“When [guitarist] Snowy White decided to leave Thin Lizzy, John was the natural choice to join us. While Snowy brought a laid-back, bluesy feel to the band, John introduced a heavier, more intense element that Phil Lynott absolutely embraced.

John Sykes, a guitarist who played in bands like Whitesnake and Thin Lizzy, died of cancer at age 65. He cowrote some of Whitesnake's biggest hits, like "Still of the Night" and "Is This Love."

Tributes have flooded in for Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake guitarist John Sykes, who has died at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer

British guitarist John Sykes, best known for his work with rock bands Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake, has died aged 65 “after a hard fought battle with cancer,” according to a statement on his website.

John Sykes, the guitarist whose talent helped propel Whitesnake to success, is dead at 65. He also worked with the bands Thin Lizzy and Blue Murder.

John Sykes, the hard rock guitarist who worked for Thin Lizzy, has passed away at the age of 65. His death was confirmed via a post on his official Facebook page on Tuesday, January 21 however,

Revered hard rock guitarist John Sykes, best known for his work in Thin Lizzy and the multi-platinum selling glam rock outfit Whitesnake, has died at age 65

The death of John Sykes, whose contributions to Whitesnake spurred them to become one of the biggest-selling bands of the eighties, has been confirmed

Rock ’n’ roll tributes have flooded in for Irish rock band Thin Lizzy’s legendary guitarist John Sykes after he died from cancer. John, who was 65 and died yesterday, famously described the group’s iconic frontman Phil Lynott, from Dublin, as his “hero”.

John Sykes died from cancer at age 65. The guitarist played for both Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake before joining Blue Murder with Tony Franklin and drummer Carmine Appice.

Yesterday (January 20), it was announced that John Sykes – a hugely influential mainstay of '80s hard rock guitar who had stints in Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, and Tygers of Pan Tang – had died at 65.