Craig MacGregor obit

Foghat bassist Craig MacGregor dead at 68

 He was not on the list.

Foghat bass player Craig MacGregor has died, aged 68.

His bandmates confirmed the sad news on Facebook on Friday, revealing he lost a battle with lung cancer.

“On behalf of Craig MacGregor’s family and the Foghat family, it is with great sadness that we are letting you know that we have lost our brother, good friend, husband, father and bandmate this morning,” the band’s statement reads. “He passed peacefully in his wife Lisa MacGregor’s arms after a prolonged battle with cancer.

“Please respect the privacy of the family and band members at this time. We will be sharing information in the next day or so. Rest in Peace, Thunderfingers.”

Craig joined Foghat in 1975 and quit in the early 80s, returning for brief stints with the band years later.

He came back for good in 2005 and was a Foghat regular until 2016’s Under the Influence album.

A tumor was discovered on his lung when he was treated for broken ribs after a fall in 2012, but he was not officially diagnosed with cancer until 2015, by which time it was inoperable, according to Ultimate Classic Rock.

MacGregor was born on September 13, 1949, in Sioux City, Iowa. He developed an interest in music at an early age, taking up piano at age seven before switching to trumpet and then drums. Following a three-year period as a drummer, MacGregor switched to bass guitar as his primary instrument as a result of his desire to be more out front while performing. As a teenager, he played with a variety of local Connecticut bands. One of these bands, Swan, had some moderate success and toured the United States. Two of his bandmates in Swan, Bobby T Torrello and Joe Kelly, went on to perform with Johnny Winter and Ike & Tina Turner.

MacGregor joined Foghat in 1976, replacing their interim bassist Nick Jameson. His debut recording with the band was 1976's Night Shift. He continued with the band until 1982, recording on many more albums including the multi-platinum Live (1977), Stone Blue (1978), and Boogie Motel (1979). He left the band in 1982 and rejoined them on and off through their reformation in the mid-1980s, up until the reformation of the band's original lineup in 1993. During this time, he also performed and recorded with other musicians and bands, including Randy and the Radiants, the Kneetremblers (which featured fellow Foghat members Roger Earl and Erik Cartwright), and Buck Dharma.