BLABBERMOUTH.NET
Leslie West, the legendary guitarist, vocalist and original founding member of
MOUNTAIN, has died at the age of 75. His passing was confirmed in a statement from
Dean Guitars, with whom
West has had an endorsement deal for a number of years.
"With a heavy heart, we are saddened hear about the passing of #Dean Artist and part of the
Dean family,
Leslie West," the statement read. "Legendary and one of a kind. Rest In Peace."
Dean Guitars CEO
Evan Rubinson added in a separate tweet: "To a man that I truly loved more than most ā the funniest, most honest guy I've met. #RIP #LeslieWest"
The news of the 75-year-old rocker's deteriorating health was first broken by his brother,
Larry West Weinstein, who took to his
Facebook page on Monday (December 21) to say that
Leslie was gravely ill and near death after his heart stopped, and that he was put on a ventilator.
"I am asking for all your prayers,"
Weinstein wrote in a since-deleted post. "[
Leslie's wife]
Jenni is by his side in Florida but it's not looking good. Thanks
Jenni, he wouldn't have made it this far without you."
Weinstein went on to say: "His heart gave out and he's on a ventilator. May not make it through the night."
Earlier today,
TWISTED SISTER singer
Dee Snider, who is apparently a friend of
Leslie and
Jenni, and has been in contact with the family, tweeted: "The final hours on this earth for the amazing
Leslie West of
MOUNTAIN. His voice and guitar will be silenced but his music will live forever. I am heartbroken. Prayers for him and his amazing wife, his rock,
Jenni who is with him now. @lwestmountain".
Snider went on to acknowledge
West's massive influence on rock music, writing: "
Leslie West and
MOUNTAIN are one of the founding fathers of heavy metal. His explosive, powerful guitar playing and seering solos helped define the genre. Attending guitarists gatherings with
Leslie I saw ALL guitarists bow down before him (yes even @eddievanhalen)... And his influence on HIP HOP (You heard me!) is undeniable. His song
Long Read has been sampled on over 750 hip hop tracks including
Jay-Z 99 Problems. What an incredible force @lwestmountain was!"
Born
Leslie Weinstein,
West first gained worldwide recognition in 1969 as the guitarist and singer in the groundbreaking rock band
MOUNTAIN. Included among
Leslie's many fans and disciples are six-string luminaries such as
Eddie Van Halen,
Randy Rhoads,
John McLaughlin,
JETHRO TULL's
Martin Barre,
Warren Haynes and
Ritchie Blackmore of
DEEP PURPLE.
Blackmore has stated that
Leslie's phenomenal playing on
"Mississippi Queen" served to redirect the course of
DEEP PURPLE's music in an instant, ultimately resulting in the brutal hard rock intensity displayed on
"Deep Purple In Rock".
For
Barre, meeting
Leslie in 1970 served to inspire the writing and playing on
JETHRO TULL's most successful album in the band's history,
"Aqualung". "Prior to going into the studio to record [1971's]
'Aqualung', I met
Leslie, whose playing I absolutely loved,"
Barre revealed. "
Leslie is well known for his association with Les Paul Juniors, and just after meeting him, I picked up a 1958 Junior because his sound was so incredible. I would say that he's the only guitarist who has ever influenced me directly."
Leslie was also influential in the development of the music for
THE WHO's masterpiece,
"Who's Next". In early 1971, he was invited to record with
THE WHO for the band's initial New York City
Record Plant sessions for the album, which sparked a close friendship with
THE WHO's leader,
Pete Townshend. Said
Pete: "
Leslie gave me a really great Les Paul Junior with one pickup on it for me to use on
'Who's Next', and
Eric Clapton gave me an old Strat. They both gave me really good instruments and I still have those instruments today. Along with my Gretsch Chet Atkins, those three guitars were the only ones I used on
'Who's Next'."
Another fan of
Leslie's was none other than
Jimi Hendrix, with whom
Leslie jammed at famed New York City clubs like Ungano's and elsewhere.
"I first met
Jimi while I was recording
'Climbing!' at the
Record Plant and he was in another room mixing
'Band Of Gypsys',"
Leslie recalled. "
Jimi came in, and after hearing the first track,
'Never in My Life', he looked over at me and said, 'That's a great riff, man.' I started shaking! There's a great picture of us playing together at Ungano's, and
Jimi's playing
Felix [
Pappalardi's] bass. Getting to know and play with
Hendrix is one of my greatest life experiences."
A life-threatening battle with diabetes cost
West most of his right leg in 2011.
"I'm lucky it wasn't one of my hands or I'd be screwed,"
West later said. "It was a difficult struggle, and after the amputation I didn't know whether I'd ever want to or be able to perform again. But a month later I played at the
Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy Camp in New York City, and I heard my guitar on stage and that was it. I knew I had to keep going."
In 2009,
West married his wife
Jenni. They exchanged vows on stage at the
Woodstock 40th-anniversary concert. West credited her with saving his life ā first with her love, and then by making the difficult decision to permit his doctors to amputate while he was in a coma.
