Ian McDonald, a co-founder of two era-defining groups in prog band King Crimson and rock outfit Foreigner, has died aged 75.
A representative said he had “passed away peacefully on 9 February in his home in New York City, surrounded by his family”. No cause of death was disclosed.
McDonald was part of the original lineup of King Crimson, who formed in 1967 in Dorset. A multi-instrumentalist, McDonald became the band’s primary composer. After a breakout support slot with the Rolling Stones in Hyde Park, London, on 5 July 1969, they released their debut album, In the Court of the Crimson King, in October of the same year.
It received critical acclaim and is now considered a classic. Pete Townshend of the Who called it an “uncanny masterpiece”. And Kanye West sampled McDonald’s instantly recognisable, swaggering saxophone from the song 21st Century Schizoid Man – originally recorded in a single take – on his 2010 single Power.
McDonald told Ultimate Classic Rock that he wasn’t surprised the album had held up for more than 50 years. “When we made it – and I was basically at the forefront of the production – I wanted to make sure everything that went into the record would bear repeated listening and hopefully stand the test of time.”
The band’s original lineup went their separate ways at the end of 1969, with McDonald and drummer Michael Giles diverging from the darker styles preferred by guitarist Robert Fripp. The departing pair released one album together, 1970’s McDonald and Giles, which reflected their poppier approach to prog.
McDonald briefly rejoined King Crimson in 1974 before Fripp put the band on hiatus – though he would play with Fripp again in the 50-strong prog-jazz group Centipede, led by British free jazz pianist Keith Tippett. In 2002, former members of King Crimson, minus Fripp, reformed as the 21st Century Schizoid Band.
McDonald formed Foreigner in 1976, alongside British guitarist Mick Jones (not the Clash guitarist) and US singer Lou Gramm. He appeared on the first three of their four consecutive five-times platinum-certified albums, but was sacked in 1980 as Jones sought greater control over the group.
“I wouldn’t have left,” McDonald told Big Bang magazine. “I loved the group, it was not my decision.” However, he occasionally played with the band at later reunion shows.(Guardian)