Alto Reed, saxophone player and longtime bandmate of Bob Seger, dies at 72 Posted at 1:22 PM, Dec 30, 2020 and last updated 2020-12-31 12:21:39-05 Alto Reed, a saxophone player who was a longtime member of Bob Seger's Silver Bullet Band, has died at 72 years old after a battle with colon cancer. Bob Seger posted a tribute to his longtime bandmate on his Facebook page this afternoon: Reed was born in Detroit and part of Seger's Silver Bullet Band since its inception, according to a news release from Plan A Media. "I loved him like a brother," Seger said in a statement. "I may have been the leader, but he was our rock star. He was the audience favorite, hands down. He was bold, and worldly. I learned so much from the guy. And he was a great ambassador to the fans. He took time for everybody, any picture, anywhere. I can't say enough good things about him."