Blue Murder keyboardist Nik Green died last night (March 13) after what his former bandmate Tony Franklin called "a brave battle with cancer."

According to the biography posted by his most recent band, the Away Team, Green revealed himself as a childhood prodigy by picking out the melodies of songs on the radio at age four. But after rejecting the formal piano training his parents signed him up for, he became fascinated with the synthesizer at age 17 and re-taught himself "pretty much from scratch."

After a stint with Roy Harper, Green joined Blue Murder, a hard rock outfit led by former Whitesnake guitarist John Sykes. The group released three albums between 1989 and 1994, with a shifting lineup that also included Franklin (best known for his time alongside Jimmy Page in the Firm), drummer Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge), and bassist Marco Mendoza.

Following the band's breakup, Green formed the Away Team with former White Feather singer Penny Little. According to the band's blog, Green was diagnosed with squamous cell cancer of the head, neck and lung at an undetermined time. Sykes reportedly flew all the way from Japan last August to attend a benefit show in Green's honor. No further details of Green's passing, nor statements from the Away Team have been made available at this time.

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