Tony Lewis, the bassist and singer for British rock band the Outfield, has died at the age of 62. The news of Lewis’ death was announced on his official website as well as social media pages. “It is with great sadness and sorrow to announce that Tony Lewis has unexpectedly passed away,” the post reads. “He was a beautiful soul who touched so many lives with his love, his spirit, and his music. He loved his fans dearly and enjoyed every opportunity he had when meeting all of you.”
Lewis was born in London’s East End and grew up in a working-class neighbourhood. Citing the Beatles and T Rex as early influences, he teamed up with drummer Alan Jackman and formed a band while he was still in high school. Years later, they put an advertisement in a London music paper and met guitarist John Spinks. The trio formed a prog outfit called Syrius B and later changed their name to Baseball Boys after one of the street gangs in the cult classic The Warriors. In 1984, they signed a record deal with CBS Records and issued their debut album Play Deep under the name The Outfield a year later, which scored them their biggest hit, ‘Your Love’. With ‘Your Love’ peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, the album went on to achieved triple platinum status.
The band released two more albums in the 1980s, Bangin and Voices of Babylon. Though they never managed to replicate the success of ‘Your Love’, the Outfield remained staple on rock radio throughout the rest of the decade with singles like ‘Since You’ve Been Gone’, ‘Voices of Babylon’, and ‘For You’. After Jackman announced his departure in 1991, Lewis and Spinks continued on as a duo until Spinks passed away in 2014. Four years later, Lewis released his debut solo album Out of the Darkness, which was co-written by his wife Carol. At the time of his death, Lewis was reportedly working on a new EP scheduled for release in 2021.
