Rod Stewart reveals devastating Christmas death and says both he and Penny are 'in tears'

ok.co.uk:

Rod Stewart is mourning the loss of his dear friend, music producer Richard Perry, who sadly passed away at the age of 82. Richard, who had worked with both Rod and The Beatles, suffered a cardiac arrest and died in a Los Angeles hospital on Tuesday 24 December.

His close friend Daphna Kastner confirmed that he "maximised his time here". Upon hearing the tragic news, Sir Rod took to Instagram to share a heartfelt tribute to his late friend. "Dearest Richard, farewell, my dear buddy.They say in life a man is lucky if he can count his true friends on one hand, and you were certainly one of them," he wrote on his social media page. "Now I've lost you, and I'm devastated.

We played and worked so closely together for so many years, creating some of the most memorable music together." Sir Rod continued: "You were there when Penny and I first started dating, encouraging our relationship.

We are both in tears as I post this farewell." Richard's close friend Dapha also paid a touching tribute to him, stating: "He was generous, fun, sweet, and made the world a better place.The world is a little less sweet without him here, but it’s a little sweeter in heaven." Richard, who collaborated with stars like Carly Simon, Ringo Starr, and Rod Stewart, was widely recognised as a "musician's producer".