Tributes have been paid to Primal Scream keyboardist Martin Duffy who died after a fall at his Brighton home.

The 55-year-old, best known for his time with the Scottish rock band, died after suffering a brain injury. 

The keyboardist, who also played with The Charlatans and contributed songs to Oasis, was described as “a beautiful soul” by former bandmate Tim Burgess.

In a statement on their Twitter page, Primal Scream wrote: “Music meant everything to him. He loved literature and was well-read and erudite. An autodidact. A deep thinker, curious about the world and other cultures.”

Martin died on Sunday, December 18. He was surrounded by members of his family, including his son Louie.

In a family statement posted on social media, Duffy’s brother Steve wrote that "Everyone who knew Martin loved him; he was the real deal, our shining star.”

He added: "He was loved by his mother, brothers, wider family and close friends."

 

Martin was born in Birmingham in May 1967 and began his career as a member of indie pop band Felt.

Duffy joined Felt, pioneers of the so-called jangle pop genre, aged 16 after answering an advertisement placed by the group’s mononymous frontman Lawrence that read: “Do You Want To Be A Rock ‘n’ Roll Star?”

He played on the first two albums by Scottish rockers Primal Scream before joining The Charlatans in 1996 following the death of original keyboard player Rob Collins, playing at the groups performances at Knebworth.

Martin also contributed keys to songs by Oasis, The Chemical Brothers and Beth Orton.

He also performed as a member of a number of supergroups including The Chavs which consisted of members of The Libertines and Razorlight.

In 2012 he performed as part of another supergroup at a fundraising concert at Manchester Cathedral, this time featuring Burgess and Mark Collins of The Charlatans with Peter Hook of New Order.

In recent years he also toured as part of Burgess’s live band, playing music from the singer’s solo albums.