The Zombies’ Rod Argent has remembered Jim Rodford as a ‘wonderful person, loved by everybody’ after the bass player died last Saturday at the age of 76.
Rodford came to mainstream prominence after an initial temporary stint in The Kinks was made permanent in 1969 following the departure of Pete Quaife, but Argent has highlighted a life which had always been ‘dedicated to music’.
“It is with deep sadness that I learned this morning that my dear cousin and lifelong friend, Jim Rodford, died this morning after a fall on the stairs,” he wrote on Facebook. “More details are not yet known about the exact cause of death.”
“Jim was not only a magnificent bass player, but also from the first inextricably bound to the story of The Zombies.”
“To the end, Jim’s life was dedicated to music. He was unfailingly committed to local music – an ever present member of the local scene in St.Albans, where he had spent his whole life. Jim was a wonderful person, loved by everybody.”
“When Colin and I, shocked and hardly able to talk, shared the news this morning, Colin said ‘I’ve never heard anyone say a bad word about him’. He will be unbelievably missed.”