Jack White’s keyboardist Isaiah “Ikey” Owens died on Mexico tour at the age of 38.
The band has cancelled the remaining concerts in Mexico after Ikey Owens was found dead in his hotel room in Puebla. The cause of his death has yet to be established.
Ikey Owens, from California, had played in other bands including The Mars Volta and had worked with the former White Stripes star since 2012.
Jack White’s Third Man Records label said Isaiah Owens was “an incredible artist”.
Jack White and his backing musicians were due to play further concerts in Mexico, including shows in Guadalajara and Monterrey.
Ikey Owens performed on both of Jack White’s solo albums and was a regular fixture in his backing band The Buzzards
A statement posted on the websites of Jack White and Third Man said: “It is with great sadness that we tell the world of the passing of the incredible musician Isaiah <<Ikey>> Owens.
“He will be missed and loved forever by his family, friends, bandmates and fans.
“Ikey Owens was an astounding keyboard player in Jack White’s backing band. He also played with Mars Volta, Free Moral Agents, and many other projects.
“Out of respect for Ikey, the remaining shows of the Jack White Tour in Mexico have been cancelled.
“We will all miss you Ikey. You were and are an incredible artist.”
The keyboardist performed on both of Jack White’s solo albums and was a regular fixture in his backing band The Buzzards.
Ikey Owens, along with the rest of the Mars Volta, won a Grammy Award in 2009 for best hard rock performance.
Former White Stripes frontman Jack White has recorded, cut and sold a seven-inch single in four hours, as part of the celebrations for Record Store Day.
Jack White took to the stage at his Third Man Records’ store in Nashville at 10:00 on Saturday and played two songs.
They were cut directly to an acetate disc, which was rushed to a pressing plant. The finished records were on sale within three hours and 55 minutes.
Jack White claimed to have set a world record as a result.
Guinness World Records says Swiss polka trio Vollgas Kompanie currently hold the title for “fastest album release”, having issued their album Live on August 16, 2008, the day after it was recorded.
Jack White has recorded, cut and sold a seven-inch single in four hours, as part of the celebrations for Record Store Day
Marillion has the record for “fastest music DVD release”, taking just 10 hours to film, edit and press copies of their concert movie Clocks Already Ticking.
However, there is no current record for fastest single release – possibly because the iTunes era allows songs to go on sale within minutes of being completed.
Paul McCartney and U2 are believed to have set a record in 2005, when their Live 8 performance of Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was purchased 45 minutes after being performed on stage in London’s Hyde Park.
“I never even looked into who has the fastest record,” Jack White admitted to reporters during a press conference on Saturday afternoon.
Jack White said he was more concerned with making sure the record got made at all.
“I woke up at about four in the morning last night, and I thought, <<Wow. I think there’s about 12 or 13 things that could really go wrong tomorrow>>,” he told The Tennessean.
“I just thought how difficult it was going to be to explain to people if we didn’t pull it off, so thank God we did.”
The single comprised Lazaretto, the title track to Jack White’s forthcoming album, and a cover of Elvis Presley’s 1969 song Power of My Love.
“Originally, we were just gonna do this record and go back to sleep,” Jack White told the audience.
Instead, Jack White played an hour-long set, including a mix of new songs and White Stripes favorites such as Hotel Yorba and Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground.
