According to Matt Kinman (his friend and collaborator), Luke Bell, a country singer-songwriter, has passed away. His unique style blended elements of Texas, Nashville, Bakersfield and Bakersfield. He was 32.
Bell, who suffered from severe bipolar disorder, was traveling to Arizona with Kinman for work. He disappeared on Saturday, August 20th in Tucson. A week later, he was discovered dead. According to SavingCountryMusic.com, “not far from where he disappeared, and in a manner we all feared he would be when we first heard the news.”The autopsy of his cause of Death is ongoing.
Kinman, who has played for Bell the past six seasons, told the outlet. “We came down here to Arizona, to work down here, play some music, and he just took off. He was in the back of the truck. I went in to get something to eat. I came out, and he’d got out of the truck and left.”
Kinman speculated after he disappeared. “He could be in Tucson. But it’s possible he jumped a freight train,” which wasn’t unusual for Bell. “Semi-homeless and generally adrift,”According to SaveCountryMusic Bell couchsurfed and hitchhiked as he learned his craft during his formative years of musical learning.
Rolling Stone called his sound “strange” in 2015. “classic honky-tonk with a wink and a yodel.”His unique mix earned him openings with Hank Williams, Jr., Willie Nelson, and Dwight Yoakam.
Bell released three albums, including a self-published debut album in 2012. Don’t Mind If I Do2014. An eponymous disc was released in 2016.