British rocker Perry Bamonte, who joined The Cure as a roadie before becoming their guitarist and keyboardist, died over the Christmas holiday “after a short illness.” He was 65.
The band’s website confirmed “with enormous sadness” that the London native “passed away after a short illness at home over Christmas.”
Also known as “Teddy,” the two-time Grammy nominee was Robert Smith’s guitar tech and personal assistant before joining the band as a musician. His surviving bandmates remembered him as “quiet, intense, intuitive, constant and hugely creative” and “a warm hearted and vital part of The Cure story.”
The Smith-fronted band formed in 1976 and released their debut three years later. Bamonte, whose brother served as the band’s tour manager, served the band behind the scenes in the mid-to-late ’80s but joined The Cure as a full-time member in 1990 after keyboardist Roger O’Donnell left the band for a period.
Bamonte’s legacy is memorialized on 1992’s “Wish,” 1996’s “Wild Mood Swings,” and 2000’s “Bloodflowers.” His initial tenure ended in May 2005, when he and O’Donnell were dismissed. At that point, Bamonte had been playing guitar and sometimes six-string bass while O’Donnell, who returned in 1995, took over keys.
News of his death comes three years after Bamonte rejoined the band for the “Shows of a Lost World” tour. Prior to rejoining, he was present when The Cure was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.
The “Friday I’m in Love” rocker’s last show with the band was at London’s Troxy on Nov. 1, 2024 to celebrate the release of the “Songs of a Lost World,” the band’s 14th studio album, which was recorded prior to Bamonte’s return to lineup
Exactly one year after the Troxy show, The Cure announced that a concert film of the performance would enjoy a limited theatrical release from Dec. 11, with Blu-ray, DVD and digital versions available by month’s end.
Bamonte is survived by wife Donna, who he wed in 2009, according to IMDb.
