Charlie Colin, the pop-rock band's founding bassist Train, has passed away. He was 58 years old.
According to TMZ, who spoke to the musician's mother, the California-born artist died after slipping and falling in the shower while house-sitting for a friend in Brussels, Belgium. His mother said it is unclear when Colin died because his body was only found after his friends returned from their trip about five days ago.
His mother also told TMZ that the musician had moved to Brussels to teach a music masterclass at a conservatory, and was working on new music for a film at the time of his death. Colin had documented his time abroad on Instagram, where he declared the location was “officially his.” [his] favorite city” in a March message.
Colin helped form Train in the '90s with singer Pat Monahan, Rob Hotchkiss, Jimmy Stafford and Scott Underwood. Before leaving the group in 2003 due to substance abuse issues, he participated in the recording of hits such as “Drops of Jupiter” – which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned the band its first Grammy nominations for Best Rock Performance of a duo or a group and record of the year – and “Meet Virginia.” Train's self-titled debut album reached No. 76 on the Billboard 200 in 1999.
In 2015, Colin, Hotchkiss and Underwood formed the band Painbirds with Tom Luce.
Colin grew up in Newport Beach and first met Hotchkiss in high school. The two later attended Boston's Berklee College of Music at different times before reconnecting when the latter formed the band The Apostles.In 2015, Colin, Hotchkiss and Underwood formed the band Painbirds with Tom Luce.
Colin grew up in Newport Beach and first met Hotchkiss in high school. The two later attended Boston's Berklee College of Music at different times before reconnecting when the latter formed the band The Apostles.
After the Apostles parted ways, Hotchkiss met Monahan and began collaborating on songs in the Bay Area. They later invited Stafford and Colin to join their lineup, then brought in Colin Underwood to play drums – and Train was born.
“Charlie called me and said, 'It was this strange synchronicity where we didn't even want to consider quitting,'” Hotchkiss recalled of his friend in a 2015 interview with The Los Angeles Times. “First and foremost, songwriting is our priority, and we really enjoy playing live.”
This story first appeared on Billboard.com.