“Walkin’ on the Sun” and “All Star” vocalist announced his retirement in 2021
STEVE HARWELL, WHO cofounded the band Smash Mouth in 1994, has died at the age of 56, band manager Robert Hayes confirmed. The musician, best known for hits like “All Star” and “I’m a Believer,” died at his home in Boise, ID “surrounded by family and friends.”
Harwell had been in hospice care following medical complications. The cause of death was liver failure, Hayes told Rolling Stone.
Hayes said Harwell “passed peacefully and comfortably.” In a statement to Rolling Stone, he offered a lengthy tribute to the artist, who was a staple of ’90s rock music and saw success with multiple albums and singles.
As someone who dealt with depression through those years, dark music helped me feel understood and not alone. I wasn’t a Manson fan, and I actually was a Smash Mouth fan for awhile - but it wasn’t Walking on the Sun that let me know it was okay to be different and that I wasn’t the only one dealing with these things, or that the advertising and propaganda inundating me didn’t get to decide who is good or bad. Even so I was a fan and it hurt to see when he resorted to lashing out with hate.
I’m sad Steve has passed and I have good memories thanks to him. I’m also very sad that he wasn’t able to turn his life around before going. I wish that he’d been able to experience that, and to be with us for a little while longer.
His child died a couple years after all star. He tried to keep the music going, but it fucked him up badly.