{"id":977256,"date":"2020-06-05T15:01:33","date_gmt":"2020-06-05T21:01:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/?p=1010920"},"modified":"2020-06-05T15:01:33","modified_gmt":"2020-06-05T21:01:33","slug":"sweet-bassist-steve-priest-dead-at-72","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/music-news\/sweet-bassist-steve-priest-dead-at-72\/","title":{"rendered":"Sweet Bassist Steve Priest Dead at 72"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Steve Priest, founding bassist and singer for \u201cBallroom Blitz\u201d glam<\/a> rock band Sweet, died Thursday at the age of 72.<\/span> Priest\u2019s family confirmed his death on social media Thursday. No cause of death was revealed, but guitarist Andy Scott \u2014 the last surviving member of the band\u2019s classic lineup \u2014 said \u201chis health was failing\u201d recently.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is with a heavy heart that we announce at 8:25am PT today, Steve Priest, founding member of The Sweet, passed away,\u201d Priest\u2019s family tweeted<\/a>. \u201cHe is survived by his wife, Maureen, three daughters, Lisa, Danielle & Maggie and 3 grandchildren, Jordan, Jade & Hazel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe was the best bass player I ever played with. The noise we made as a band was so powerful,\u201d Scott added in a separate statement<\/a>. \u201cFrom that moment in the summer of 1970 when set off on our Musical Odyssey the world opened up and the rollercoaster ride started! He eventually followed his heart and moved to the USA. First New York then LA. Rest in Peace brother. All my love.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Sweet\u2019s hit-making classic lineup formed in 1970, when Scott joined Priest, drummer Mick Tucker and singer Brian Connolly. One of the signature acts of the Seventies glam rock scene, Sweet released a string of hit singles over the course of the decade, which the band partly spent as the studio entity for the songwriting duo Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn, who wrote the band\u2019s hits \u201cWig-Wam Bam,\u201d \u201cLittle Willy,\u201d \u201cCo Co\u201d and \u201cBallroom Blitz.\u201d The latter track \u2014<\/span> one of Rolling Stone<\/em>\u2019s 20 Songs That Defined the Early Seventies<\/a> \u2014 featured Priest\u2019s high-pitched vocals singing the pre-chorus.<\/span><\/p>\n