Eddie Money, who left behind a career as a New York police officer to become one of the top-selling rock stars of the 1970s and 80s, with hits like Two Tickets to Paradise and Take Me Home Tonight, has died. He was 70.
Publicist Cindy Ronzoni provided a statement from the family and said Money died Friday morning in Los Angeles. Money had recently announced that he had advanced cancer.
In 1987, the husky-voiced, blue collar performer received a best rock vocal Grammy nomination for Take Me Home Tonight, which featured a cameo from Ronnie Spector.
He announced his cancer diagnosis via a video last month from his AXS TV reality series Real Money. In the video, Money says he discovered he had cancer after what he thought was a routine checkup. He said the disease had spread to his liver and lymph nodes.
Money said it hit him really, really hard.
He had numerous health problems recently, including heart valve surgery earlier this year and pneumonia after the procedure, leading to his cancellation of a planned summer tour.
The New York City native was born Edward Joseph Mahoney. Money grew up in a family of police officers and served two years as a New York City police officer before he decided hed rather be a singer, according to his website.
I grew up with respect for the idea of preserving law and order, and then all of a sudden cops became pigs and it broke my heart, Money told Rolling Stone in 1978.
Two Tickets to Paradise and Baby Hold On both reached the top 30 in the late 1970s and his self-titled debut album went platinum.
