Andy Fletcher – Freelove video – Depeche Mode

Andrew Fletcher, the keyboardist and founding member of British electronic band Depeche Mode, has died. Fletch is aged 60. “We are shocked and filled with overwhelming sadness with the untimely passing of our dear friend, family member, and bandmate Andy ‘Fletch’ Fletcher,” a statement issued by the band on social media said.

Fletcher died Thursday from natural causes at his home in the United Kingdom, a person close to the band said. “Fletch had a true heart of gold and was always there when you needed support, a lively conversation, a good laugh or a cold pint.”

Fletcher formed Depeche Mode, with fellow synthesizer players Vince Clarke and Martin Gore, and lead singer Dave Gahan, in Basildon, England in 1980. The English electronic music band would become one of the pioneers of British electro-pop along with hits like “Just Can’t Get Enough” and “Personal Jesus.”

Depeche Mode would find international success with 1984′s the single “People are People,” from their 1984 album “Some Great Reward” which established the band as one of the major musical forces within the electronic music scene throughout the 1980s and early 1990s.

One of the major highlights of the band’s numerous successes was the band’s concert at the Pasadena Rose Bowl June in 1988, where they drew more than 60,000 people. This event was documented in a live album and documentary film,
101, by D. A. Pennebaker.