Dragon/Robert Palmer Band Member Alan Mansfield Passes Away

American musician and producer Alan Mansfield has died. He was 72. The musician was a member of the Australian/New Zealand rock band Dragon for 20 years and the Robert Palmer Band for 27 years.

Mansfield passed away “peacefully” in Sydney yesterday (16 October), with his partner of 40 years, Sharon O'Neill, and family by his side, per a statement. Mansfield had cancer and initially won the fight but died from complications following his treatment.

Mansfield enjoyed a decades-long career as a prolific musician and producer, co-writing songs for Dragon and Robert Palmer and on O’Neill’s albums, Danced Into The Fire and Edge Of Winter.

After visiting Australia in 1979 with Bette Midler’s band, Mansfield loved Australia so much that he moved to Sydney in 1982. He produced the Dragon hit Rain, produced songs on singer Marc Hunter’s solo album, Doug Parkinson’s Heartbeat To Heartbeat album, and played guitar on Robert Palmer’s Clues album.

Rain became a hit for Dragon, and Mansfield joined the band shortly after penning the song. He met Sharon O’Neill when she was opening for the band’s 1984 Body And The Beat tour. In 1986, Dragon opened for Tina Turner in Europe.

Outside of Dragon and Robert Palmer, Mansfield was recognised as an impressive multi-instrumentalist who graduated from the Boston Conservatory of Music in the US.

In 2013, Mansfield became a member of the Aussie rock supergroup The Dead Daisies. Playing the keyboard, he joined lead singer Jon Stevens (Noiseworks), guitarist Richard Fortus (Guns N’ Roses), drummer Charley Drayton (Divinyls, Cold Chisel), bassist/saxophonist Jim Hilbun (The Angels, Divinyls), and rhythm guitarist David Lowy (Red Phoenix, The Angels). The band opened for Aerosmith and ZZ Top in Australia.

In 2008, Mansfield and his fellow Dragon bandmates were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame. The band received a Legacy award at the NZ Music Hall of Fame three years later.

Sharon O’Neill has set up a website for fans to share their memories of Alan Mansfield and leave messages for her. You can find that here.