Roky Erickson, the frontman for the pioneering Texas psychedelic rock band the 13th Floor Elevators, whose life was rattled by drug addiction and schizophrenia, died on Friday, May 31, at his home in Austin. He was 71.

His death was confirmed by Mikel Erickson, his brother, in a Facebook post, saying, “My brother Roky passed away peaceably today. Please allow us time. Music and laughter forever.”

Erickson was the lead vocalist and primary songwriter for the 13th Floor Elevators, the first psychedelic band out of Texas. The group’s debut single, the wild-eyed garage rock staple “You’re Gonna Miss Me,” became a national hit in 1966, especially in San Francisco where radio stations put it in heavy rotation on their playlists.

By fall that year, the group was headlining shows at the Fillmore and Avalon Ballroom, just as the West Coast scene was starting to bloom.

The band released four albums on the independent label International Artists, including the classic proto-punk 1966 release “The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators” and its equally rambunctious follow-up “Easter Everywhere,” which came out in 1967.

But the Elevators came to an abrupt end when Erickson was arrested in Texas in 1969 for possession of a small amount of marijuana in a single joint. Rather than face a 10-year jail sentence, he pleaded insanity based on a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia he received a year earlier.

After several escape attempts from the Austin State Hospital, Erickson was incarcerated for three years in the Rusk State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, where he was jailed alongside murderers, rapists and other violent criminals. There he was subjected to electroshock treatments and Thorazine therapy, which further damaged his mental health.

Following his release in 1972, he resumed his music career, leaving behind the Elevators’ psychedelic sound for heavy genre-bending solo sides that reflected the ghosts, aliens and horror-movie demons that haunted his mind, such as “I Walked With a Zombie,” “The Creature With the Atom Brain” and “Red Temple Prayer (Two Headed Dog),” making full use of his piercing voice and brash riffs.

He spent the next two decades playing with bands like the Aliens and the Explosives. He was also in and out of treatment facilities and jail during that time, ending the decade destitute and living with his mother.

But a 1990 tribute album, “Where the Pyramid Meets the Eye,” produced by music industry executive Bill Bentley and featuring artists such as R.E.M., ZZ Top and Primal Scream performing his songs, reignited interest in Erickson’s music.

A collection of his lyrics was published in 1995 by Henry Rollins. Erickson’s name was often mentioned in the same breath as rock casualties like Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd or Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys.

Roger Kynard Erickson was born in Dallas on July 15, 1947, and grew up in Austin. He dropped out of high school and formed his first band, the Spades, when he was 18, with which he cut the original version of “You’re Gonna Miss Me.”

In 1965, he co-founded the 13th Floor Elevators with the guitarist Stacy Sutherland and jug player Tommy Hall, the band’s unique direction inspired by countless LSD trips.

With help from his family members — particularly his youngest brother, Sumner Erickson, who took conservancy over him in 2001 — he was able to wean himself off schizophrenia medication, clean up his act and return to performing onstage. In 2007 , he came back to San Francisco to perform at the Noise Pop festival in support of the documentary film “You’re Gonna Miss Me,” making his first appearance in the city in more than 25 years.

He also performed at the Coachella festival in Indio; the Ponderosa Stomp in New Orleans; and Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in Golden Gate Park. In 2015, he reunited with the original members of the 13th Floor Elevators to perform one last show at the Levitation festival in Austin.

During an interview around his Noise Pop appearance, The Chronicle’s former Senior Pop Music Critic Joel Selvin asked Erickson what he thinks happened to him.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I just put up with it.”

Erickson is survived by his brothers, Mikel and Sumner; and son Jegar.

Devastated to hear of Roky Erickson's passing. One of the reasons I began singing. A huge inspiration and giant in the history of rock. I used to call him every day in the 80's, he would actually pick up once every couple months and talk horror films with me. Such a loss. RIP pic.twitter.com/6HE4HHsZnS — mark lanegan (@marklanegan) May 31, 2019

Rest In Peace Roky Erickson. The co-founder of the 13th Floor Elevators and the king of Texas psych rock has died at age 71. He was a visionary who made mind-blowing music for 5 decades and we’re gonna miss him. 🎸 pic.twitter.com/LlQOKHH0NY — Amoeba Music (@amoebamusic) May 31, 2019

Inarguably one of the progenitors of creating the psychedelic rock music genre, Roky Erickson’s spirit now flies free… ⁣

⁣

Texan. Father. Brother. Husband. Poet. Guitarist. Legend. ⁣

⁣#RIPRokyErickson pic.twitter.com/EX5fFVTkoC — Texas Music Office (@txmusicoffice) May 31, 2019

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