Mick Farren, RIP

Mick Farren has died aged 69.

Farren collapsed on stage at London’s Borderline on Saturday night (July 27) while performing with his band The Deviants at the Atomic Sunshine Festival.

News of Farren’s collapse and, subsequently, passing was confirmed on his Facebook page, where tributes have since been pouring in. The initial post read: “Hate to break the news but Mick collapsed on stage mid gig and the rest of the festival has been cancelled. I don’t know how the old boy is but he was unconscious on stage when the venue was cleared.” About 15 hours later, another post read: “Today was indeed the day. RIP.”

Aside from his own work, he has provided lyrics for various musician friends over the years. He has collaborated with Lemmy, co-writing “Lost Johnny” for Hawkwind, and “Keep Us on the Road” and “Damage Case” for Motörhead. With Larry Wallis, he co-wrote “When’s the Fun Begin?” for the Pink Fairies and several tracks on Wallis’ solo album Death in the Guitafternoon. He provided lyrics for the Wayne Kramer single “Get Some” during the mid-1970s, and continued to work with and for him during the 1990s.