Mott The Hoople drummer Dale Griffin dies of Alzheimer's disease at 67
Dale Griffin, the drummer for British glam-rock stalwarts Mott The Hoople, has died at age 67.
He passed in his sleep on Sunday, Peter Purnell of Mott's label Angel Air Records, told the BBC.
The native of Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, 100 miles west of London, had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease a decade ago.
Sticks in hand: Dale Griffin, the drummer for British glam-rock stalwarts Mott The Hoople, pictured in 2009, died in his sleep from Alzheimer's disease on Sunday, at age 67
Dale was a founding member of the group, which took its name from a British novel of the 1960s and featured singer Ian Hunter and guitarist Mick Ralphs.
In 1972, they scored their biggest hit with the David Bowie penned-and-produced anthem All The Young Dudes.
The group's songs also included All The Way From Memphis and Roll Away The Stone.
Behind his set: Dale was one of the co-founders of the group that became known as Mott The Hoople in 1969
The Line up: From left, Dale, Ian Hunter, Mick Ralphs, Verden Allen and Pete 'Overend' Watts in 1975. They had massive hits in the 1970s inluding All The Young Dudes, written and produced by David Bowie
The band had split by the mid-'70s, and Dale later worked as a producer for BBC live music sessions, with artists including Nirvana, the Smashing Pumpkins and Pulp.
Mott The Hoople reformed in 2009, but Dale was already ill and appeared only during encores, his place otherwise taken by Martin Chambers of the Pretenders.
Purnell described Dale as 'one of the nicest, friendly and talented men I have ever known,' according to the BBC.
Rock star casual: From left, Ian, Dale, Mick and Verden attended the The Mojo Honours List Awards at The Brewery in London after getting back together in 2009. By then Dale had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's
He continued: 'All he ever wanted was for his beloved Mott The Hoople to reform and it was his determination that achieved that very feat in 2009.
'But sadly by then he was too ill to perform at the five sold-out dates though he did join the band for encores.;
His passing comes a week after the death of Bowie, who was 69, and a day before Eagles rocker Glenn Frey, who died on Monday aged 67 of complications from rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia.
Dale is survived by his long-term partner, Jean Smith.
Suited up: Mick kept his arm around the ailing Dale at the Classic Rock Roll Of Honour Awards at the Park Lane Hotel in London on November 2, 2009
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