Mark Hollis, the frontman of influential '80s group Talk Talk, has died at 64. A family member confirmed his passing on Twitter:
Hot on the heels of the collapse of his band Reaction, Hollis was a founding member [with Lee Harris (b. 1962) and Paul Webb (b. 1962)] of Talk Talk in 1981, its primary songwriter and its lead singer. The band was signed to EMI and released five studio albums: The Party's Over (1982), It's My Life (1984), The Colour of Spring (1986), Spirit of Eden (1988) and Laughing Stock (1991), with their second and third discs achieving considerable success in the U.S.
The group released over 20 singles, including many re-releases of its signature hit "It's My Life," which hit #31 in the U.S. in 1984 and rose as high as #13 in the U.K. in 1990. The song was famously covered by No Doubt in 2003, went Top 10 in the U.S., was nominated for a Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and won a Grammy for one of its remixes.
Talk Talk had other hits in the U.K., including "Talk Talk" (1982, #23), "Today" (1982, #14) and "Life's What You Make It" (1986, #16).
The band split up in 1991, and Hollis went on to release an eponymous solo album in 1998. He had been almost entirely retired from music for over 20 years.
