Ric Ocasek, frontman of The Cars, has died aged 75. He was found dead at his home in Manhattan on Sunday evening, according to the New York Police Department. No cause of death has been reported.

Ocasek formed The Cars in Boston in the mid-1970s, having played with co-founder Benjamin Orr in various bands since the end of the ’60s. The band’s punchy new wave sound was an immediate success, with their self-titled debut album – including “My Best Friend’s Girl” and “You’re Just What I Needed” – selling six million copies.

Advertisement

Order the latest issue of Uncut online and have it sent to your home!

They went on to release five more albums before splitting in 1988, reforming briefly after Orr’s death for a seventh album in 2011. In the intervening period, Ocasek released seven solo albums, as well as a spoken word project with Suicide’s Alan Vega.

He was also in demand as a producer, working with Guided By Voices, Bad Brains, Jonathan Richman, Suicide, Nada Surf, The Cribs, and most notably Weezer, for whom he produced three albums. In a tweet, the band wrote that they were “devastated by the loss of our friend and mentor Ric Ocasek”. Nile Rogers, Flea, Lloyd Cole, Jason Isbell and The Killers also paid tribute.

Advertisement

The October 2019 issue of Uncut is on sale from August 15, and available to order online now – with Patti Smith on the cover. Inside, you’ll find Bon Iver, Robbie Robertson, Jeff Buckley, Miles Davis, Brittany Howard, The Hollies, Devendra Banhart, Neil Young and Bob Dylan and more. Our 15-track CD also showcases the best of the month’s new music, including Wilco, Oh Sees, Hiss Golden Messenger and Tinariwen.