Slash Records founder Bob Biggs, whose label was instrumental in documenting the Los Angeles punk and roots-rock scenes of the 1980s, died Saturday in Tehachapi, Calif., after a long illness. He was 74.

Slash debuted in 1978 as an offshoot of the similarly titled fanzine. Its roster boasted L.A. bands like the Germs, X, the Blasters, Los Lobos, Dream Syndicate and Faith No More. As the label expanded beyond L.A., it released albums by Milwaukee’s Violent Femmes and BoDeans, Boston’s Del Fuegos and the Brit Robyn Hitchcock, among others.

“I always liked him,” Blasters songwriter Dave Alvin wrote on Facebook. “Even when I didn't. You couldn't help but like the guy. He was a very charming, visionary rascal.”

Former Slash publicist Bill Bentley wrote, “Biggs had an uncanny way of looking at a particular scene and instantly finding the most exciting band in that scene. It happened over and over, so often that we almost had to laugh about it. He was a painter and knew art. And to him, music was an art.”

Biggs sold the label name to London Records in 1986 and continued to run it until it closed in 1996. Warner Bros. distributed the label in the U.S., acquiring the catalog in 2000. Slash now exists as a reissue label.