Metalfanatics Board

We regret to announce that Keith Emerson died last night at his home in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, aged 71. We ask that the family’s privacy and grief be respected.

According to TMZ, the death of Keith Emerson is being investigated as a suicide.

Law enforcement sources tell the site the EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER keyboardist had a single gunshot wound to the head when his girlfriend found him in their home in Santa Monica, California.

Emerson had reportedly been suffering from a degenerative nerve disease in his right hand that meant he could only play the keyboards with eight fingers. As a result, he was struggling with depression.