The founding member of Train, Charlie Colin, has died aged 58.
As reported by TMZ, the bassist died after ‘slipping and falling in the shower’ while house sitting for a mate in Brussels, Belgium, yesterday. His sister and mother confirmed his death yesterday (22 May).
During the American musician's time in the band, they were known for hits like ‘Drops of Jupiter’ and ‘Meet Virginia’.
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Colin may have left back in 2003 but Train paid tribute to him as his co-founder, Pat Monahan, wrote in an Instagram post: “When I met Charlie Colin, front left, I fell in love with him. He was THE sweetest guy and what a handsome chap.
“Let’s make a band that’s the only reasonable thing to do. His unique bass playing and beautiful guitar work helped get folks to notice us in SF and beyond. I’ll always have a warm place for him in my heart.
“I always tried to pull him closer but he had a vision of his own. You’re a legend, Charlie. Go charm the pants off those angels.”
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Fronted by singer Monahan, the American pop rock band formed in San Francisco in the early 1990s and later had popular tracks like ‘Hey, Soul Sister’ and ‘Drive By’.
Colin was on the band’s first three albums, with their second, Drops of Jupiter, truly kicking off their success. The title track is now eight-times platinum and won two Grammys at the time.
In 2003, the bassist left the band due to substance abuse. Monahan told NBC San Diego in 2017: “Charlie is one incredible bass player, but he was in a lot of pain, and the way he was dealing with it was very painful for everyone else around him.”
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Colin reunited with fellow original member of Train Rob Hotchkiss - who also left the band in 2003 - in 2015 to start a new band called Painbirds with Tom Luce. And in 2017, he formed The Side Deal with Stan Frazier, Joel and Scott Owen.
His most recent band was Flamingo Twin and they also posted a tribute to social media yesterday: “I’m crushed. Beyond crushed. [Colin] gave me a voice I never knew I had. I love this man and will miss him forever and ever and ever. And ever.”
The Train OG had previously moved to Brussels to teach a music master class at a conservatory. Before his death, Colin shared snaps of his time in the city which he called ‘officially my favourite’.
The bassist’s exact cause of death remains unclear.
Jess Battison