The Wallflowers’ former guitarist Michael Ward dies at age 57

Former Wallflowers guitarist Michael Ward passed awayat age 57, on Monday night.

The Minnesota-born musician performed with the group led by Jakob Dylan between 1995 and 2001, and “his talent will forever remain a crucial part of the band’s history.”

“His contributions to music began before his time with the Wallflowers and continued long after his time with the band,” The Wallflowers wrote in Facebook Wednesday.

‘Listening to Thin Lizzy on a sad day. Rest now Mike. Much love to his family and his two children.’

Michael, who performed in more than 50 countries, was nominated for five Grammy Awards throughout his career, winning in 1998 for Best Rock Performance by a Duo/Group with Vocal for The Wallflowers’ hit, One Lantern.

Ward was fondly remembered by his Gogol Bordello bandmates, who shared two lengthy tributes on Instagram on Wednesday.

“(Brother Mike) came to share and defend our deep understanding of what it’s really about: camaraderie and good laughs that we take with us at the end,” said leader Eugene Hütz. wrote.

“He treasured the cellular memory of that cathartic camaraderie as we did and was boldly sentimental about it while being an absolutely cold-blooded killer as a musician: whether it was Cro-Magnon riffs, shredding or constant acoustic guitar finesse – Mike loved it. I had everything covered.’

In 2005, Michael won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Gospel Artist for the album There Will Be A Light by Ben Harper and The Blind Boys of Alabama.

Ward, who has played in more than 50 countries, was also a founding member of the early ’90s alternative rock band School of Fish.

In recent years, Michael, who had a concert scheduled Thursday in Las Vegas, has stayed busy performing concerts, holding studio sessions and teaching online guitar lessons.

Ward, who was close to Lance Armstrong, is survived by his 24-year-old son Tennessee Ward, who lives in Sweden (with an undisclosed wife), and his 10-year-old son Odin Von Ward (with fellow musician Kehau Kahananui).