Ronald LaPread, co-founder of legendary group the Commodores, dead at 75

Ronald LaPread, the bassist who co-founded the Commodores, has died at 75. His daughter Sonya wrote in an Instagram Story: “It is with a heavy heart that I must announce that my Father Ronald LaPread has passed.” The New Zealand Herald reported he died after "a sudden medical event." LaPread helped form the Commodores in 1968 alongside Lionel Richie, Walter Orange, William King, Milan Williams and Thomas McClary after the group members met while attending the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.

After they signed with Motown in 1972, they became one of the label’s most successful funk and soul groups, with hits including "Three Times a Lady," "Brick House" and "Nightshift," and more than 70 million albums sold worldwide. He played bass for the Commodores from 1970 to 1986, and the band won a Grammy in 1986 for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for "Nightshift." LaPread later relocated to New Zealand, where he had lived for the past 40 years.

New Zealand

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