The drummer of the Rolling Stones has passed away only a few weeks after announcing he's taking a break from the band to recover from an unspecified medical procedure.
- Aug 24, 2021
AceShowbiz - The Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts has died, aged 80.
The rocker's publicist, Bernard Doherty, has confirmed the sad news, revealing Watts passed away "peacefully" in a London hospital, surrounded by his family.
"Charlie was a cherished husband, father and grandfather and also as a member of The Rolling Stones - one of the greatest drummers of his generation," Doherty says.
It was recently reported Watts was likely to miss dates on the Stones' upcoming U.S. No Filter tour to allow him to recover from an unspecified medical procedure.
Session drummer Steve Jordan was tapped to step in for the gigs.
"Charlie has had a procedure which was completely successful, but his doctors this week concluded that he now needs proper rest and recuperation," a representative for the band said in a statement earlier this month (Aug21). "With rehearsals starting in a couple of weeks it's very disappointing to say the least, but it's also fair to say no one saw this coming."
Watts, who was ranked among the best drummers in rock, joined the Stones in 1963 after starting out in jazz.
As well as creating the beat behind one of the greatest bands of all time, Watts also led his own namesake jazz band and 32-piece orchestra.
Bandmates Keith Richards once insisted Watts was the true force behind the Rolling Stones, telling an interviewer back in 1979, "Everybody thinks Mick (Jagger) and Keith are the Rolling Stones. If Charlie wasn't doing what he's doing on drums, that wouldn't be true at all. You'd find out that Charlie Watts IS the Stones."
Born in June, 1941, Charlie took up the drums as a teenager and played in London jazz groups until he became a member of Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated in the early 1960s.
He replaced future The Kinks drummer Mick Avory in the Rolling Stones and played his first gig with Jagger, Richards, and Brian Jones at the Ealing Blues Club in London in January, 1963, five months before the band released its first single, a cover of Chuck Berry's "Come On". With Watts giving the band a rocking blues edge, the Stones scored their first U.K. number one with the Bobby Womack-penned "It's All Over Now" in June, 1964, and their first U.S. number one with "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" the following summer (65).
The budding graphic designer also helped design various tour stages for the Stones.
He won his battle with throat cancer over a decade ago.
He is survived by Shirley, his wife of 56 years, daughter, Serafina, and a grandchild, Charlotte.
