Talented musician Robert Smith

The body of a musician lay undetected in his Whitstable home for three weeks, police have revealed.

Shocked neighbours of 61-year-old Robert Smith – a founder member of one of Kent’s top soul and rhythm and blues band, Rubber Biscuit – say they had no reason to suspect any harm had come to him.

Mr Smith’s death was only discovered at 10.30pm on Sunday after he failed to keep an appointment.

Police were alerted and obtained keys from a neighbour to the neat semi-detached house in Grimshill Road where they found the body.

The death is not being treated as suspicious.

Neighbour John Frost said there had been no clues that anything was wrong.

He said: “Mr Smith was very quiet and kept himself to himself.

"I would see him in the garden and have a chat. He would sit in his back garden playing all sorts of instruments, including the mandolin and it was fabulous to hear him.

“He would normally have dug over his garden ready for planting potatoes and root vegetables but I put the fact that I hadn’t seen him down to the weather.

"mr smith was very quiet and kept himself to himself" – neighbour john frost

“Although his car was left in the driveway, that was not unusual because he had a bike and walked a lot as well.”

“I used to work as a technical team officer for Camden Council and had to clear houses where sometimes people had died. If I had detected anything untoward I would have raised the alarm.

Another neighbour who asked not to be named said Mr Smith was a pleasant man who kept himself to himself.

He believed Mr Smith had retired from his city civil service job with Defra and had never married.

He said: “I saw him about three or four weeks ago and I was beginning to worry.

"I was a keyholder for him because he would often go out and forget his keys.

"I was told he should have been at an appointment but hadn’t turned up. He hadn’t been ill and was able to get about. It has been rather a shock.”

Mr Smith’s father David, who lives in Bromley, said he last saw his son at Christmas. He described him as a very private person.

Mr Smith’s collection of instruments has been taken to be sold at Mac’s Music Store in Herne Bay.

The result of the post mortem examinationis not available yet and funeral arrangements are to be announced.