Gregg Allman, famed singer, songwriter and Southern-rock musician has died from liver cancer-related complications, Rolling Stone reports. He was 69 years old.
According to a statement released on Allman’s website in late May, the rock star passed away peacefully at his Savannah, Georgia, home after struggling with several serious health issues over the past several years. These issues included a hepatitis C virus (HCV) diagnosis in 2007, which he attributed to an infected tattooing needle, and a late-life liver transplant in 2010. Allman also suffered from an atrial fibrillation (which caused him to have an irregular heartbeat).
In his 2012 memoir, My Cross to Bear, Allman talked about his struggles with alcohol and heroin addiction throughout his prolific music career. The famous keyboardist, who with his older brother, guitarist Duane Allman, formed the earliest iteration of the Allman Brothers Band in 1969, was known for helping to invent the Southern rock genre, as well as for his quintessential rock star lifestyle.
Allman’s brother Duane died in a motorcycle accident in 1971. In 1976, Gregg was arrested on drug charges related to heroin. His road manager was later found guilty on narcotics distribution charges and was sentenced to 75 years in prison.
Despite his liver disease diagnosis and eventual transplant, Allman continued touring with the Allman Brothers through 2014. The musician played his last show in Atlanta in 2016, after which he canceled his summer tour citing unspecified “serious health problems.” He is survived by his wife Shannon Allman, four children and three grandchildren.
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