The Slash, Public Image Ltd cofounder and guitarist Keith Levene dies at 65

Guitarist Keith Levene, a cofounder of The Clash and Public Image Ltd died Friday, November 11, 2022, at 65 of liver cancer at his home in Norfolk, UK.

Author Adam Hammond confirmed the death, multiple news outlets reported.

“It is with great sadness I report that my close friend and legendary Public Image Limited guitarist Keith Levene passed away on Friday 11th November,” Hammond wrote. “There is no doubt that Keith was one of the most innovative, audacious and influential guitarists of all time.”

Hammond added, “Keith sought to create a new paradigm in music and with willing collaborators John Lydon and Jah Wobble succeeded in doing just that. His guitar work over the nine minutes of Theme, the first track on the first PiL album, defined what alternative music should be. As well as helping to make PiL the most important band of the age, Keith also founded The Clash with Mick Jones and had a major influence on their early sound. So much of what we listen to today owes much to Keith’s work, some of it acknowledged, most of it not.”

Hammond concluded, “Our thoughts and love go out to his partner Kate, sister Jill and all of Keith’s family and friends. The world is a darker place without his genius. Mine will be darker without my mate.”

According to The Deadline, Levene started as a roadie for Yes in the early 1970s, then formed The Clash with Mick Jones in 1976. Together, they persuaded Joe Strummer to join them.

But Levene left The Clash before they began recording music. He went on to form Public Image Ltd with John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten) after the breakup of the Sex Pistols.

Their first album, Public Image: First Issue, reached No 22 on the charts in 1978, preceded by the single Public Image, which reached the Top 10. Their second album, 1979’s Metal Box, is regarded as a post-punk classic.

Although, he left PiL in 1983, before the band's wave of success in the mid-1980s that saw them return twice to the top 10, but he continued co-writing with the band.

He then moved to Los Angeles and in his later career worked with the Red Hot Chili Peppers and a number of hip hop acts.