John Warren Geils Jr., the artist known professionally as J. Geils who gave his name to the 1980s rock group he founded, The J. Geils Band, was found dead in his Groton, MA home Tuesday. He was 71.

Geils was a vocalist and guitarist for The J. Geils Band, which he formed in Worcester, Mass., in 1967, when he was attending school at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

More details about the life and career of J. Geils can be found here.

Photo Credit: John W. Ferguson, Getty Images