His June 1961 sessions for Polydor yielded the single "My Bonnie" with "The Saints" on the flip side.
Tony Sheridan
Tony Sheridan, a British singer who played with the early Beatles on several recordings in Hamburg in 1961, has died. He was 72.
A statement from his family posted on Facebook on Saturday read: "Our beloved father and friend! Thank you for your love and inspiration. You left us today at 12.00 pm."
Sheridan's June 1961 sessions for Polydor yielded the single "My Bonnie" with "The Saints" on the flip side. Sheridan sang lead backed by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and original Beatles drummer Pete Best.
Credited to Tony Sheridan and The Beat Brothers, "My Bonnie" was first released in October 1961 and reached No. 5 in the German Hit Parade. According to Beatles legend, a Liverpool music fan asked then-record store manager Brian Epstein about the single, and set in motion events that would lead Epstein to become their manager and secure a recording contract for them with EMI.
Best took to Twitter today to express his condolences. "My friend Tony Sherdian passed away this morning. Great guy and great memories I will miss you Tony. RIP."
Ted "Kingsize" Taylor, a colleague of Sheridan and The Beatles during their Hamburg years, wrote on Facebook. "Tony could always see a bright light at the end of a dark road, now he has reached this bright light, and may he rest in eternal peace."
Steve Marinucci's Beatles Examiner website had reported in December that Sheridan was seriously ill in a German hospital. The cause of death has not been made public.