Born on January 9, 1967, in Santa Clara, California, Harwell discovered his love for music at an early age. His journey with Smash Mouth began in the mid-1990s when he joined forces with guitarist Greg Camp, bassist Paul De Lisle, and drummer Kevin Coleman to form the band. Smash Mouth, which last made headlines here and elsewhere for performing in the middle of a pandemic at the August 2020 Sturgis motorcycle rally/super-spreader event, no longer has a lead singer. And the Bay Area band’s longtime frontman Steve Harwell says he’s retiring to focus on his mental and physical health. Liver failure is when the liver shuts down and is unable to carry out important bodily functions.
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There can be multiple causes of acute liver failure, including an overdose of a common medicine. Acute liver failure, also known as fulminant hepatic failure, is a rare but life-threatening condition in which the liver loses function. While the official cause of death is yet to be confirmed, Smash Mouth’s manager Robert Hayes shared that the cause of Harwell’s death was liver failure, reported Daily Mail.
With chronic liver disease, people may lose their liver function slowly, often over a period of many years — even decades, Kushner explains. Chronic liver failure, also called decompensated liver disease, can cause symptoms like nausea, vomiting, fatigue, diarrhea and loss of appetite, the Cleveland Clinic says. Steve Harwell, the lead singer of 90s rockers Smash Mouth, has died at the age of 56 – just a day after it was announced that he had entered hospice care as a result of years of alcohol abuse. Harwell entered hospice care with only days to live as his liver failure was in the final stages. His representative confirmed in a statement to Entertainment Weekly on Sunday that his family and friends visited him in the past three days before his death hours after entering a medical facility. Because of these very struggles and looming, potentially fatal health issues, he was forced to leave the band early in 2021.
Smash Mouth Frontman Steve Harwell’s Health Issues Before Death Explored
In the following, we’re going to take a closer look at his career, and how he always managed to keep things light with his peers. In addition, we’ll reveal what his manager and former band members had to say about his passing. According to Johns Hopkins, taking too much acetaminophen — the pain reliever found in Tylenol and other over-the-counter and prescription products — causes most cases of acute liver failure. In 2016, the rockstar collapsed on stage during a concert performance and had to be rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. Harwell, who was a pop culture icon with hit numbers like ‘All Star’ and ‘I’m a Believer’, was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy in 2013. His condition worsened and he was shifted to hospice care before his death on Monday.
What causes liver failure?
Although he frequently jumped genres, and many of his songs were covers, he is still a name known by many. While the band didn’t release music in the last decade, they released numerous albums from 1997 to 2012, with their last new album being released in 2018. As of now, the exact last words the “All-Star” singer has muttered have not been published. While the terms of Steve Harwell’s will have yet to be disclosed, Harwell felt strongly about childhood leukemia, especially after his son died from it.
For instance, although chronic alcohol consumption doesn’t directly cause acute liver failure, it “decreases the threshold to develop drug-induced liver injury,” Lucero says. Due to his continuous alcohol consumption, the habit brought Harwell health woes until it targeted his liver and severely scarred the organ until it was no longer able to perform its function, leading to his death. Harwell’s death occurred after his long battle with liver failure caused by his alcohol abuse for years. Steve Harwell, the lead singer of Smash Mouth, passed away early Monday, less than 24 hours after it was announced that he was receiving hospice care.
His decision to leave Smash Mouth in 2021 was motivated by a strong desire to put his health and relationships with his family first. In other cases, a whole liver may be taken from a deceased donor and transplanted into a patient. Liver failure is when the vital organ is no longer able to carry out its critical functions. It is diagnosed via blood tests, which can reveal whether the organ is working properly. Musically, Steve Harwell is survived by Smash Mouth bassist Paul De Lisle, the only other permanent member of the band (all the other band members have changed over the years).
Jimmy Buffett passed away in the recent days, while Tina Turner was another major name whose health suffered in the recent years. Previously, she wrote for USA Today, where she was selected to help launch the newspaper’s wellness vertical. Sometimes a liver biopsy may be required to help determine the best course of treatment. If you or a loved one suddenly develops a yellowing of the eyes or skin, tenderness in the abdomen or unusual changes in mental state, seek medical attention right away, the clinic advises. Although the condition is “extremely rare,” Lucero says, it’s also always an emergency. It occurs when, all of a sudden, the liver just stops working in somebody who has no known liver condition, Lucero says.
How did Steve Harwell die? What to know about acute liver failure
Amy Winehouse’s struggle with alcoholism was well-documented and pre-dated her celebrity. In spite of becoming the veritable poster child for celebrity alcohol addiction, Winehouse resisted all attempts to get her to enter alcohol use disorder treatment. Finally, she did admit herself to rehab for alcoholism, in spite of her famous song to the contrary. We now know that Steve Harwell’s official cause of death was acute liver failure.
Steve Harwell was not married when he died, and his only son, Presley Harwell, is deceased. He did steve harwell drink a lot passed away in the morning, surrounded by his loved ones in his home in Boise, Idaho.
Harwell revealed that the group buys too much snack food like chips, while he also points out that when the alcohol runs low, wine is the last resort. Throughout their journey, Smash Mouth enjoyed great success, entering the Billboard 200 charts with five different albums. Since the start, the band sold 6.4 million albums around the US as of 2023, according to Billboard.
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Regularly drinking a lot of alcohol eventually causes the liver to start replacing healthy cells with scar tissue — impairing the organ’s ability to function. Below, DailyMail.com explains what liver failure is and how the condition can lead to death. Steve Harwell was known for his pop and rock hit songs with Smash Mouth, namely “All-Star,” which became a Billboard top hit.
As someone who always went at life full force, he died knowing he was leaving an amazing legacy behind, which would last for centuries to come. Many of his later shows showed the star drinking alcohol on stage and performing in various states of intoxication as the lead vocalist of Smash Mouth. Harwell was receiving hospital care, but passed away in his Boise, Idaho home alongside family and friends. The details state that the founder of the group passed away of liver failure. The representative noted that he was struggling with alcohol abuse throughout his life which led to the liver failure.
- The love of millions of adoring fans and friends was not enough to keep Janis Joplin alive though.
- Harwell’s rise to pop stardom was marked by his determination and success in achieving remarkable accomplishments in the music industry despite having limited musical experience.
- But many transplant centers will refuse the operation to people who are currently active substance abusers or alcoholics.
- All these, combined with his alcohol addiction, were major factors in Steve Harwell’s cause of death.
Through his advocacy efforts, Harwell sought to destigmatize addiction and promote a culture of compassion and understanding. By sharing his story with candor and vulnerability, he encouraged others to embrace vulnerability and seek help without shame or judgment. Harwell’s legacy extends far beyond the confines of music, serving as a testament to the transformative power of resilience, recovery, and redemption. Smash Mouth’s Steve Harwell’s dynamic stage presence and charismatic vocals played a pivotal role in shaping Smash Mouth’s identity.
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Celebrity alcohol addiction, like any other alcohol use disorder, places tremendous strain on the liver. Cardiomyopathy is a heart disease where the heart muscles are not strong enough to pump blood to the rest of the body, which can ultimately result in heart failure. People suffering from cardiomyopathy may present with boating of the abdomen, dizziness, breathlessness, and rapid heartbeat. Excessive, long-term alcohol use is one of the contributing behaviors that can cause this condition. Harwell entered hospice care on Sunday and died on Monday, surrounded by his fiancée, friends, and family in his Boise, Idaho home.
Fans were shocked by the news of Harwell entering hospice care and his subsequent passing, though Harwell had a history of addiction-related health problems, particularly during the last decade of his life. In 2013, Harwell was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and Wernicke encephalopathy, two health conditions where alcohol use can be an exacerbating factor. Although an official cause of death has not been confirmed, Harwell’s manager said in a statement Monday the singer had died from acute liver failure after being moved to hospice care. Recently, some experts have started using the term acute on chronic liver failure. In this situation, a patient “may have underlying long-standing chronic liver disease or cirrhosis,” Kushner explains, and then an infection or other issue “on top of that leads to liver failure.” Steve Harwell died from acute liver failure, his band’s manager told NBC News.
In addition to acute liver failure, Harwell was suffering from cardiomyopathy, a heart condition that was causing serious issues in other parts of his body. These issues included heart failure and acute Wernicke encephalopathy, the latter of which caused Harwell to have speech and memory problems. All these, combined with his alcohol addiction, were major factors in Steve Harwell’s cause of death.
Smashmouth’s Steve Harwell’s Death Attributed to Alcohol Addiction
His willingness to confront his demons head-on and seek help underscores the importance of addressing addiction with honesty, compassion, and determination. Tragically, Steve Harwell passed away on September 4, 2023, leaving behind a legacy as a musician, advocate, and survivor. His journey serves as a powerful reminder that recovery is possible, and that no one is immune to the challenges of addiction. As we honor his legacy, let us also reaffirm our commitment to supporting those in need, breaking down barriers, and fostering a community of healing and hope. Steve Harwell’s official cause of death was acute liver failure, a consequence of his struggles with alcohol addiction, which led to his passing at the age of 56 after a stay in hospice. Steven Scott Harwell, born on January 9, 1967, in Santa Clara, California, is a prominent figure in the music industry and the Smash Mouth lead singer.