Steve Harwell, former lead vocalist and co-founder of rock band Smash Mouth, known for its 1999 hit “All Star,” died Monday at his home in Boise, Idaho, just days after entering hospice for complications of liver failure, the New York Times reported.
He was 56. A manager for Harwell confirmed to TMZ over the weekend that the singer “has been struggling with alcohol abuse throughout his life — and now, he’s reached the final stage of liver failure.” Harwell is one of the founders of Smash Mouth which was formed in 1994.
The rock band is famously known for its hit song “All Star” which was featured in the band’s 1999 album Astro Lounge. It was nominated for a Grammy Award and was heard in numerous films, including in the opening credits of the Oscar-nominated Shrek. “All Star” also was included in the soundtrack for the 1999 film Mystery Men. “We had no clue how big ‘Shrek’ was going to be,” Harwell said in a 2019 interview with Rolling Stone.
Harwell also praised “Walkin’ on the Sun”, saying the song “changed music. It changed the way people listen to music,” he told Rolling Stone in the same 2019 interview. “It was so different and it was so unusual, and it was so special.
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