THE musician behind one of the most recognisable saxophone solos - on Gerry Rafferty's hit Baker Street - has died.

Raphael Ravenscroft, 60, found fame almost overnight following the release of the 1978 track, and later went on to teach at York College’s music department in 2004.

He also worked with music icons such as Pink Floyd, Abba and Marvin Gaye, and more recently he worked as a session musician for pop artists Daft Punk and Duffy.

He died following a suspected heart attack early on Sunday.

A York College spokeswoman said staff were saddened to hear of his death.

In a joint statement, his fellow music tutors said: “Raphael brought a massive amount of experience to the music department and shared a wealth of knowledge about working in the music industry with his students. He was a hugely talented professional musician with real charisma. He built a great rapport with his students and would often go along to their gigs outside of College and simply join in playing his saxophone.”

Ravenscroft is reported to have been paid £27 for the session with a cheque that bounced, while the hit reached number three in the UK charts and number two in the US and Rafferty was said to have earned £80,000 a year from the royalties on the song alone.

In a radio interview in 2011, Ravenscroft said hearing the song annoyed him.

He said: "I'm irritated because it's out of tune. Yeah, it's flat. By enough of a degree that it irritates me at best."

In 1990 Ravenscroft published a successful instruction book, The Complete Saxophone Player.

In 2011, he recorded a tribute to commemorate the funeral of Rafferty called Forgiveness, which combined his saxophone playing with the voices of Grammy-nominated choir Tenebrae.

This summer Ravenscroft, of Exeter, Devon, organised a charity gala concert in memory of a local schoolgirl who died after falling from a wall.