Paul Ryder, bassist for Madchester greats Happy Mondays, has died. Paul’s band and family tweeted that Paul died this morning. No cause of death has been given. Ryder was 58.

Paul Ryder and his older brother, Happy Mondays frontman Shaun, grew up in Manchester, sons of a postman and a nurse. Later on, their father Derek would become the Happy Mondays’ tour manager. Both Ryder brothers were founding members of the Happy Mondays; Paul was a teenager when the band got started in 1983. The band signed with local institution Factory Records and released their debut EP Forty Five in 1985. Velvet Underground legend John Cale produced their first album, 1987’s Squirrel And G-Man Twenty Four Hour Party People Plastic Face Carnt Smile (White Out).

Happy Monday’s early sound was a skittering, euphoric post-punk lurch. As rave culture began to take over the UK, it became a part of the group’s sound. Happy Mondays got funkier and dancier, and they became hugely successful. The band’s third album, 1990’s ills ‘N’ Thrills And Bellyaches, was an era-defining classic. In the UK, it went platinum and sent two singles, “Step On” and “Kinky Afro,” into the top five; Happy Mondays headlined one night of Glastonbury that year. The followed that album with 1992’s disastrous Yes Please!, recorded in Barbados with Talking Heads’ Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz as producers. The album’s hugely expensive recording sessions drove Factory Records into bankruptcy.

The band broke up in 1993, but they reunited six years later. Over the years, the Happy Mondays continued for occasional tours, and they released one reunion album, 2007’s Uncle Dysfunktional. Happy Mondays played their last show at the Isle Of Wight Festival last month. They were set to play England’s Kubix Festival tonight. Over their various reunions, Happy Mondays’ lineup has shifted a number of times, but Paul Ryder and his brother Shaun remained fixtures. In every incarnation of the Happy Mondays, Paul’s rubbery basslines were a hugely important driving force.

Paul Ryder also led a band called Big Arm that released one album in 2008. He also played DJ sets and acted in a few movies. In 2002’s 24 Hour Party People, an energetically self-deprecating account of Factory Records’ history, Paul had a small role as a gangster.

Below, check out some of the Happy Mondays’ videos.