Death Unknown: Budgie Frontman Burke Shelley Dies 71

Burke Shelley, the vocalist and bassist for the Welsh rock band Budgie, died at the age of 71, according to his family.

Last night, his daughter Ela verified the news in a Facebook post, confirming that the musician had passed away (January 10).

However, Shelley's cause of death is still unknown. In the same announcement, Ella appealed for the public to be "respectful of the family at this time".

Budgie's Beginning

Inspired by the local music scene and, especially the Beatles, Burke formed Budgie in 1967 with guitarists Kevin Newton and Brian Goddard and drummer Ray Phillips.

Newtown left the band after a year, and Tony Bourge was brought in to replace him. As Shelley's reliable co-writer, Bourge helped the band reach its peak during its most productive period.

Budgie recorded a total of ten full-length albums between 1971 and 1982, and they were initially disbanded in 1988 after a long hiatus.

A short reunion took place in 1995 and 1996, during which the band performed one-off gigs before reuniting in 1999 for a second time.

With albums such as Budgie's self-titled debut (1971), Squawk (1972), and Never Turn Your Back on a Friend (1973), the band advanced hard rock into heavier territory, and the band is widely regarded as a proto-metal act that influenced the likes of Metallica and Van Halen.

"You're All Living in Cuckooland", the band's final album, was released in 2006. Almost four years later, Shelley was hospitalized with an aortic aneurysm, and the band was never able to perform live again when an operation in 2010 lost him of his full vocal powers.

Shelley's medical complications

Stickler syndrome, a rare congenital connective tissue illness, plagued the bassist and vocalist in the years preceding his death, which contributed to his early demise. In addition, further operations left him with agony that made it impossible for him to play while standing for extended periods of time.

Shelley was reportedly urged to undergo more medical operations. Still, following the difficulties he had had following earlier surgical intervention, he declined to have another procedure performed in order to treat a bigger aneurysm that had developed.

In the Budgie repertoire, Shelley and his colleagues laid down slow-burning, heaving riffs beneath strange lyrics that his legacy will be found.

Although the band may be considered more of a cult phenomenon, Shelley's impact has been tremendous and will continue to be so for a very long time.