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| Denny Laine (1944-2023) |
Denny Laine, lead singer of the Moody Blues and a guitarist with Paul McCartney's band Wings, has died at the age of 79.
His wife Elizabeth Hines said he died after a long battle with lung disease, according to the BBC.
Among other achievements, Laine sang on the Moody Blues' multi-million selling Go Now and co-wrote the Wings hit Mull of Kintyre.
McCartney paid tribute on Instagram, calling the musician "an outstanding vocalist and guitar player".
"Denny was a great talent with a fine sense of humour and was always ready to help other people," he said.
"We had drifted apart but in recent years managed to re-establish our friendship and share memories of our times together."
Born Brian Hines in the Channel Islands, Laine grew up in Birmingham and was inspired to play guitar by jazz legend Django Reinhardt.
His stage name derived from a childhood nickname, Denny, and his sister's favorite singer, Frankie Laine.
His professional career began as the frontman of a local band called Denny Laine and the Diplomats, which featured future ELO musician Bev Bevan on drums. But when the band failed a record label audition, Laine left to join The Moody Blues.
There, he scored a number one hit with Go Now and followed it up with a number of R&B-influenced singles like From The Bottom of My Heart (I Love You) and Bye Bye Bird.
But their commercial success was on the slide, and Laine left before the band reinvented itself as a progressive rock outfit with songs like Nights In White Satin.
His next project, the Denny Laine String Band, also struggled to achieve chart success; and the guitarist took a sabbatical in Spain to study flamenco guitar, before joining Cream drummer Ginger Baker in his hard rock outfit Air Force.
Then, in 1971, McCartney announced the arrival of Wings - his first band since the Beatles, centered around songs written with his wife Linda.
Laine provided guitar, bass and vocals, giving essential support to McCartney on hits like Jet, Band on the Run and Live and Let Die.
He had known McCartney since the Diplomats and The Moody Blues supported The Beatles on tour in the 60s; and although he had previously been known as a frontman, he enjoyed the freedom Wings afforded him.
"I was in the shadows more, but I wasn't bothered by that," he told Billboard earlier this year.
"I was traveling the world and learning a lot and having a good time in many ways. So from that point of view, it was easy for me."
But he was gifted solo sections during concerts on the Wings Over America tour, where he sang Go Now, amongst other songs.
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