Robert Quine, 61; Punk-Rock Guitarist Played With Such Artists as Lou Reed and Tom Waits

Robert Quine, a versatile punk-rock guitarist who appeared on albums by Lou Reed, Marianne Faithfull and Tom Waits, has died in New York City. He was 61.

Police found Quine dead in his Manhattan apartment Saturday, said James Marshall, a friend. The medical examiner’s office will determine the cause of death, but a note with his body indicated suicide, police said.

Marshall said he believed Quine died May 31.

“He was an extraordinary mixture of taste, intelligence and rock ‘n’ roll abilities, coupled with major technique and a scholar’s memory for every decent guitar lick ever played under the musical sun,” Reed said in a prepared statement Monday.

Quine’s playing was first heard on record in 1977, on Richard Hell and the Voidoids’ “Blank Generation.” He also appeared on Reed’s “The Blue Mask” in 1982 and in the 1990s played with such artists as Matthew Sweet and Lloyd Cole.

Quine, who was older than most of his punk-rock peers and nearly bald, typically wore button-down shirts and sport coats. Trained as a lawyer, he once said he looked like a “deranged insurance salesman.”

He was born in Akron, Ohio, and graduated from Earlham College in Richmond, Ind. He received a law degree from Washington University in St. Louis.

Quince’s wife, Alice, died in August. Survivors include a brother, William, of Modesto.