Mike Starr, the original bass player for Alice In Chains, has been found dead in a house in Salt Lake City aged 44.

A spokesman for the Salt Lake City Police Department says officers responded to a call about a possible body at a residence south-west of the city.

"There is nothing to indicate that this was foul play by another individual," the spokesman said.

The spokesman did not have any information about the state of Starr's body or who made the call.

The medical examiner's office will likely conduct an autopsy tomorrow, but the results of toxicology tests could take up to two months.

"It's a terrible shock and tragedy," Starr's father told celebrity website TMZ.

Starr's death comes a month after he was arrested on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance in Utah.

The rocker had a history of substance abuse and appeared in the third season of reality television show Celebrity Rehab in 2009.

Starr left Alice In Chains shortly after the release of its breakthrough 1992 album Dirt, which contained many drug-related songs.

With replacement Mike Inez on board, Alice in Chains enjoyed even greater success as part of the Seattle grunge movement.

But singer Layne Staley's substance abuse issues put the brakes on the band in 1996. His decomposed body was found in a Seattle apartment in April 2002.

The band's surviving original members, guitarist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, said in a statement they were mourning the loss of their friend Starr and requested privacy.

Alice in Chains has reunited with some success in recent years with new singer/guitarist William DuVall.

Celebrity Rehab host Dr Drew Pinsky tweeted: "Devastating to hear of Mike Starr succumbing to his illness. So very sad. Our prayers are with his family."

- ABC/wires