Deke Leonard has died at the age of 72.
The news was confirmed by Cherry Red Records on their Facebook page.
Born Roger Leonard in Llanelli, South Wales in 1944, the musician and author formed his first band Lucifer And The Corncrackers in 1962. He went on to play in The Jets, laterally The Smokeless Zone, and in 1968 joined The Bystanders, who would change musical direction and morph into Man.
He enjoyed several stints with Man during his career and also played with his own band, Iceberg.
He penned the liner notes for Man’s albums and went on to write four autobiographical books: Rhinos, Winos & Lunatics: The Legend Of Man, a Rock N’ Roll Band, Maybe I Should’ve Stayed In Bed?, The Twang Dynasty – From Memphis To Merthyr, Guitarists That Rocked The World and Maximum Darkness: Man On The Road To Nowhere.
In addition, Leonard played with a range of other artists, including The Tyla Gang, Walter Egan, The Force and The Flying Aces.
Leonard’s friend, writer and film producer Kevin Allen, paid tribute to the musician.
He tells the South Wales Evening Post: “Deke was a true gentlemen of acid rock and he had a fantastic presence on stage. How on earth he survived that era to remain so erudite and engaging was a mystery.
“Deke was such an interesting, gentle and lovely person and he was part of a dying breed – he’ll be really missed. And I don’t think I ever saw a man polish off a packet of Embassy Regal with such aplomb as Deke Leonard.”
No cause of death has so far been released.
