Champaign County Coroner Duane Northrup says tests show the musician, who passed away on May 24 after being discovered unresponsive in his Urbana, Ill., home, died from fentanyl – a drug used in medical patches often prescribed to treat chronic pain.

And Bennett was enduring a lot of it. Severe pains in his right leg had left him bedridden, and he had been trying to arrange for a total hip replacement. Unfortunately Bennett didn’t have health insurance and was forced to raise funds for the operation by selling off some of his vintage recording gear.

He was also suing Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, claiming he was still owed money for working on five albums as well as the band’s 2002 documentary, “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart,” which took viewers behind-the-scenes of the making of the critically acclaimed album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Bennett was seeking $50,000 in damages.

About three weeks before his death, Bennett wrote on his blog about his constantly eroding health, saying it was even “difficult to sit at the computer for more than just a few minutes,” and was looking forward to the day he could have the hip replacement.

“The way I look at it, I’m functioning WAY below 80% right now, so what do I have to lose? Except a limp, some pain, some anxiety, and some weight. In many ways, I’m really looking forward to it, and wish I could go in tomorrow.”

Bennett’s death is being investigated as an accident.