ICON DEAD. With heavy hearts, we announce the passing. When you find out who he is, you will cry

MUSICIAN 79-year-old Richard “Kinky” Friedman has died.

It was announced on Thursday through X.

“Kinky Friedman stepped on a rainbow at his beloved Echo Hill surrounded by family & friends,” it stated.

“Kinkster endured tremendous pain & unthinkable loss in recent years but he never lost his fighting spirit and quick wit.”

“Kinky will live on as his books are read and his songs are sung,” the post said.

He finished the University of Texas at Austin and was a writer.

It wasn’t clear when he died exactly.

Additionally, Kinky ran for governor of Texas in 2006 as an independent candidate.

Twelve percent of the votes put him in fourth place out of six candidates.

MUSICAL PROFILE
Kings Arthur & the Carrots was Kinky’s first band, which he started at UT.

Schawinn 24/Beach Party Boo Boo was the only song they recorded in 1966.

The band King Arthur & The Carrots made fun of surf music.

Seven years later, in 1973, Richard started his second band, Kinky Friedman and The Texas Jewboys.

In 1974, Kinky released his first album, which was simply called Kinky.

Kimky went on tour with Bob Dylan for two more years.

He ended the tour by being a musical guest on Season 2 of Saturday Night Live.

As a headline act, the musician went on a world tour in 2011.

While his most recent album, Circus of Life, came out in 2018, Kinky has put out 18 albums.

ALTERNATIVE BUSINESSES
After his music career stopped in the 1980s, Richard started writing.

His main genre was detective novels, which often included made-up versions of himself and references to his songs.

While fighting crime in New York City, the character tells jokes, gives advice, gives recipes, and is charming.

Him as a modern-day Sherlock Holmes.

The novels Kill Two Birds and Get Stoned and The Christmas Pig were written by Kinky but did not have the Kinky Friedman character in them.

In addition, he had a regular column for Texas Monthly from 2001 to 2005.

If he ran for Governor in 2006, the column would not be published.

Thereafter, two years later, the publication brought back his column every two months.

After running for Governor, Richard lost his Republican primary for Justice of the Peace in Kerrville, Texas, in 1986.