The Soft Boys’ Matthew Seligman Has Died

The Soft Boys’ Matthew Seligman, who played bass on the group’s 1980 masterpiece Underwater Moonlight, has died. Frontman Robyn Hitchcock confirmed the news in a post on his official Facebook page April 17. “I’m writing this as Matthew Seligman slips out of this life and into wherever souls go next,” Hitchcock wrote. “Everybody goes, but none of us were expecting Matthew to leave us so abruptly, forever. It is strange and very sad to be talking of him in the past tense.” Find Hitchcock’s full tribute below.

The Soft Boys’ tenure was short-lived. They formed in 1976 and disbanded shortly after the release of Underwater Moonlight, which remains their most beloved an influential album to-date. Seligman began recording with Thomas Dolby in 1983, on Dolby’s sophomore LP Blinded By Science. He is also credited on the follow-up, 1984’s The Flat Earth.

Seligman also played bass with the likes of David Bowie (“Dancing in the Street”), Chrissie Hynde, Morrissey (“Ouija Board Ouija Board”), the Thompson Twins, Peter Murphy, and more. In 2012, Seligman released an ambient project called Sendai 仙台 with Jan Linton.

Robyn Hitchcock fondly remembers Seligman in his tribute, referring to him as “a joyous and funky bass player.” Hitchcock continued: “He made Underwater Moonlight an exuberant LP to record and listen to. His manic bass run at the end of ‘Insanely Jealous’ and his stately propeller dive into the last chorus of the title track, as well as the insistent groove he brought to ‘Kingdom of Love’ are some of the finest bass playing I have ever witnessed… I’m profoundly grateful to have played music with him.”