The Primal Scream and Felt musician has passed away aged 55.
News of Martin Duffy’s death has been confirmed this morning (20 December). In a post, Tim Burgess – with whom Duffy played, stepping in to perform with The Charlatans when they supported Oasis and Knebworth – wrote: “Another tragic loss of a beautiful soul.” No official statement from Duffy’s family or Primal Scream has been made yet.
Duffy joined Creation Records-signed band Felt aged 16. He then went on to form part of Primal Scream as the keyboardist for three decades. In addition to stepping in to play with The Charlatans for their 1996 performance at Knebworth, following the death of the band’s founding memeber Rob Collins, Duffy contributed to The Charlatans’ 1997 release Tellin’ Stories. Duffy also featured on Primal Scream frontman Bobby Gillespie’s 2021 collaborative album with Savages’ Jehnny Beth, Utopian Ashes.
Primal Scream’s last record was the 2016 album Chaosmosis. In 2021, the band released a previously unheard Andrew Weatherall remix of their 1991 track Shine Like Stars.
In light of the news of Duffy’s passing, tributes have been pouring in to the late musician. Read a selection below.
Another tragic loss of a beautiful soul. Martin Duffy stepped in to save The Charlatans when we lost Rob – he played with us at Knebworth and was a true friend. He toured with me in my solo band too – he was a pleasure to spend time with. Safe travels Duffy 💔 pic.twitter.com/cvuEvvqYGa
— Tim Burgess (@Tim_Burgess) December 20, 2022
More terrible news. R.I.P. Martin Duffy. https://t.co/ifezyE0U8z
— Marc Riley ⚽️🍺🐳 (@marcrileydj) December 20, 2022
Christ, Martin Duffy too. Barely a week goes by without me listening to his electrifying playing on this tune. Still a teenager at this point. What a brutal 24 hours this is turning out to be. https://t.co/9rt07525Ve
— Pete Paphides (@petepaphides) December 20, 2022
Speechless and heartbroken. RIP Duffy xxx pic.twitter.com/yGwMFxiJm3
— James Endeacott (@jamesendeacott) December 20, 2022
RIP Martin Duffy of Primal Scream pic.twitter.com/Ks0awbLTOB
— The Portable Infinite (@portinfinite) December 20, 2022