Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Cherie Currie, and Nikki Sixx Pay Tribute to Kim Fowley

The passing of producer Kim Fowley has prompted public tributes from some of the many artists he worked with, including former Runaways members Joan Jett, Lita Ford and Cherie Currie, as well as Motley Crue's Nikki Sixx.

"My first manager, my first start in the music industry, my first band put together by Kim," wrote Ford in a Facebook post. "Sometimes I wonder if there would ever have been a Lita Ford without Kim Fowley. Rest in peace, Kim."

"I am so blessed that I had the chance to know you again Kim...really get to know you on a personal level and that we became friends. Mostly that you spent time here at my home," added Currie in a separate post. "It's a time I will never forget. The last record you made is in good hands and I am so glad that record is mine. It was a pleasure. Thank you for starting my career when I was a just a child. You were instrumental in so many getting started in this crazy world of music. You are a genius... you are loved. You will be so missed. Rest in Peace, my friend."

Sixx shared his own Fowley story in a tweet, telling followers, "Kim Fowley asked me in 1979 to write a song for Blondie. He said they ended up rejecting it. That song later became 'Stick to your Guns.'"

Fowley, who had endured a long battle with bladder cancer, was 75. Former Runaway Joan Jett unburdened some of her own grief in a succinct yet heartfelt tweet, writing, "Kim was a friend, he taught me so much. I am very sad."

You Think You Know Motley Crue?

See the Yearbook Photos of Joan Jett and Other Rock Stars