Guitarist Keith Levene, founder of the British band The Clash, has died of liver cancer at his home in Norfolk, England at the age of 65.

Born Julian Levene in London, he founded The Clash at the age of 18 with guitarist Mick Jones and bassist Paul Simonon, accompanied by band manager Bernard Rhodes, who asked singer Joe Strummer to join the band.

Strummer had just seen the Sex Pistols perform at the Nashville Rooms and convinced everyone that punk was the way to go.

As The Clash became increasingly politicized, Levene decided to leave the group and had even more success with Public Image Ltd, accompanied by John Lydon, the Sex Pistols singer, where he used the name Johnny Rotten and laid the foundations for what would later become known as post-punk.

His partner, Kate Ransford; her sister, Jill Bennett; and her husband accompanied him in his last hours. He died “peacefully, calmly, comfortably and lovedly,” according to the family, who asked for privacy.