According to a statement posted on his website, Sykes “passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer”.
According to the article, he was a “thoughtful, kind, and charismatic man whose presence lit up the room” and had shown “sincere love and gratitude for his fans” in his last days.
Sykes co-wrote some of Whitesnake’s most well-known songs, such as “Is This Love” and “Still of the Night,” and he was featured on two of the band’s albums.
Before joining Thin Lizzy in 1982, he recorded two albums with the heavy metal band Tygers Of Pan Tang in 1980, where he started his career.
Before joining frontman Phil Lynott on a European tour with a different band named The Three Musketeers, he performed on the 1983 album Thunder and Lightning.
