In sombre news this morning, Aussie music pioneer Vince Lovegrove who famously introduced Bon Scott to AC/DC and was the manager of The Divinyls and Jimmy Barnes in the 80s, has died after being involved in a car accident over the weekend.
Lovegrove, who first made his name playing alongside Bon Scott in The Valentines in the 1960s, was travelling near Byron Bay in northern NSW when according to police his Volkswagen Kombi van left the road and rolled between 1am and 3am on Saturday.
Police say passerby reported the accident just before 9.30am and although they are yet to officially confirm the identity of the dead man the Australian Recording Industry Association confirmed Lovegrove’s passing on Twitter yesterday.
@ARIA_Official
ARIA
Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Aus music legend Vince Lovegrove, a true pioneer of our industry, he will be missed by all.
Favorite Retweet Reply
Hoodoo Gurus bass player and former Divinyls bass player Rick Grossman told News Limited this morning that Lovegrove has celebrated his 64th birthday last week and had been working on a book.
“He was one of my closest friends and was like a mentor to me . . . he was just an amazing guy and it’s a huge, gigantic loss,” Grossman said.
Music promoter Michael Chugg also expressed his condolences saying said Lovegrove “always put his neck on the line for Australian music”.
“Way back in the ’60s, I met Vince and Bon Scott when they were in The Valentines and even did a few roadie gigs with them. I remember fighting our way out of more than one country town,” he said.
“Vince worked as a promoter in Adelaide, managed Oz acts and worked in Europe with Barnsie and others. When Vince was living in the UK in the ’90s he was a huge help to me with media and contacts and he has always put his neck on the line for Australian music.
“He was a great all-round good bloke and battled many adversities in a colourful life. He will be missed by many people whose lives he touched.”
