American musician Charlie Colin slips in shower, dies at 58
Charlie Colin, a founding member and bassist of the American pop-rock band Train, has tragically passed away at the age of 58. His sister, Carolyn Stephens, confirmed his death to The Associated Press. The cause of death was reportedly a slip and a fall in the shower while Colin was house-sitting for a friend in Brussels, Belgium. May he rest in peace.
Colin's early life and musical journey
Born and raised in California and Virginia, Colin pursued his love for music at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. After college, he played with guitarist Jimmy Stafford and singer Rob Hotchkiss in a band called Apostles. When the band dissolved, Colin moved to Singapore for a year to write jingles before forming Train with Stafford, Hotchkiss, and singer Pat Monahan in San Francisco during the early '90s.
Colin's significant contributions to Train's success
As a founding member of Train, Colin played a key role in the band's first three records: Train (1998), Drops of Jupiter (2001), and My Private Nation (2003). These albums achieved significant success, with the latter two peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 chart. Their debut album featured Meet Virginia, which catapulted to the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100, while their sophomore album solidified their success with its title track earning two Grammys.
His departure from Train and subsequent musical endeavors
Colin left Train in 2003 due to substance abuse issues, a struggle acknowledged by bandmate Pat Monahan who stated: "Charlie is one incredible bass player, but he was in a lot of pain, and the way he was dealing with it was very painful for everyone else around him." Despite his departure, Colin continued his musical journey by forming new bands Painbirds in 2015 and Side Deal in 2017. Colin's last Instagram post was a week ago.
Train paid tribute to Colin posthumously
Following Colin's death, a heartfelt tribute was posted on Train's official Facebook page. Part of the post read, "When I met Charlie Colin, front left, I fell in love with him. He was the sweetest guy and what a handsome chap. His unique bass playing a beautiful guitar work helped get folks to notice us in SF and beyond." "You're a legend, Charlie. Go charm the pants off those angels."
