2 members of legendary music group die just days apart

Two former members of a legendary music group, including the original drummer, have died just four days apart.
Colin “Smiley” Petersen, the Bee Gees’ first drummer, is dead at age 78, according to Billboard. A cause of death has not been announced.
“It is with a heavy heart we announce the passing of our dear friend Colin ‘Smiley’ Petersen,” a statement said Monday. “He enriched our lives and bound our group with love, care and respect. Not sure how we can go on without his glowing smile and deep friendship. We love you Col. Rest in Peace.”
Petersen joined brothers Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb and Maurice Gibb in 1966 after they all attended the same school in Queensland, Australia. Petersen played drums on the band’s first four albums, contributing to hits like “To Love Somebody,” “Massachusetts,” “I Started a Joke” and “I’ve Gotta Get a Message to You.”
Before pursuing a music career, Petersen was a child actor in the 1956 Australian film, “Smiley,” which inspired his nickname. He moved to England to pursue a movie career, but reportedly turned to music when the Brothers Gibb joined him in London and invited him to be the fourth Bee Gee. Petersen left the group in 1970 and worked with another former Bee Gees member, Jonathan Kelly, in the Humpy Bong band and managed Kelly’s solo career.
Petersen’s death comes days after Dennis Bryon, the drummer for the Bee Gees’ biggest disco hits in the 1970s, died on Thursday. A cause of death has not been announced.
Bryon joined the band in 1973 and was part of the Bee Gees’ iconic “Saturday Night Fever” soundtrack, playing on huge songs like “Stayin’ Alive,” “You Should Be Dancing” and “How Deep is Your Love.” Bryon stayed with the group until 1981 and most recently performed in the Italian Bee Gees tribute band with three Italian brothers, according to The New York Times.
Petersen similarly worked with another tribute show called The Best of the Bee Gees. According to Billboard, he said in 2022 he was initially “reluctant” to join the group, but was impressed after seeing them perform.
“I went to see the show. It would have been about the third song in, and I thought to myself, bloody hell, this band is really great, and the voices were so close, and it was well presented and they all seem really comfortable on stage and enjoying it, which is really important,” Petersen said.
The Bee Gees are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Vocal Group Hall of Fame and the Dance Music Hall of Fame. The Grammy-winning group’s hits include “Stayin’ Alive,” “Night Fever,” “More Than a Woman,” “You Should Be Dancing,” “I Started a Joke,” “How Deep is Your Love,” “To Love Somebody,” “My World” and “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart.”
Barry Gibb, 78, is the only original member of the Bee Gees still alive today. Robin Gibb died in 2012 at age 62 and Maurice Gibb died in 2003 at 53.