Cancer claims rock idol

MUSIC legend and southern rock pioneer Gregg Allman has died aged 69.

Allman (pictured with exwife Cher) died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones at his home in the US state of Georgia, his manager Michael Lehman said.

“It’s a result of his reoccurrence of liver cancer that had come back five years ago,” Mr Lehman said.

Allman’s bluesy vocals and soulful touch on Hammond organ helped propel The Allman Brothers Band to stardom and spawn the southern rock genre.

In 1975, Allman famously married fellow singer Cher three days after she divorced Sonny Bono.

She requested a divorce just nine days after their Las Vegas wedding but withdrew the suit a month later. They had a son, Elijah Blue, before Cher filed for legal separation in 1977.

Responding to news of Allman’s death, Cher tweeted: “IVE TRIED. WORDS ARE IMPOSSIBLE.”

Allman played his last concert last October as health problems forced him to cancel other 2016 shows.