Complex sentence: He signed a new recording/publishing contract in May 1993 but suffered the cruelist fate when he collapsed and died of a heart attack the following month, three days after performing in Nashville with his new band.
Split into simpler sentences: He signed a new recording/publishing contract in May 1993. But he suffered the cruelist fate, when he collapsed and died of a heart attack the following month three days after performing in Nashville with his new band.