John Lodge, the longtime singer, songwriter and bass guitarist for The Moody Blues, has died. He was 82.

“John Lodge, our darling husband, father, grandfather, father-in-law and brother, has been suddenly and unexpectedly taken from us,” his family Friday said in a statement on Facebook.

No cause of death was shared, but they noted that “John peacefully slipped away surrounded by his loved ones and the sounds of The Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly.”

Born on July 20, 1943, in Birmingham, England, Lodge received his first Fender bass guitar at 16. No cause of death was shared, but they noted that “John peacefully slipped away surrounded by his loved ones and the sounds of The Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly.”

Born on July 20, 1943, in Birmingham, England, Lodge received his first Fender bass guitar at 16.