August 1, 2025

Tommy Bolin

Thomas Richard Bolin (August 1, 1951 – December 4, 1976) was an American rockguitarist who played with Zephyr (from 1969 to 1971), the James Gang (from 1973 to 1974) and Deep Purple (from 1975 to 1976), in addition to maintaining a career as a solo artist and session musician, notably for Billy Cobham on his 1973 album Spectrum. The article in Rolling Stone said, “Just before Bolin’s final concert, Jon Marlowe of The Miami News, after an interview with the guitarist, told him, ‘Take care of yourself,’ to which Bolin replied, ‘I’ve been taking care of myself my whole life. Don’t worry about me. I’m going to be around for a long time.’” (Issue No. 230; page 14). Hours later, Bolin died from an overdose of heroin and other substances, including alcohol, cocaine, and barbiturates.