The musician who wrote I Love Rock 'n' Roll has died from coronavirus. Photo / Getty Images
The musician who wrote I Love Rock 'n' Roll has died from coronavirus. Photo / Getty Images
Legendary rocker Alan Merrill who wrote I Love Rock 'n' Roll has died from coronavirus.
His daughter, Laura Merrill, posted a statement on Facebook about the 69-year-old American musician's death, saying, "the coronavirus took my father this morning."
She said she was "given two minutes to say my goodbyes beforeI was rushed out".
Merrill, who recorded the original version of I Love Rock 'n' Roll with his band the Arrows in 1975, was also remembered by rocker Joan Jett who had a huge hit with the song.
"I've just learned of the awful news that Alan Merrill has passed," Jett said in a statement posted on Twitter.
"I can still remember watching the Arrows on TV in London and being blown away by the song that screamed hit to me.
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"With deep gratitude and sadness, wishing him a safe journey to the other side."
Merrill formed the Arrows in London in 1974 with guitarist Jake Hooker and drummer Paul Varley.
He wrote I Love Rock 'n' Roll with Hooker and the band enjoyed success also with singles Touch Too Much and My Last Night With You.
After the Arrows broke up in 1977, Merrill embarked on a solo career which continued until he fell ill a few weeks ago.
Merrill's daughter her father had "played down the 'cold' he thought he had.
"People are dying. You don't think it'll happen to you or your strong family. It has. Stay home if not for you … for others. For my dad. This thing is real. We probably won't be able to mourn him properly with a funeral. I just lost the greatest love of my life and won't be able to hug anyone because I've been exposed and need to self quarantine for two weeks … alone."
