of new music were 2021 solo singles “Dawning of a Brand New Day” and “Out Alive”.
Below, you’ll find tributes from bandmates and collaborators Appice, Coverdale and Portnoy, as well as salutes to Sykes from Opeth, Queensryche and more.
No words 😢 pic.twitter.com/rfX27a5m1l
— Tygers Of Pan Tang (@tygersofpantang) January 20, 2025