Two days before on stage: "Bee Gees" musician died

London - The former drummer of the Bee Gees, Colin Petersen, is dead. The Australian musician died at the age of 78, the British news agency PA reported, citing his spokeswoman.

Petersen had emigrated to the UK in the 1960s and joined the brothers Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb there.

Colin Petersen played drums on early Bee Gees hits such as "I Started A Joke", "To Love Somebody" and "Massachusetts". He played on several albums by the influential band, including "Bee Gees 1st" (1967) and "Idea" (1968), and was also involved in some songwriting. He left the group in 1969.

The Bee Gees had been founded by the Gibb brothers. The band later celebrated worldwide success with songs such as "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart", "Too Much Heaven" and "Stayin' Alive".

Of the three brothers, only Barry Gibb is still alive. Maurice Gibb died in 2003, his brother Robin in 2012. The youngest brother Andy Gibb, who celebrated success as a solo artist and never became part of the band, had already died in 1988.

The Australian Petersen, who had starred in the movie "Smiley" as a child, had played in the tribute show "Best Of The Bee Gees" in recent years, PA reported.

He had played a show on Saturday and died in his sleep early Monday morning, the news agency quoted a representative of the group as saying.