T-Bone Wolk, Longtime Bass Player for Hall & Oates, Dies at 58

He had been scheduled to appear on Jimmy Fallon’s show Monday, but collapsed Sunday night

Musician Tom "T-Bone" Wolk, longtime bass player for Hall & Oates, has died. He was 58.

Wolk died Sunday in New York, hours after completing a recording session with Daryl Hall, who was working on a solo album, according to the duo’s manager, Jonathan Wolfson. Wolfson said the cause of death was believed to be a heart attack.

Wolk had been scheduled to appear Monday night on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" with Hall and John Oates.

T-Bone Wolk A busy session musician, he appeared on scores of recordings with the likes of Bette Midler, Billy Joel and Avril Lavigne.

He was also the bass player in the house band on NBC’s "Saturday Night Live" from 1986 to 1992, when it was led by guitarist G.E. Smith.

He played bass on several of Elvis Costello’s recordings, accordion on Robert Palmer’s "Heavy Nova" and guitar on Carly Simon’s "Coming Around Again."

On his Web site, Wolk described himself as "that guy with the hat" who people had seen performing with Hall & Oates since 1981. In later years he also became the band’s music director.

"Daryl used to refer to him as the ampersand in Hall & Oates," said Wolfson.

In a statement, Hall said: "To say that I am shocked is the ultimate understatement. T-Bone was my musical brother and losing him is like losing my right hand. It’s not if I will go on, but how. T-Bone was one of the most sensitive and good human beings that I have ever known. And I can truly say that I loved him.

Oates said in a statement: "Any instrument that he touched resonated with a sensitivity and skill level that I have never experienced while playing with any other musician. He possessed an encyclopedic knowledge of styles and musical history which he referenced to support all the artists that he played with over the years.

"He made everyone he played with better," Oates added.

Wolk won a New York state championship on the accordion at age 12. But it was seeing the Beatles perform on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in 1964, he said, that led him to talk his father into buying him an electric guitar.

Wolfson told the Associated Press that information on funeral arrangements and survivors was pending.

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