5 Rock Bands That Disbanded After the Death of Their Lead Singer

When tragedy strikes in the world of rock and roll, many bands choose to go on in the wake of their loss. Others, though, opt to end their journey together. Sometimes, it’s more amicable to break up the band in question instead of trying to find a new frontman. And that’s precisely what these five rock bands did after the deaths of their respective lead singers.

1. Nirvana

When it comes to rock bands that disbanded after the death of their lead singer, Nirvana is often the first to come to mind. Kurt Cobain, the troubled young vocalist and guitarist for the grunge band Nirvana, produced three albums with the group before dying in 1994. Remaining members Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl decided to end the band shortly after his death. 

Novoselic went on to dabble in a few music and political endeavors, while Grohl went on to form Foo Fighters. Grohl even said that he would have enjoyed having Novoselic in Foo Fighters, but ultimately felt it would make the other band members uncomfortable.

[Buy Tickets To See Foo Fighters Live]

2. The Doors

Despite the fact that The Doors hadn’t disbanded immediately after their lead singer’s death, we still think they are worth an entry on this list of rock bands who broke up after the death of their frontman. 

Beloved singer Jim Morrison passed away from heart failure in 1971. The remaining members John Densmore, Ray Manzarek, and Robby Krieger were working on the band’s next album at the time, with Morrison expected to return to provide vocal tracks for the record. In the wake of his death, Mazarek and Krieger provided the vocals and also did so for the 1972 album Full Circle that followed. By 1973, the band realized that it wasn’t The Doors without Morrison and broke up. They went on to perform reunion shows off and on through the years.

3. Type O Negative

Type O Negative’s Peter Steele passed away in 2010 at the age of 48. In the wake of his death, remaining members Johnny Kelly, Kenny Hickey, and Josh Silver took to their website to say that Steele was sober and ready to start writing new music for the band. Later that year, Hickey and Kelly said in an interview that they had chosen to disband Type O Negative.

4. T. Rex

When it comes to glam rock, T. Rex really shined in the 1970s. The band had quite a revolving door of members through the years, but frontman Marc Bolan was the one constant member and the main songwriter for the band. After he passed away in a car accident in 1977, the remaining members decided to call it quits.

5. Soundgarden

Chris Cornell’s death in 2017 was a huge blow to fans, loved ones, and the world of grunge music. His suicide occurred in the middle of a tour as well as during production on the band’s seventh album. The remaining members of Soundgarden (Kim Thayil, Ben Shepherd, and Matt Cameron) didn’t want to go on without the beloved frontman.

“Reasonably, you’ve got a big part missing…” said Thayil. “I do not see, given the commitments that other bandmembers have, given our sentiments and love for Chris, I do not see us reconfiguring a tour or anything, as other bands have done in the past, without him.”

Photo by Frank Micelotta

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.