Delp took his own life by lighting two charcoal grills in his sealed bathroom, leading to death by carbon monoxide poisoning. In one of four notes he wrote: "I have had bouts of depression and thoughts of suicide since I was a teenager."

The Herald later reported he'd been "beaten down by the years of dealing with Tom Scholz," which the bandleader said amounted to blaming him for the singer's death. The paper successfully defended itself in the case, with a court ruling their story did not amount to defamation since it was not possible to know why Delp had taken his own life.