Beloved Australian ARIA-award winning musician who was in the country’s first big rock band dies aged 76

Beloved Australian bass guitarist Dick Diamonde passed away earlier this month at the age of 76.

The iconic musician was a founding member of the legendary rock band The Easybeats, who became Australia’s first internationally successful rock act in the 1960s.

He was born in the Netherlands in 1947 as Dingeman van der Sluijs and emigrated to Australia with his parents at a young age.

Australian music journalist Glenn A. Baker confirmed the heartbreaking news on social media.

“The Easybeats rocked Australia. They were like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones combined,” Glenn began.

‘Founder Dick was, like so many bass players, a down-to-earth pillar in the band. Farewell!’

Together with lead singer Stevie Wright and fellow musicians George Young and Harry Vanda, The Easybeats conquered America and at one point were even more popular than The Beatles.

Their 1966 hit “Friday on my Mind” reached number one in the Australian charts and number sixteen in the US, making it the first Australian song to reach the US Top 20.

With his band he had a number of other hit singles, including Sorry and Good Times, which was covered by INXS and Jimmy Barnes in 1987.

Diamonde remained with the band for its entire existence, from 1964 to 1969. After that, he retired from music and lived a quiet life.

The band’s story was later dramaturgically adapted into the 2017 ABC miniseries Friday on my Mind, starring Preacher star Du Toit Bredenkamp as Dick.

The Eastbeats were also inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2005 for their contributions to the music industry.

Diamonde is survived by his ex-wife Charlene Collins.