Mick Ralphs, Founding Member of Mott the Hoople and Bad Company, Dies at 81

The British guitarist’s bandmates announced his death on June 23. Bad Company’s debut album hit No. 1 in the U.S. in 1974.

Mick Ralphs (L) and Martin Chambers from the rock group Mott the Hoople with their comeback award during the Classic Rock Roll of Honor Awards at the Park Lane Hotel in London on Nov. 2, 2009. Ian Gavan/Getty Images

Mick Ralphs, a storied British guitarist who co-founded the 1970s rock groups Mott the Hoople and Bad Company, has died at 81.

Ralphs’ Bad Company bandmates—singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke—announced his death in a Facebook post on June 23, revealing the musician had been bedridden since suffering a debilitating stroke in the fall of 2016.