CNN
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Jeff Cook, one of the original members of the Alabama country band, has passed away, according to the group’s representative, Don Morey Grops. He was 73 years old.

Cook died at his vacation home in Destin, Florida, on Monday, “with his family and close friends at his side,” according to him. press release And the a permit It was posted on the band’s social media accounts. The statement added that Cook was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2012.

Guitarist and co-founder of Alabama, Cook also played the violin and other musical instruments for the band. “He is credited with introducing the double-necked electric guitar into country music,” the statement said.

was recruited in Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville in 2019 and she is also a member of both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Fiddlers Hall of Fame.

Over the course of his country music career as part of Alabama, Cook has sold 80 million albums and charted 43 #1 songs.

The band has enjoyed 13 Grammy Award nominations and won two – two consecutive awards in 1983 and 1984 for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with the vocals “Mountain Music” and “The Closer You Get” respectively.

Cook, a native of Fort Payne, Alabama, is survived by his 27-year-old wife Lisa Cook, mother Betty and brother David, among other family members.