Bob Welch has died

[SummerlongBoots]

I don't have a twitter account so I wasn't able to ask this guy where he got the info, so this may or may not be true.

Jimmy Palmiotti‏@jpalmiotti

Bob Welch left a suicide note. He killed himself with a gun. He had cancer. This all is so sad. RIP.

2:46 PM - 7 Jun 12via web · Embed this Tweet

http://twitter.com/jpalmiotti/status/210850188976324608

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by SummerlongBoots

I don't have a twitter account so I wasn't able to ask this guy where he got the info, so this may or may not be true.

Jimmy Palmiotti‏@jpalmiotti

Bob Welch left a suicide note. He killed himself with a gun. He had cancer. This all is so sad. RIP.

2:46 PM - 7 Jun 12via web · Embed this Tweet

http://twitter.com/jpalmiotti/status/210850188976324608

Apparently he's a guy who writes for Marvel Comics. I could see him being a friend of Bob's.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

Apparently he's a guy who writes for Marvel Comics. I could see him being a friend of Bob's.

Well, and some of us have been speculating(in text, not here), that his suicide may have been due to being terminally ill(I know he's been sick, and recently had surgery).

Not that that lessens the impact of his loss, but for me at least, if I knew that the suicide was to avoid the wasting away that cancer causes, at least it might make a little bit more sense. Unless his family, or a close friend, discloses the truth, we'll probably never know.

A tragedy, nonetheless.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

Well, and some of us have been speculating(in text, not here), that his suicide may have been due to being terminally ill(I know he's been sick, and recently had surgery).

Not that that lessens the impact of his loss, but for me at least, if I knew that the suicide was to avoid the wasting away that cancer causes, at least it might make a little bit more sense. Unless his family, or a close friend, discloses the truth, we'll probably never know.

A tragedy, nonetheless.

That's what I was thinking, though there are less awful ways to go about it.

[CADreaming]

Ex-Fleetwood Mac member Bob Welch dead


By Piya Sinha-Roy

LOS ANGELES | Thu Jun 7, 2012 9:21pm EDT

(Reuters) - Bob Welch, an early member of rock band Fleetwood Mac who enjoyed a successful solo career with hits such as "Ebony Eyes," died on Thursday of an apparent suicide at home in Nashville. He was 66.

Police said Welch's body was found by his wife Wendy with a single gunshot wound to the chest, and he had left a suicide note. Welch suffered from health problems, but police did not disclose what those issues were.

Mick Fleetwood, one of the founding members of Fleetwood Mac and Welch's manager during his solo career, had remained in close contact with his former band mate over the years and told Reuters that Welch's suicide was "incredibly out of character."

"He was a very, very profoundly intelligent human being and always in good humor, which is why this is so unbelievably shocking," he said.

"He was a huge part of our history which sometimes gets forgotten ... mostly his legacy would be his songwriting abilities that he brought to Fleetwood Mac, which will survive all of us," Fleetwood said.

"If you look into our musical history, you'll see a huge period that was completely ensconced in Bob's work."

Welch is the second member of Fleetwood Mac to die this year. In January, another former guitarist for the band, Bob Weston, died in London from a gastrointestinal hemorrhage, at the age of 64.

Welch was born on August 31, 1945 in Los Angeles to movie producer father Robert L. Welch and actress mother Templeton Fox. He moved to Paris to study French at the Sorbonne, then returned to Los Angeles in the early 1970s.

He was invited to join Fleetwood Mac after the departure of founding members Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer. He played guitar and was a vocalist with the band from 1971 to 1974, working on five of their early albums including 1971's "Future Games," 1972's "Bare Trees" and 1973's "Mystery to Me."

It was after Welch's departure from the band in 1975 that Fleetwood Mac went on to find its largest measure of fame on albums such as 1977's "Rumours" with the addition of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks to the band's lineup.

Nicks released a statement, calling Welch's death "devastating."

"He was an amazing guitar player - he was funny, sweet - and he was smart - I'm so very sorry for his family and for the family of Fleetwood Mac - so, so sad," Nicks said.

Welch fell out with his former band mates after suing the group in 1994 for unpaid royalties, which led to his exclusion from the group's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 1998.

The singer and guitarist formed a hard rock group called Paris in 1975, releasing two albums, "Paris" and "Hunt Sales," before disbanding the group a few years later and embarking on a solo career.

His debut solo record, the pop-driven "French Kiss" in 1977, went platinum and produced the hits "Sentimental Lady," "Ebony Eyes" and "Hot Love, Cold World." Welch followed up with 1979's "Three Hearts," and four more albums throughout the early 1980s, none of which emulated the same success as "French Kiss."

He moved to Phoenix, Arizona, in 1987 and formed a short-lived group called Avenue M, before moving to Nashville in the late 1990s, working on a songwriting career and releasing a tribute to bebop music, "Bob Welch Looks At Bop," in 1999.

His most recent albums, 2003's "His Fleetwood Mac Years and Beyond" and 2006's "His Fleetwood Mac Years and Beyond 2," had previously unreleased material as well as new compositions.

(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy and Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Bernard Orr, Vicki Allen and David Brunnstrom)

[elle]

Originally Posted by CADreaming

Ex-Fleetwood Mac member Bob Welch dead


By Piya Sinha-Roy

LOS ANGELES | Thu Jun 7, 2012 9:21pm EDT

(Reuters) - Bob Welch, an early member of rock band Fleetwood Mac who enjoyed a successful solo career with hits such as "Ebony Eyes," died on Thursday of an apparent suicide at home in Nashville. He was 66.

Police said Welch's body was found by his wife Wendy with a single gunshot wound to the chest, and he had left a suicide note. Welch suffered from health problems, but police did not disclose what those issues were.

Mick Fleetwood, one of the founding members of Fleetwood Mac and Welch's manager during his solo career, had remained in close contact with his former band mate over the years and told Reuters that Welch's suicide was "incredibly out of character."

"He was a very, very profoundly intelligent human being and always in good humor, which is why this is so unbelievably shocking," he said.

"He was a huge part of our history which sometimes gets forgotten ... mostly his legacy would be his songwriting abilities that he brought to Fleetwood Mac, which will survive all of us," Fleetwood said.

"If you look into our musical history, you'll see a huge period that was completely ensconced in Bob's work."

Welch is the second member of Fleetwood Mac to die this year. In January, another former guitarist for the band, Bob Weston, died in London from a gastrointestinal hemorrhage, at the age of 64.

Welch was born on August 31, 1945 in Los Angeles to movie producer father Robert L. Welch and actress mother Templeton Fox. He moved to Paris to study French at the Sorbonne, then returned to Los Angeles in the early 1970s.

He was invited to join Fleetwood Mac after the departure of founding members Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer. He played guitar and was a vocalist with the band from 1971 to 1974, working on five of their early albums including 1971's "Future Games," 1972's "Bare Trees" and 1973's "Mystery to Me."

It was after Welch's departure from the band in 1975 that Fleetwood Mac went on to find its largest measure of fame on albums such as 1977's "Rumours" with the addition of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks to the band's lineup.

Nicks released a statement, calling Welch's death "devastating."

"He was an amazing guitar player - he was funny, sweet - and he was smart - I'm so very sorry for his family and for the family of Fleetwood Mac - so, so sad," Nicks said.

Welch fell out with his former band mates after suing the group in 1994 for unpaid royalties, which led to his exclusion from the group's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 1998.

The singer and guitarist formed a hard rock group called Paris in 1975, releasing two albums, "Paris" and "Hunt Sales," before disbanding the group a few years later and embarking on a solo career.

His debut solo record, the pop-driven "French Kiss" in 1977, went platinum and produced the hits "Sentimental Lady," "Ebony Eyes" and "Hot Love, Cold World." Welch followed up with 1979's "Three Hearts," and four more albums throughout the early 1980s, none of which emulated the same success as "French Kiss."

He moved to Phoenix, Arizona, in 1987 and formed a short-lived group called Avenue M, before moving to Nashville in the late 1990s, working on a songwriting career and releasing a tribute to bebop music, "Bob Welch Looks At Bop," in 1999.

His most recent albums, 2003's "His Fleetwood Mac Years and Beyond" and 2006's "His Fleetwood Mac Years and Beyond 2," had previously unreleased material as well as new compositions.

(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy and Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Bernard Orr, Vicki Allen and David Brunnstrom)

thanks for sharing. i was looking for something with more information than that repeated statement reported by all sources during the day.

[CADreaming]

Originally Posted by elle

thanks for sharing. i was looking for something with more information than that repeated statement reported by all sources during the day.

I can't believe this. It's so horribly sad.

[Richard B]

Originally Posted by CADreaming

"He was a very, very profoundly intelligent human being and always in good humor, which is why this is so unbelievably shocking," he said.

I'm so sorry to say this especially since so many people are grieving, but I really do not like this statement from Mick, it just rubs me the wrong way. Is he saying only unintelligent people commit suicide? I know Mick fancies himself religious and has mentioned God (and faith) in interviews and songs (These Strange Times). Does he feel Bob is in hell? That for a highly intelligent person, it was a dumb thing to do?

If anything, I feel highly intelligent people tend to be the ones who do commit suicide or at least go there in their thoughts. It's so complex. Anyway, I am not trying to make trouble, just food for thought.

[Street_Dreamer]

Originally Posted by Richard B

I'm so sorry to say this especially since so many people are grieving, but I really do not like this statement from Mick, it just rubs me the wrong way. Is he saying only unintelligent people commit suicide? I know Mick fancies himself religious and has mentioned God (and faith) in interviews and songs (These Strange Times). Does he feel Bob is in hell? That for a highly intelligent person, it was a dumb thing to do?

If anything, I feel highly intelligent people tend to be the ones who do commit suicide or at least go there in their thoughts. It's so complex. Anyway, I am not trying to make trouble, just food for thought.

As someone who suffers from anxiety and depression issues but hasn't found a source to help me balance those issues, I feel like I can understand a bit of what Bob must have been going through. I mean, nobody truly knows but on some level I can understand. I feel it's shameful and wrong for anyone to judge those who've committed suicide. People believe that things like this are issues of mind over matter or having a more positive outlook on life. It doesn't work that way. The pain Bob must have been feeling inside for him to want to prematurely end his life had to be immense and he must have felt that he was beyond help. It makes you wish that everyone who cared about him could have have an inkling so we could have given him the proverbial pat on the shoulder and told him how much we all love him and the positive influence he and his music have made in all our lives. Even then though, that might not have been enough.

Matt

[CADreaming]

Originally Posted by Richard B

I'm so sorry to say this especially since so many people are grieving, but I really do not like this statement from Mick, it just rubs me the wrong way. Is he saying only unintelligent people commit suicide? I know Mick fancies himself religious and has mentioned God (and faith) in interviews and songs (These Strange Times). Does he feel Bob is in hell? That for a highly intelligent person, it was a dumb thing to do?

If anything, I feel highly intelligent people tend to be the ones who do commit suicide or at least go there in their thoughts. It's so complex. Anyway, I am not trying to make trouble, just food for thought.

I can see why you might think that, but it didn't read that way to me. I just took it as Mick describing Bob and adding how shocking it is to his thoughts simply because he is shocked. I don't think he was trying to make a profound statement. People say things in these circumstances that aren't exactly thought out.

[chiliD]

Originally Posted by Richard B

I'm so sorry to say this especially since so many people are grieving, but I really do not like this statement from Mick, it just rubs me the wrong way. Is he saying only unintelligent people commit suicide? I know Mick fancies himself religious and has mentioned God (and faith) in interviews and songs (These Strange Times). Does he feel Bob is in hell? That for a highly intelligent person, it was a dumb thing to do?

If anything, I feel highly intelligent people tend to be the ones who do commit suicide or at least go there in their thoughts. It's so complex. Anyway, I am not trying to make trouble, just food for thought.

Well...ok, I can see your point, but when it comes to "statements to the press" things get misconstrued immensely.

All you have to do is go back to read Paul McCartney's initial statement in the press after John Lennon's assassination..."It's a bummer, man.". Yep, that was it. The depth of grief Paul was feeling at the loss of John was NEVER going to come out anywhere close to what he was actually feeling in words or print. So, I take Mick's comment on about the same level. What Mick & Bob went through together during those years and the obvious shock of the news of Bob's death...those feelings just are NEVER going to be expressed to the extent that they're felt...they're just entirely too complex.

[aleuzzi]

Oops. CADreaming just posted a link to a new article I was posting. So, I deleted mine.

I'm glad to see Mick offer these words. It gives me some relief.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

That's what I was thinking, though there are less awful ways to go about it.

Indeed there are, and I will choose one of those methods, if I ever have to. (if I were terminally ill, and heading down the end of the journey, I'd do it, too)

[Macfanforever]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

Indeed there are, and I will choose one of those methods, if I ever have to. (if I were terminally ill, and heading down the end of the journey, I'd do it, too)

I agree.But my sister,step father,bio-father dealt with that bloody word called cancer to the end.This is so sad about Bob.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by Macfanforever

I agree.But my sister,step father,bio-father dealt with that bloody word called cancer to the end.This is so sad about Bob.

We did Hospice at home, with my Mom. And it was fine, until the last two weeks. Then it was a nightmare. Even though she was 100 lbs, we couldn't help her move, without hurting her, and we weren't trained, obviously. Hospice was great, but they were only there once a day. We tried to get her into a nursing home, but there just wasn't time. The end came that quickly. But those last two weeks were sheer hell, for her and us.

After she died, my aunt's told their daughters that if it came to that for them, that they wanted to be put into a nursing home, for proper care, and also to not put them through the ordeal. But for me, I would choose suicide, too, when I knew the end was near.

**Sorry that we're speculating on Bob's reason. Just knowing that he'd been ill, and had surgery recently, made my mind first go to that conclusion...