Pentangle guitar master John Renbourn dies

LONDON (AP) — The masterful acoustic guitarist John Renbourn, a founding member of the widely admired folk group Pentangle in the 1960s, has died at his home in Scotland. He was 70.

His manager, Dave Smith, called Renbourn "a huge character." He said he believes Renbourn suffered a fatal heart attack.

"He was always playing and teaching. That is what he loved doing and he never stopped," Smith said.

Scottish police said his body was discovered Thursday night at his home in the Scottish Borders region adjacent to England. They said there were no suspicious circumstances.

Renbourn teamed with the late Bert Jansch, who died in 2011, and others to form Pentangle, which enjoyed a wide reputation for playing both contemporary and traditional folk songs.

They played complicated ballads and folk tales from the Renaissance, bringing centuries-old early music to contemporary audiences.

Renbourn and Jansch did most of the arranging, Smith said.

And Renbourn had an unusual technique, according to The Guardian. He used three fingers on the right and a thumb to the guitar, with filed down pieces of ping-pong balls stuck on as artificial nails.

Although he was not a pop musician, Renbourn's death inspired mournful tweets from around the world.

"He was a very inspirational performer, widely known all over the world, even though it was not mainstream music," said Smith. "When they emerged, no one else was doing it. It was a totally new approach."

Smith said Friday he became concerned when Renbourn did not show up for a concert with fellow guitarist Wizz Jones in Glasgow and asked police to check his home, where his body was found.

Renbourn is survived by two sons and a daughter.