Keith Levene, the co-founder of The Clash and Public Image Ltd., died at the age of 65. Martin Atkins and Jah Wobble, members of his previous band, announced his death on social media. According to The Guardian, Levene died on November 11 of liver cancer at his home in Norfolk, England.
Atkins stated:
“It comes as a shock to read of the death of guitar legend Keith Levene. We had our ups and downs, which had smoothed out with time. My admiration for his singular brilliance will never fade.”
Keith Levene was born in London’s Wood Green and has had a lifelong interest in music. He started playing guitar in his preteens and has since collaborated with various well-known bands, earning a reputation for himself.
Following Keith Levene’s death, tributes poured in on Twitter.
Following the news of Keith Levene’s passing, Twitterati expressed their sorrow and paid respect to the great guitarist. Several people submitted photos of Levene in his youth, with one calling him “one of the finest guitarists of the 1980s.”
RIP Keith Levene. Here he is with Public Image Ltd inventing all the best post-punk guitar sounds in one single song. The full 1979 recording of Chant from Check It Out is at https://t.co/Po46rFpVGX pic.twitter.com/tx9PHiUEV9
— Birmingham 81 (@Birmingham_81) November 12, 2022
Keith Levene :1957-2022
R. I. P. pic.twitter.com/UOg9jZq2ff— Graham Crosby (@Gracro5) November 12, 2022
Keith Levene got his start in music as a roadie.
Keith Levene was a pivotal figure in the punk and post-punk music scenes in the 1980s. As a youngster, he started his music career as a roadie for the progressive rock band Yes. He created the rock band The Clash with Mick Jones in 1976, but quit before their debut album was completed. He did, however, co-write the song What’s My Name from their 1977 album.
Following the dissolution of Sex Pistols in 1978, Levene created Public Image Ltd. with lead singer John Lydon, drummer Jim Walker, and bassist Jah Wobble. PiL elevated the punk music scene with their blend of reggae and dub, which was prominent on their 1979 album Metal Box. Levene worked on the band’s first and third albums, Public Image: First Issue and Flowers of Romance, respectively.
In an interview with the news site Furious in 2001, Levene stated:
“What happened to me was that after I mastered the rules, I didn’t want to be like any other guitarist.” I didn’t make an effort to stand out. I simply got a keen sense of what was wrong. So if I did anything incorrect, such as make a mistake or do something out of key, I was willing to listen to it again.”
Levene departed the band in 1983, although he contributed lyrics to their fourth studio album, This Is What You Want, This Is What You Get. Following his departure, Levene relocated to Los Angeles. In 2012, he reunited with his PiL bandmate Wobble to release the song, Yin & Yang. According to The Guardian, Keith had been working on a book on his time in the PiL with British novelist Adam Hammond.
