Vocalist and Guitarist with the band Mink DeVille from 1974 to 1986, the group which was the house band at CBGB.
He dropped out of high school to hang out and try to start a band. His first band was Billy & the Kids.
"Storybook Love," a song he performed in 1987, was nominated for an Academy Award.
His first wife, Susan Berle, married him in the 1970s. Later, he married Lisa Leggett, his Business manager. She committed suicide, so he married once more, to Nina Lagerwall. He has a son from his first marriage.
He was a fan of Muddy Waters.
