Rolling Stone drummer Charlie Watts died at the age of 80. Watt’s publicist, Bernard Doherty announced the news in a statement on Tuesday morning. “It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Charlie Watts. He passed away peacefully in a London hospital earlier today 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.” The news comes after Watts underwent an undisclosed medical procedure earlier this month.
Charles Robert “Charlie” Watts was born in Bloomsbury, London, on June 2, 1941, and he started drumming around age 13. In 1961, Watts joined Alexis Korner’s Blues Incorporated, and a year later he met his future Stones bandmates, Brian Jones, Ian Stewart, Mick Jagger, and Keith Richards, in the London blues scene. In January 1963, Watts officially joined the Rolling Stones.
