Jimmy Bain, Bassist for Dio, Rainbow + Last in Line, Dead at 68 [Update]

Update: Guitarist Vivian Campbell, who played with Bain in Last in Line and in Dio, has confirmed the death of the bassist. In a Facebook post, he penned the following:

It's with the heaviest of hearts that I must confirm the news of the passing of our dear friend and Last In Line band-mate, Jimmy Bain. It was Jimmy who gave me my first big break in the music industry and for that I am forever indebted.

Jimmy's struggles with his demons were well documented through the years, but over the last 18 months he had finally won that battle and he was bright and lucid and motivated throughout the writing and recording of the new record. He leaves behind him a rich legacy of work from Rainbow, through Wild Horses, Dio, and finally, Last In Line. Jimmy was immensely proud of our new album and his input to it was immeasurable.

He was a very kind and gentle and generous soul and our lives were greatly enriched for having known him. We will continue to celebrate his life through his music.

On behalf of Vinny and Andrew, our thoughts and condolences are with his family at this most difficult of times.

Rest in peace, dear friend.

The music world has suffered another loss. Jimmy Bain, best known for his work as the bassist for Dio and Rainbow and more recently with Last in Line, passed away Saturday (Jan. 23) at the age of 68.

Though an official cause of death has not been revealed, a number of industry sources have reported on Bain's death. Diana Deville, a member of Wendy Dio's Niji Management, posted on Instagram that Bain had passed. In addition, drummer Simon Wright, Bain's Dio bandmate, also tweeted an RIP referencing Bain's death.

Bain's music career started in 1974 with the band Harlot. A couple of years later he was asked to join Ritchie Blackmore and Ronnie James Dio in Rainbow and he recorded on the group's 1976 album Rising and appeared on the 1977 double live album On Stage before being let go.

He also toured with John Cale, formed a band called Wild Horses, and co-wrote with Thin Lizzy's Phil Lynott for the singer's solo albums before joining Dio. During his time with Dio, Bain appeared on seven studio albums, including the metal staples Holy Diver and Last in Line.

In 2013, Bain joined Last In Line, which features his Dio bandmates Vivian Campbell and Vinny Appice from the Dio Last in Line album with vocalist Andrew Freeman. Though the group initially sought to pay tribute to the Dio era with Bain, Campbell and Appice, the band actually penned an album of original music called Heavy Crown that's due Feb. 20. Last in Line were on board Def Leppard's "Hysteria on the High Seas" cruise, where they had already performed the kickoff show. It's unclear whether Bain was on the ship at the time of his death. Stay tuned as we'll add more details as they become available.

See some of the tributes to Bain posted by fellow rockers and industry friends below.

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