Terry Hall dead latest: Cause of death revealed as fans of The Specials all say the same thing
THE Specials' lead singer Terry Hall has been remembered for his "remarkable music" following his death at the age of 63 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
Hall’s bandmate Horace Panter took to Facebook to reveal the cause of the Ska icon’s death, as he hailed his "unique voice."
The post claims the singer had wanted to keep his illness a secret before he passed away on Sunday evening.
In a poignant tribute, one fan wrote: “One of THE greatest British music artists. An iconic and utterly individual frontman with THAT voice . This cuts so hard.”
A second said: ''Terry Hall was the voice of a musical revolution. Such an important person in music. I own so many records featuring him. I am really upset to hear he’s left us. Going to listen to Man at C&A now. RIP Sir. Thank you for the music.''
Read our Terry Hall live blog below for the latest tributes...
The Special’s most popular songs
Here are just a few of the iconic Sca band’s hits.
- A message to you, Rudy
- Ghost Town
- Gangsters
- Too Much Too Young
- Friday Night, Saturday Morning
- Nelson Mandela
What have The Specials said?
The Specials tweeted: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing, following a brief illness, of Terry, our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced.
“Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls.
“His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… the joy, the pain, the humour, the fight for justice, but mostly the love.
“He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity.
“Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials’ life-affirming shows with three words…’Love Love Love’.”
In spite of hit singles, The Specials didn't get first number one album until 2019
The Specials released Encore, their first album of new material in 37 years, in February 2019.
The album went straight to number one on the Official UK Album Chart.
Amazingly this was their first number one album and was the first time they topped the charts since Ghost Town in 1981.
Jo Whiley pays tribute to Terry Hall
BBC Radio 2 DJ and broadcaster Jo Whiley paid tribute to Terry Hall following his death after a short illness aged 63.
Whiley tweeted: "Horrid news
"Have always been a fan.
"So many songs of Terry Hall that I’ve loved throughout my life.
"Specials. Fun Boy Three. Colourfield"
Terry Hall's remarkable career
Terry Hall rose to fame with ska band the Specials in the late 1970s, with number one smash hits including Ghost Town, Rat Race and To You, Rudy.
After the band separated in 1981, Hall ventured into a successful solo career.
He also embarked on a number of collaborations with artists including Damon Albarn and Lily Allen.
UB40 remembers Terry Hall
Legendary UK reggae band UB40 is "very sad" to hear about the passing of Terry Hall.
UB40 tweeted: "We are very sad to hear of the passing of Terry Hall the lead singer of @thespecials
"Another one gone too soon!
"RIP Terry
"#terryhall #rip"
Boy George expresses sadness at passing of Terry Hall
Culture Club frontman and I'm a Celeb participant Boy George has expressed his sorrow after the death of Terry Hall following a short illness at the age of 63.
George tweeted: "Very sad to hear about Terry Hall!
"Absolutely loved him as an artist.
"Sad day!
"
Elvis Costello pays tribute to Terry Hall
Legendary singer-songwriter and record producer Elvis Costello paid tribute to Terry Hall and passed condolences on to his friends and family.
Hall passed away aged 63 following a short illness.
Costello Tweeted: “Sad to receive the news of Terry Hall’s passing last night from Lynval Golding.
“Terry’s voice was the perfect instrument for the true and necessary songs on ‘The Specials’.
“That honesty is heard in so many of his songs in joy and sorrow.
“My condolences to his family and friends.
Hacienda’s Dave Haslam pays tribute to all-time great Terry Hall
Former Hacienda DJ and music author Dave Haslam has paid tribute to all-time great Terry Hall.
Haslam said: "Terry Hall. One of the all time greats of British music & an icon for a generation. He was unique, deep, funny.
The man who buried for me that cliche “don’t meet your heroes”. I had some wonderful times with Terry. Loved him. It’s that simple. Gutted."
He added: "He was a hairdresser for a week and a failed bricklayer. A massive MUFC fan. A committed anti-racist and an advocate for mental health causes.
"An incredible frontman, and a brilliant songwriter. He was unique, funny, deep, and one of the all-time greats of British music...
"I've missed something off Terry's CV. In one interview we did he told me "I had a day, well not a day, more like seventeen minutes as a quantity surveyor. It was freezing and he said “Take your hands out of your pocket” and I was like “F**k you” and that was the end of my job."
Tim Burgess expresses heartbreak at loss of Terry Hall
Singer-songwriter, record label owner and musician Tim Burgess has expressed his heartbreak after hearing about the loss of Terry Hall.
Burgess is best known as the lead singer of alt-rock band The Charlatans.
He tweeted simply a heartbreak emoji and a picture of himself and Terry Hall.
Marc Riley sends condolences to Terry Hall’s family after ‘particularly cruel year’
BBC Radio 6 Music DJ Marc Riley, formerly a member of alt-rock band The Fall, has sent his condolences to Terry Hall’s family following his passing at the age of 63 following a short illness.
Riley said: "2022 has been a particularly cruel year.
“So many brilliant people taken from us.
“TERRY HALL R.I.P.
“Thoughts are with his family and friends."
Rowetta pays homage to ‘gorgeous, kind, down to earth’ Terry Hall
Singer Rowetta Idah, best known with her work with the Happy Mondays, has paid tribute to Terry Hall.
Rowetta tweeted: “One of the greatest frontmen from one of the greatest bands.”
“And a gorgeous, kind, down to earth man. I’ll miss his music, his United post match honesty, his messages.”
“Terry Hall Forever”
Billy Bragg pays tribute to Terry Hall
Singer-songwriter and activist Billy Brag has paid tribute to Terry Hall, following his death after a short illness aged 63.
Bragg tweeted: “The Specials were a celebration of how British culture was envigorated by Caribbean immigration but the onstage demenour of their lead singer was a reminder that they were in the serious business of challenging our perception of who we were in the late 1970s.”
“RIP Terry Hall.”
Amy Winehouse and the Specials performed together
At V Festival in 2009, two of Britain's most iconic acts performed together.
Amy Winehouse and Terry Hall's The Specials played a legendary rendition of their hit song Ghost Town.
Terry Hall opened up about the struggles of Covid-19
Speaking during the pandemic, Terry Hall spoke of the difficulties of lockdown.
"The arrival of the pandemic affected me enormously," .
"I spent around three months trying to figure out what was going on. I couldn't write a single word. I spent the time trying to figure out how not to die."
Hall would go on to write an album centred on the Black Lives Matter movement.
What was Terry Hall's cause of death?
No cause of death has been announced yet.
However, the official account of The Specials said the singer had a "brief illness."
What have The Specials said?
The Specials tweeted: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing, following a brief illness, of Terry, our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced.
“Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls.
“His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… the joy, the pain, the humour, the fight for justice, but mostly the love.
“He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity.
“Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials’ life-affirming shows with three words…’Love Love Love’.”
Terry Hall was often critical of the government
Terry Hall spent much of his career fighting for racial equality.
He and The Specials took part in the Rock Against Racism movement and were vocal in their disagreement with South Africa's system of Apartheid.
“Our government leaders aren’t interested in knowing the way people feel,” .
“If they were, they’d just resign, because they aren’t helping anybody.
"The kids can’t go to the prime minister and say, look, ‘We are unemployed, what are you going to do to help us?’
"There’s no way they can approach people like that. So they express themselves by smashing things up.’’
How Terry Hall and The Specials came to be
Terry Hall revealed the creation of The Specials was seemingly accidental.
: "When I saw the Pistols and The Clash I realised it didn't seem that difficult.
"They didn't seem like they could play very well either, so the thing was to form a band then work it out.
"We didn't even know who was going to play what - we passed around all the instruments until we found what we were comfortable with. I wasn't comfortable with any of them so I became the singer."
Terry Hall's heartbreaking abduction story
Terry Hall was abducted and taken to France at the age of just 12.
"I was abducted, taken to France and sexually abused for four days," he told The Spectator in 2019.
"And then punched in the face and left on the roadside."
According to Hall, the harrowing event left with life-long depression and saw him become addicted to the Valium he had been prescribed.
"I didn't go to school, I didn't do anything. I just sat on my bed rocking for eight months."
Simon Jordan pays tribute to Terry Hall
Taking to Twitter, the former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan paid tribute to "hero" Terry Hall.
He wrote: "Very sad to learn my friend Terry Hall passed away today...
"After 4 years of trying to get the band to reform, they played for the first time in 26 years at my 40th
"As a boy Terry was my hero, they say never meet your heroes he was the exception."
Did Terry Hall have children?
Terry Hall had had one child with his second wife Lindy Heymann, a son called Orson, who was reportedly born in 2014.
Terry had two more children though, with his first wife Jeanette.
He had two sons - Leo and Felix - with her, which means he had three kids during his life.
Who was Terry Hall's wife Lindy Heymann?
Terry Hall was married twice during his life time, with his second wife being Lindy Heymann.
She is known for being an award-winning British director.
Lindy studied at Central St Martins, and after graduating with a BA in Fine Art Film, she went on to pursue a career directing music videos.
In 2002 she won a British Independent Film Award (BIFA) for Best Directorial Debut for her feature film debut Showboy, and is also known for The Laughing King (2016), and Kicks (2009).
The Special's most popular songs
Here are just a few of the iconic Sca band's hits.
- A message to you, Rudy
- Ghost Town
- Gangsters
- Too Much Too Young
- Friday Night, Saturday Morning
- Nelson Mandela
More tributes pour in for Terry Hall
Musician Midge Ure tweeted: "Dreadful news."
Radio DJ Jo Whiley also paid tribute, writing: "Horrid news. Have always been a fan. So many songs of Terry Hall that I’ve loved throughout my life. Specials. Fun Boy Three. Colourfield."
