Faces and Small Faces keyboard player Ian McLagan dies suddenly aged 69

Ian McLagan, the keyboardist who played on records for stars such as the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and Lucinda Williams, died after a stroke.

17:07 04 December 2014

Faces and Small Faces keyboard player Ian McLagan, who played on records for a wealth of famous artists including the Rolling Stones and Bruce Springsteen died on Wednesday, it has now been revealed. He was 69.

The news was confirmed by his record label, Yep Roc Records. It has emerged that the cause of death was ‘complications from a stroke’.

His death comes on the heels of that of another Stones sideman, saxophone player Bobby Keys who passed away on Tuesday.

McLagan gained popularity while touring with his band Faces (led by Rod Stewart with future Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood in the group as well), which was known for demolishing hotel rooms in classic rock ‘n’ roll fashion.

In a 2004 interview with CNN, he explained: "You couldn't go from one town to another and not walk into the identical room in every town. So we hurt them."

McLagan, who has recorded a handful of albums on his own, has described the travels of his band in the ‘60s during an interview with the Los Angeles Beat in 2012 where he said: "A favorite memory keeps coming back: it's just us in the car, going to gigs. We used to smoke, listen to music, laugh and giggle, and had the best time! We'd get to the gig and we'd play music, then we'd leave the gig and we'd listen to music. Then we'd go back to the hotel and we'd play music, then we'd listen to music. It's all we did, and it was fabulous! You can't have a better life."