Lovers of 1970s and 1980s music lovers are battling to come to terms with the sudden death of a founding member of the South African rock band Falling Mirror, lead guitarist Allan Faull.
The 63-year-old musician died on Tuesday after a heart attack at a Cape Town studio while recording the band's new album.
Fellow band member and friend Patrick Humphreys described Faull as a "real" musician playing from "the inside".
Said drummer Humphreys: "He loved all music purely on an emotional level. In spite of being a giant on his guitar, his love was for feel rather than technique."
Faull and Humphreys founded the band with lead singer Nielen Mirror in the late 1960s. They were later joined by George den Das on keyboards and Harvey Cohen on bass guitar.
The band gained a cult following in the 1980s despite their few live performances. They were thrust into the limelight with their hit album Johnny Calls the Chemist.
Band manager Sam Hendrikse said concerts scheduled for this year had been put on hold and that the release of the band's latest album had been delayed.
"Though the band members are very shocked and are struggling to come to terms with the sudden passing of a dear friend we all know that Allan was happiest when surrounded by musicians, playing a guitar, and writing music.
"He died while doing what he loves best and that is more than anyone can hope for," he said.
Faull - whose favourite quote was: "Our lives are just a dash", referring to the hyphen, as in 1949-2013 - once said: "I don't want problems with logistics. I just want to play the guitar till I die."
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