“Undoubtedly, his iconic performance on ‘Turn the Page’ helped to take us to another level. He has been with us on that stage on virtually every show ever since,” continued Seger, who gave Reed his stage name after being inspired. under the pseudonym used in Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band. “And whether it was ‘Turn the Page’, ‘Mainstreet’ or ‘Old Time Rock and Roll’, the audience screamed every time he played. In our band, Alto was the rock star.”
As a member of Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, Reed won a 1980 Grammy for best rock performance by a duo or group with vocals for Upwind. The group’s fourth studio album topped the Billboard 200 for six weeks in the spring of 1980. It was their only No. 1 album.
In addition to his work with the Silver Bullet Band, Reed performed alongside Grand Funk Railroad, Ted Nugent, Little Feat, Foghat, Dave Mason, Spencer Davis, the Blues Brothers, George Thorogood, Robin Gibb and the Motor City Horns. He co-led the Reed & Dickinson Band with Steve Dickinson and released an album entitled Tonight we ride.
He leaves his children, Chelsea Reed Radler and her husband Jon Radler and Victoria Reed and her husband Erik Deutsch; his grandson Harry Radler; his partner Christiana Van Ryn; his stepdaughter Sophia Van Ryn; his ex-wife Monica Reed; and his sister Nancy Neumann.
Instead of flowers, Reed’s family asked fans, friends and others to donate on his behalf to the Detroit Symphony’s Detroit Harmony Fund, which aims to place an instrument in the hands of all students in his hometown. They also encouraged people to regularly screen for colon cancer and learn about other preventive methods.
“His skill, dedication and brilliance as an artist and performer made him a hero not just for us, but for thousands of other people, if not millions,” Chelsea and Victoria wrote as part of their family’s testimony. “He lived for the stage and, most importantly, his role for nearly 50 years in the Silver Bullet Band with his musical family; Bob, Craig, Chris and so many other talented musicians who played alongside him. We are really comforted to know that yours spirit will shine brightly through the music he left behind and the impression he had on so many souls in concert. “