'Lonely Boy' Singer Andrew Gold Dies at 59

Singer-songwriter Andrew Gold, the composer of the 1977 hit 'Lonely Boy,' has died at the age of 59.

His sister Melani Gold Frieman told the Los Angeles Times that he died in his sleep on Friday at his home in Encino, Calif. He had cancer but had been responding well to treatment, she said.

Gold enjoyed hits with "Loney Boy," "Never Let Her Slip Away," and "Thank You for Being a Friend," the theme for long-running sitcom The Golden Girls.

Gold was also in Linda Rondstadt's band, arranged songs for and performed on several Rondstadt albums, including Heart Like a Wheel, and did session work for artists such as James Taylor and Carly Simon.

"Andrew was so enormously talented it almost seemed effortless," Ronstadt told the Los Angeles Times. "He was a real cornerstone of those early records."

He recorded with English musician Graham Gouldman in the 1980s, then continued to write, record, and work with a variety of artists. His last release was 2008's Copy Cat.