John Curulewski (October 3, 1950 – February 13, 1988) was an American musician who was one of the original members of Styx.

Career

In 1969 Curulewski joined the Chicago-based band TW4, featuring college friends

Dennis DeYoung Dennis DeYoung (born February 18, 1947) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He was a founding member of the rock band Styx, and served as its primary lead vocalist and keyboardist from 1972 until 1999. DeYoung was th ...

Chuck Panozzo Charles Salvatore Panozzo (born September 20, 1948) is an American musician best known as a co-founder of the rock band Styx. He is currently a part-time bass player in the band, sharing bass duties with Ricky Phillips. Panozzo suffers from HIV ...

, and

John Panozzo John Anthony Panozzo (September 20, 1948 – July 16, 1996) was an American drummer best known for his work with rock band Styx. Early life and career Panozzo grew up in the Roseland neighborhood, the south side of Chicago, Illinois, with his ...

. The group evolved into Styx by 1972. Curulewski played guitar and sang occasional lead vocals on the band's first five studio albums, released from 1972 to 1975. Just after the recording of the album ''

Equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...

'' in 1975, Curulewski left Styx to spend more time with his family, and was replaced by

Tommy Shaw Tommy Roland Shaw (born September 11, 1953) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter best known for his tenure in the rock band Styx (band), Styx as co-lead vocalist. In between his stints with Styx, he has played with other groups includi ...

. After his career with Styx, Curulewski became a guitar teacher in the Chicago area and played occasionally in local bands. He died on February 13, 1988, from a

brain aneurysm An intracranial aneurysm, also known as a brain aneurysm, is a cerebrovascular disorder in which weakness in the wall of a cerebral artery or vein causes a localized dilation or ballooning of the blood vessel. Aneurysms in the posterior circ ...

. He was survived by his wife and their son.

References

1950 births 1988 deaths American rock guitarists American male guitarists Styx (band) members 20th-century American musicians Deaths from intracranial aneurysm Guitarists from Chicago 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians {{US-rock-guitarist-stub