Mark Volman dead: The Turtles co-founder dies after brief unexpected illness

Mark Volman, a founding member of American rock band The Turtles, has died at the age of 78, it has been announced.

The singer and guitarist, who sang the band's number one hit Happy Together, died on Friday following a brief, unexpected illness, his representative has confirmed. Mark died in Nashville on Friday.

Mark revealed in 2023 he had been diagnosed with Lewy body dementia in 2020. The NHS states: "Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), also known as Lewy body dementia, is one of the most common types of dementia.

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"Dementia is the name for problems with mental abilities caused by gradual changes and damage in the brain. It's rare in people under 65.

"It tends to develop slowly and get gradually worse over several years."

As he revealed his diagnosis, Mark told People magazine at the time: "I got hit by the knowledge that this was going to create a whole new part of my life. And I said, 'Okay, whatever’s going to happen will happen, but I’ll go as far as I can.'

"The challenges of this world affect everybody, and it’s been kind of fun being on the other side of a challenge like this and saying, 'I feel good.' My friends are here. I’m still here. And I want people to connect with me."

Despite his diagnosis, Mark continued to perform on the annual Happy Together tours in the following years. He was the last original Turtles member to perform with the band after his co-star Howard Kaylan retired in 2018 due to health issues.

Mark was born on April 19 1947 and met his band-mate Howard during his high school years and the pair began singing together. The formed the group The Turtles and their first hit came in 1965 with a cover of Bob Dylan's It Ain't Me Babe. The signature hit, Happy Together, was released in 1967 and dominated the number one spot on the Billboard 100 for three weeks, it also went to Top 10 in several other countries and reached the number 12 chart position in the UK.

The band went on to achieve a total of nine Top 30 singles in the US and five Top 10s.

The Turtles split in 1970 but Mark and Howard continued to work together as the duo Flo and Eddie, touring with Frank Zappa and singing backing vocals for artists including Bruce Springsteen, Duran Duran and T. Rex.

In his 40s, Mark returned to his studies and received a master's degree in screenwriting and went on to teach music at Belmont University in Nashville.

He was diagnosed with dementia in 2020 but continued to perform the annual Happy Together music tour with The Turtles.

The singer is survived by daughters Sarina and Hallie, ex-wifes Patricia - the mother of his kids - and Emily Volman, and his brother Phil Volman.

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