Cheetah Chrome, Dead Boys Guitarist, Dead at 71

Views 37 Published by September 14, 2026

Cheetah Chrome, guitarist for punk pioneers the Dead Boys and Rocket From the Tombs, has died at 71. The Dead Boys confirmed the news on Instagram on September 14.

Cheetah Chrome, the guitarist of punk rock bands the Dead Boys and Rocket From the Tombs, died at 71. The Dead Boys confirmed the news on Instagram on Sunday. A cause of death was not given.

Chrome was born Eugene Richard O’Connor in Cleveland on February 18, 1955. He joined proto-punk band Rocket From the Tombs in fall 1974 as guitarist. The group opened for Television and Patti Smith at Cleveland’s Piccadilly club in 1975, though the band lasted only a few more months, performing their farewell show in August 1975.

After Rocket From the Tombs dissolved, Chrome formed the Dead Boys with Stiv Bators, Jimmy Zero, Jeff Magnum, and Johnny Blitz. The punk group released their debut LP Young, Loud and Snotty in 1977 and a second album, We Have Come for Your Children, in 1978. The Dead Boys reunited multiple times over the years, most notably in 2017 for a 40th anniversary tour and a rerecording of their debut titled Still Snotty: Young, Loud and Snotty at 40.

Chrome also played with Ronnie Spector on her debut solo album Siren, and collaborated with New York Dolls’ Syl Sylvain in the band Batusis. In 2003, he brought back Rocket From the Tombs with a new lineup featuring David Thomas, Craig Bell, and Television’s Richard Lloyd. His autobiography, Cheetah Chrome: A Dead Boy’s Tale from the Front Lines of Punk Rock, was published in 2010.

Later in his career, Chrome moved to Nashville and became creative director of A&R and director of special projects for Plowboy Records, releasing his own album Solo on the label in 2014. Peers including Guns N’ Roses’ Duff McKagan and punk group Reagan Youth paid tribute to Chrome’s influence on punk rock.