Lobby Loyde Dies

Aussie guitar hero Lobby Loyde, father of the "Australian guitar rock" sound, died April 21 after a two-year battle with lung cancer.

He was 66. The son of a classically trained pianist and a jazz trumpeter, Loyde’s calling card was a music that was loud, aggressive and uncompromising. It was a sound that acts like AC/DC, Rose Tattoo, Midnight Oil, Cosmic Psychos, and Angel City would take to the world.

Through the ’60s and ’70s, Lloyd was part of some of the loudest bands from Australia, including The Purple Hearts, The Wild Cherries, Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs, and The Coloured Balls.

After a four-year stint in the U.K. in the mid-1970s, Loyde returned to Australia excited by the promise of punk music.

He managed or produced punk acts like Sydney’s X, Flaming Hands, and Painters & Dockers, continuing to push the boundaries of music with Dirt and Fish Tree Mother and mentoring young musicians.

Loyde was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame last August. Among international names who hailed him as an inspiration are Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain, Pavement’s Stephen Malkmus and Henry Rollins.