Steely Dan co-founder and guitarist Walter Becker has died aged 67, according to a post on his official website.  The cause of death has not been revealed however he missed two Steely Dan concerts in July this year due to ill health.

Steely Dan’s stretch of seven albums between 1972 and 1980 are renowned for their insightful lyrics and complex music.

Fagen and Becker split the band after 1980’s Gaucho LP, reforming 20 years later to make the Grammy-winning Two Against Nature.

In a statement released shortly after the announcement of Becker’s death, Fagen wrote: “Walter Becker was smart as a whip, an excellent guitarist and a great songwriter. He was cynical about human nature, including his own, and hysterically funny.”

Fagen also added that he intends to continue to “keep the music we created together alive as long as I can with the Steely Dan band”.