Steve Harwell was the leader of the rock band Smash Mouth and he was one of the founding members as well. Smash Mouth is known for hits such as ‘All Star’ and ‘Walking in the Sun’. The former leader of the band has been declared dead at 56 years old due to liver failure.
According to his agent, Steve Harwell died on Monday at the age of 56. He had left the group in 2021 because of his health situation and he had been under the care of a hospital during the recent times.
Source: People.com
Steve Harwell, The Lead Vocalist of Smash Mouth for 27 Years, Died in His Home
The manager of Smash Mouth, Robert Hayes, had informed the news that Harwell had died in his home located in Boise, Idaho, surrounded by his friends and family. Liver failure had caused the death of the former leader of the band.
Prior to getting into the band, Harwell was a rapper, and he had founded the band in California in 1994. The other founding members of the band involved Kevil Coleman who played the drums, Paul De Lisle who played the bass, and Greg Camp who was on the guitar.
The Smash Mouth band is still active and working with music genres such as ska, rock, pop, and punk. The worldwide fame of the band came in 1997 with the album “Fush Yu Mang” and the hit song ‘Walking in the Sun’.
Source: Fox News
In an interview with the news, Harwell had mentioned in 2019 that their hit song Walking in the Sun had changed music and the way that people listened to music. The music was so different, unusual, and so very special. It was a sound that they had created and if anybody tried to copy it, they were never able to. They just couldn’t, according to the former lead vocalist.
Another hit song came in 2021 from the Astro Lounge album, named “All Star” and that was nominated for the Grammys. The soundtrack has also been featured on the first ‘Shrek’ movie. The movie ‘Shrek’ was about a good ogre, who was voiced by Mike Myers.
“All Star ” is famous enough that over 25 versions of it have been created by various singers and songwriters during the past years. The song has also been streamed on Spotify nearly a billion times.
Hayes Paid Tribute to Harwell
In a statement from Hayes, he had paid tribute and honor to his friend Harwell, saying that Steve’s iconic voice was one of the most recognizable voices during his generation. Hayes had also mentioned that when Steve was the lead singer, Smash Mouth had sold over 10 million records around the world.
Steve Harwell had been experiencing several health ailments during concerts and during rehearsals as well ever since 2010. He had cited heart troubles when he had left the Smash Mouth band.
Source: OK Magazine
Hayes had also mentioned to the press that Steve Harwell had lived a 100% full-throttle life and he had burned brightly across the universe, before burning out.
Smash Mouth’s fame came from the humor that had driven the band to success and behind that humor, stood Steve Harwell who was playful in his alt-rock voice and persona. He had a cameo in the comedy film “Rat Race” in 2001. Guy Fieri, the food network chef, had a well-documented friendship with Steve Harwell.
Hayes had also mentioned that the only tools for Steve Garwell was his irrepressible charm and charisma, his fearless and reckless ambition, and his king-size cajones. He had mentioned that Steve will be greatly missed by those who loved and knew him personally.
