Rocker J. Geils Dead at 71

His band put out hits such as 'Love Stinks' and 'Centerfold'
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Apr 12, 2017 2:36 AM CDT
Updated Apr 12, 2017 5:11 AM CDT
J. Geils Band Singer Dead at 71
J. Geils in concert.   (Carl Lender/Wikipedia)

Musician John Warren Geils Jr., founder of The J. Geils Band known for such hits as "Love Stinks," ''Freeze Frame," and "Centerfold," has died in his Massachusetts home at 71. Police in Groton, Mass., say officers responded to Geils' home around 4pm Tuesday for a well-being check and found him unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene. "A preliminary investigation indicates that Geils died of natural causes," police said in a statement. The J. Geils Band was founded in 1967 in Worcester, Mass., while Geils was studying at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. The band released 11 studio albums before breaking up in 1985.

"Thinking of all the times we kicked it high and rocked down the house! R.I.P. Jay Geils," J. Geils Band vocalist Peter Wolf said in a Facebook post. The band reunited with the full line-up off and on starting in 1999, though Geils sued the J. Geils Band in 2012 for planning a tour without him. Geils was also an active musician outside the band, releasing two albums with another band, Bluestime, in the 1990s and three solo jazz records of his own in the 2000s, Rolling Stone reports. (More J Geils stories.)

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