"When I met Charlie Colin, I fell in love with him."
Train founding member and bassist Charlie Colin was reported dead this week at 58 after slipping and falling in the shower in a home in Brussels, Belgium. And in the wake of his tragic, unexpected passing, his bandmates have spoken out to remember their longtime friend.
Colin's mother confirmed to TMZ on Wednesday that he had been housesitting for a friend when the accident occurred. It's unclear exactly when he fell, but he wasn't found until his friends returned home over the weekend. Apparently Colin had moved to Brussels and had been teaching a music master class at a conservatory, as well as working at a studio and putting the finishing touches on music for a film.
Shortly after the news broke on Wednesday, the band, led by frontman Pat Monahan, released a statement on Instagram.
"When I met Charlie Colin, front left, I fell in love with him," Monahan wrote. "He was THE sweetest guy and what a handsome chap. Let’s make a band that’s the only reasonable thing to do. His unique bass playing and beautiful guitar work helped get folks to notice us in San Fransisco and beyond."
"I’ll always have a warm place for him in my heart. I always tried to pull him closer but he had a vision of his own," the statement added. "You’re a legend, Charlie. Go charm the pants off those angels."
Train was formed in San Fransisco in 1993 by Monahan, Colin, Rob Hotchkiss, Jimmy Stafford, and Scott Underwood. The band first received widespread acclaim with the release of their debut album, Train, in 1998, which included the hit single "Meet Virginia." Their second album, Drops of Jupiter, produced a lead single of the same name that went on to become an international hit, winning a Grammy Award for Best Rock Song.
The band's 2009 album Save Me, San Francisco was also a massive hit, with the 6× platinum-certified international sing "Hey, Soul Sister," which topped at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and became Train's highest-charting song ever. By that point, Colin was no longer in the band, having departed in 2003.
