Tony Sheridan, who played with The Beatles in the early days and became a mentor for the band, has died of undisclosed causes. He was 72 years old.

Sheridan met the Fab Four in Hamburg in 1960, when they arrived to find work as a club band. He recorded early tracks with them under the name Tony Sheridan and the Beat Brothers, such as “My Bonnie,” “The Saints,” “Why (Can’t You Love Me Again),” “Nobody’s Child,” “Take Out Some Insurance On Me, Baby,” “Sweet Georgia Brown”, “Cry For A Shadow”, “Ain’t She Sweet”, and “Swanee River.” Sheridan took the lead on most of those.

After “My Bonnie” came out, the band quickly shot to stardom and went on to record their mega-successful first album, “Please Please Me”. And while they may have left Sheridan behind as far as performances went, the boys considered him a lifelong friend and referred to him as “The Teacher” after their early days together in Germany. He is often given credit for having propelled the band to stardom.

Image: Ellen Piel – K & K/Redferns