Steve Harwell, ex lead singer of Smash Mouth, dies at 56

Smash Mouth frontman Steve Harwell entered hospice care after a yearslong health battle and subsequently died of liver failure on Monday.

The 56-year-old “All Star” singer was “surrounded by family and friends” at his home in Idaho when he “passed peacefully and comfortably,” band manager Robert Hayes said in a statement to Rolling Stone.

“Steve’s iconic voice is one of the most recognizable voices from his generation. He loved the fans and loved to perform,” Hayes continued. “Steve Harwell was a true American original. A larger than life character who shot up into the sky like a Roman candle. Steve should be remembered for his unwavering focus and impassioned determination to reach the heights of pop stardom. And the fact that he achieved this near-impossible goal with very limited musical experience makes his accomplishments all the more remarkable.”

Hayes wrote that Harwell “lived a 100 percent full-throttle life. Burning brightly across the universe before burning out.”

Harwell’s musical career

Despite his start as a rapper in the San Jose, Calif. group F.O.S. (Freedom of Speech), Harwell is best known for his lead role in Smash Mouth, which he co-founded in 1994 with Kevin Coleman, Greg Camp and Paul De Lisle. The group’s first hit, “Walkin’ on the Sun,” debuted in 1997.

That same year, Smash Mouth released their first album, “Fush Yu Mang,” with their second album “Astro Lounge” coming in hot in 1999. The latter album included “All Star,” one of their most popular songs to date, with more than 9.5 million streams Monday.

With time, Harwell and the band’s success only grew, their songs becoming major pop-culture phenomena. This came in part due to their unique sound, which Harwell told Rolling Stone in 2019 could not be recreated by other artists.

The other side of their success came from the band’s immortalization in the films “Shrek” (2001) and “Mystery Men” (1999), the former seeing more intense popularity then Harwell could have predicted.

Smash Mouth released four more albums from 2001 to 2012 and toured as the band lost and added members. Harwell and De Lisle were the only founding members that remained until 2021, when Harwell retired from the band due to health issues, BBC reported.

Vocalist Zach Goode now performs in Harwell’s stead.

A pattern of health issues

Harwell’s health issues plagued his performances, including a collapse on stage in 2016, numerous onstage outbursts and severe neurological symptoms including slurred words and threats to the audience in his last performance with the band, Rolling Stone reported.

In the wake of his final Smash Mouth show, his representative said, “Steve has been dealing with long-term medical issues over the last eight years and during his last performance at the Big Sip stage, he suffered numerous symptoms directly linked with his current medical situation (Wernicke encephalopathy).”

Wernicke encephalopathy is a degenerative brain disorder that can cause issues with motor control and memory. The condition is associated with vitamin B1 deficiency and alcohol abuse, among other ailments.

“I’ve tried so hard to power through my physical and mental health issues, and to play in front of you one last time, but I just wasn’t able to,” he said at the time of his retirement, per BBC.

On Sept. 3, just two years after Harwell’s retirement, Hayes confirmed the singer’s dire condition and his death a day later.

What are people saying about Steve Harwell’s death?

The Smash Mouth fanbase was rocked by Harwell’s death, offering condolences and sharing their love for the iconic singer’s music.