Andy Fletcher, the keyboardist and founding member of the British electronic band Depeche Mode, has died at the age of 60.
Fletcher, nicknamed “Fletch”, founded the group in Basildon, Essex, in 1980 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame two years ago. The band sold over 100 million records worldwide and had 54 songs on the UK singles chart.
When Andy Fletcher grew up in Basildon, no one would have described him as a future rock star. He was a born-again Christian who went to church every Sunday, was a member of the Children’s Brigade, played chess, and always delivered homework on time.
Even after he was inspired to form a band by the 1977 punk explosion, it was