Charlie Colin, Grammy Award-winning member of Train dead at 58
After being part of the first iteration of the beloved adult alternative rock band Train, bassist Charlie Colin has passed away at the age of 58.
Colin’s death was confirmed by his mother after a tragic accident. The musician had fallen while in the shower when housesitting for friends in Belgium, and his body wasn’t discovered until his friends returned home five days later.
In addition to housesitting in Belgium, Colin had been in Brussels at the time teaching a masterclass on music. His mother also detailed his plans for working on a film soundtrack which the bassist had been working in the studio in the days leading up to his passing.
During the late 1990s, Colin was responsible for forming the band alongside vocalist Pat Monahan, original guitarist Rob Hotchkiss and drummer Scott Underwood. After gaining traction from their debut album after the success of the single ‘Meet Virginia’, Train garnered massive attention thanks to the ballad, ‘Drops of Jupiter’, which was written by Monahan in reference to his late mother.
After ‘Drops of Jupiter’ won a Grammy Award for ‘Best Rock Song’ in 2002, Colin went onto also contribute numerous writing credits to some of Train’s hits going forward, including the follow-up ballad ‘Calling All Angels’. Despite being a founding member of the group, Colin prted ways with the group following the success of their third album, My Private Nation.
When discussing his departure, Colin said that it came as a result of the band’s rapid rise to fame and his personal battles with substance abuse, telling Delphine’s Circle, “There was a lot of things that led to me leaving, but it really escalated into it. We never took a break. We drove our tour bus into the parking lot of the recording studio for our second and third record. In Philadelphia, we made our one-and-a-half record… We just never stopped”.
After a brief hiatus following the release of their fourth album, For Me It’s You, Train continued to see success as a trio on the album Save Me San Francisco, which was led by major singles like ‘If It’s Love’ and ‘Hey Soul Sister’.
Despite leaving the group, Colin would not harbour any ill will towards his bandmates. On various occasions, Colin sporadically joined the group onstage to perform the final song on My Private Nation, ‘I’m About To Come Alive’.
In tribute to the late musician, Train wrote on social media: “When I met Charlie Colin, front left, I fell in love with him. He was THE sweetest guy and what a handsome chap. Let’s make a band that’s the only reasonable thing to do. His unique bass playing a beautiful guitar work helped get folks to notice us in SF and beyond. I’ll always have a warm place for him in my heart. I always tried to pull him closer but he had a vision of his own. You’re a legend, Charlie. Go charm the pants off those angels”.
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