SAN FRANCISCO (CelebrityAccess) – Eddie Money, the New York City police officer turned prolific hitmaker whose songs “Baby Hold On,” “Two Tickets to Paradise,” “Shakin’” and “Take Me Home Tonight” soundtracked popular music in the 1980s, passed away Friday (Sept. 13) following a battle with cancer.
A statement provided to Variety by his family reads: “The Money Family regrets to announce that Eddie passed away peacefully early this morning. It is with heavy hearts that we say goodbye to our loving husband and father. We cannot imagine our world without him. We are grateful that he will live on forever through his music.”
Money, who was 70 years old, recently revealed that he had been diagnosed with stage 4 esophageal cancer, and that it had spread to his stomach and liver.
Born in Brooklyn as Edward Joseph Mahoney on March 21, 1949, Money moved to the Bay Area in the late 1960s to become a musician. As the story goes, he was befriended and managed by guru of the local scene, Bill Graham, which eventually led to a contract with Columbia in 1976.
His self-titled debut album was certified double-platinum and included the mega-hit “Two Tickets to Paradise.” Over the course of his 40 plus year career, Money released 12 albums and sold more than 28 million records worldwide.
He is survived by his wife of more than 30 years Laurie, and their five children. Zachary, Jessica, Joseph, Julian, and Desmond.
