Bernie Worrell, P-Funk and Talking Heads Keyboardist, Dead at 72

Bernie Worrell, a funk keyboardist known for his work with Parliament-Funkadelic, died Friday at the age of 72 after a battle with lung cancer.

Worrell, from Long Branch, New Jersey, first played with P-Funk in the 1970s and went on to perform with Talking Heads as an unofficial member throughout the 1980s until the band called it quits in 1991. He can be seen in the Talking Heads' 1984 concert film, "Stop Making Sense." He also led his own band, The Woo Warriors.

Worrell was widely admired for his pioneering use of synthesizers and emerging technology.

In January, he announced that he had late-stage lung cancer. His medical costs were partially covered by an online fundraiser and benefit concert that featured P-Funk's George Clinton and Bootsy Collins, Talking Heads' David Byrne and Jerry Harrison and Questlove, among other notables, according to NPR.

Watch him play with P-Funk at a 1976 performance in Houston below:

Photo courtesy of Manfred Werner/Tsui/Wikimedia Commons