John Sykes dead aged 65: Iconic ex-Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake guitarist dies after battle with cancer
Share:
ICONIC rockstar John Sykes has died aged 65. The Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake and Sykes guitarist passed away after a battle with cancer. A statement on his social media channels said: "It is with great sorrow we share that John Sykes has passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer.
![[John Sykes of Thin Lizzy performing live onstage.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/hammersmith-odeon-photo-john-sykes-965356883.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
"He will be remembered by many as a man with exceptional musical talent but for those who didn’t know him personally, he was a thoughtful, kind, and charismatic man whose presence lit up the room. "He certainly marched to the beat of his own drum and always pulled for the underdog.
![[Photo of John Sykes of Thin Lizzy.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/mandatory-credit-koh-hasebe-shinko-965356871.jpg?strip=all&w=637)
"In his final days, he spoke of his sincere love and gratitude for his fans who stuck by him through all these years. "While the impact of his loss is profound and the mood somber, we hope the light of his memory will extinguish the shadow of his absence.".
![[Photo of Thin Lizzy band members seated in a theater.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/odeon-photo-brian-downey-darren-965356956.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
Sykes appeared on Thin Lizzy's 1983 Top five album Thunder and Lightning before joining Whitesnake and contributing to two albums, beginning with 1984's Slide It In. He then went on to co-write much of 1987's eight-times platinum international Top 10 hit Whitesnake.
![[John Sykes backstage at Madison Square Garden.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/backstage-madison-square-garden-theatre-965356677.jpg?strip=all&w=630)
However, his relationship with lead singer David Coverdale was always difficult. "John was and is an incredible talent," Coverdale later said. "Our musical chemistry was great, but it didn’t work personally. The truth of the matter is no matter how incredible of an album that we made together, we were unable to connect as people.".
