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Terry Hall, a lead member of one of the top bands in Britain, had a troubling life after facing a traumatic incident in his teens.
The musician was born in Coventry in 1959. However, his life experienced a 360-degree shift after he was kidnapped by a teacher at 12.
“I was abducted, taken to France, and sexually abused for four days,” he told The Spectator in 2019. “And then punched in the face and left on the roadside.”
Hall revealed the incident scarred him with bouts of depression. He became addicted to the prescribed Valium, that led him to drop out of education at 14.
“I didn’t go to school, I didn’t do anything. I just sat on my bed, rocking for eight months.”
During the 1990s, he used drinking as a crutch and became an alcoholic. In 2004, he tried to suicide and following was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Music was some form of solace as the musician entered a local punk band called Squad.
Hall shot to prominence in the 1970s and 80s with super hits, including Ghost Town, Gangsters land Too Much Too Young.
Later, the singer left The Specials in 1981 to create Fun Boy Three with fellow bandmates Neville Staple and Lynval Golding, registering several hits.
The singer died after a brief illness, The Specials said in a statement.
“Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls,” they wrote.
“His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… the joy, the pain, the humour, the fight for justice, but mostly the love.
“He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity.”