The musician died after a "long and courageous battle" with kidney disease
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NEED TO KNOW
- Dr. Hook cofounder and singer Dennis Locorriere died at age 76 after a “long and courageous battle” with kidney disease
- Dr. Hook, known for hits like “Sylvia’s Mother” and “The Cover of Rolling Stone,” released 11 albums during its initial run
- Locorriere continued performing as Dr. Hook into the 2020s
Dennis Locorriere, cofounder and original lead vocalist of the rock band Dr. Hook, has died. He was 76.
Locorriere's death was announced in a statement shared to the band's website that said he died on Saturday, May 16 “after a long and courageous battle with kidney disease.”
“Dennis faced his illness with remarkable strength, dignity, and resilience throughout, and remained deeply cherished by all who knew him. He will be remembered for his warmth, love, and the lasting impact he had on those around him,” the statement read. “We would like to thank everyone who supported Dennis during his journey and ask for privacy for his loved ones as they grieve this profound loss.”
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Locorriere was a founding member of the New Jersey-based country-rock group, which found success on the back of hits like “Sylvia's Mother,” “Sharing the Night Together” and “When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman.”
The group was founded in Union City, N.J. in 1968 as Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show, a nod to the eye patch worn by Locorriere's co-lead vocalist Ray Sawyer.
They eventually shortened their name to Dr. Hook, and their self-titled debut came out in 1972. Poet Shel Silverstein wrote the group's first two albums and some of their third, and eventually encouraged Dr. Hook to write their own songs, as he was impressed with some of the material he'd heard.
“I was so pleased to be able to interpret his material, because the lyrics are so rich and so colorful that it's almost like acting, to sing something like ‘Sylvia's Mother,'” Locorriere said in a 2022 interview with A Breath of Fresh Air. “That's not a song, that's a story… and it's all down to Shel's words.”
Credit: Mick Hutson/Redferns
Among the hits written by Silverstein was “The Cover of Rolling Stone,” a satirical tune about how the group hadn't been featured on the cover of the famed rock music magazine. When Dr. Hook finally did become cover stars in March 1973, the cover line read, “What's-Their-Names Make the Cover,” and featured caricatures of the group, not a photo.
Dr. Hook released 11 albums during its initial run, and Sawyer left the band in 1983 after the release of Let Me Drink from Your Well.
In the 2022 interview, Locorriere said any talk of bad blood between him and Sawyer — who died in 2018 at age 81 — was overblown.
“Our timing didn't work out great at the end, but he was a really good guy. People thought we hated each other because we had this falling out, but if you really want to know, it was the attorneys that were behind the rock shooting at each other. Ray and I never had a cross word in our lives, but there was paperwork. Ray left the band. When you have a corporation, you don't just walk away whistling, there's business you gotta do,” he explained. “We were fine. We knew exactly what we meant to each other and what assets to each other, we really did”
Locorriere released several solo albums in the 2000s, and ultimately kept the rights to the band's name, touring as Dr. Hook into the 2020s.
Credit: David Redfern/Redferns/Getty
In November 2025, Locorriere gave his fans a health update via social media, writing that he was “as healthy as a guy my age has the audacity to be and happy to be living a peacefully normal life.”
“Anyone who knows me can tell you I've been a ‘road dog' for most of my life. It's time to give up the one nighters,” he wrote. “I'm not saying I'll never perform again. I don't know right now. I do know that life in hotels and airports is not for me anymore. I've been a lucky guy. I've had an interesting life so far. And still have time to enjoy the rest. 💖🎱”
Locorriere was married three times, and eventually settled in the U.K. with his third wife, according to the Guardian.
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