Gary Moore has died of a suspected heart attack in his hotel room while on holiday in Estepona, Spain.
Moore was a renowned rock guitarist and musician from Belfast, Ireland. He was a former member of Thin Lizzy. Moore was originally drafted into Thin Lizzy by Phil Lynott. He later gained acclaim for his solo work and was a former member of the Irish group Skid Row.
He was only 16 when he moved from Belfast to Dublin in 1969, to join Skid Row, which featured Lynott as lead vocalist. He was later brought into Thin Lizzy by Lynott to replace the departing Eric Bell, another guitarist from Northern Ireland.
The lead guitarist received critical acclaim for his work on the 1974 Thin Lizzy album, Nightlife, but would never be constrained by the music group format. A year earlier, he had released his first solo album Grinding Stone and his virtuoso playing was to make him a recognised artist in his own right. Although returning to Thin Lizzy briefly in the late 1970s, his solo work continued to garner interest and he also enjoyed UK chart success with Lynott, via singles Parisienne Walkways and Out In The Fields.
Throughout his career, Moore was to embrace a range of genres including blues, metal and hard rock. He performed on stage with a range of major artists and released 20 studio albums.
Despite a tough image that was his legacy from his days with Thin Lizzy, Moore was a gently-spoken character with few rock star traits who generally shied away from publicity, living quietly in Brighton, England.
Gary Moore is survived by two sons of an earlier marriage and by his partner, Jo, and their daughter.
RIP
