Charlie | GTAMotorcycle.com

Charlie

I always enjoyed drumming on my steering wheel to She's So Cold
 
Sad loss. I’ve seen the Stones twice, probably never again.

RIP Mr Watts.
 
I had the opportunity to work setting up a Stones show at the Rogers Centre in 2005 , I think. It was a dream come true since I’m such a huge fan. After the sound check the band got into their limos waiting behind the stage to be whisked away, except for Charlie. He walked off the stage and over to small audience in front of it and began chatting with the crew and other people that were lucky enough to be there. He was a real class act.I saw Keith from about 10-15 feet away and he really didn’t look all that bad.
 
The man lived a good life. 80 is not too young. Never thought much of him as a drummer, but he was adequate for the Stones. I expect the band will carry on without him.
 
Less was More

can't see them going on without the anchor
no one else had a ******* clue for time signatures changes and song arrangements

most of their songs you can hear them all over the place
Watts brought them back to earth and the song

RIP Charlie
 
Roadghost said:
The man lived a good life. 80 is not too young. Never thought much of him as a drummer, but he was adequate for the Stones. I expect the band will carry on without him.
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Find underestimate a drummer in a blues band. It’s not Moon, Bonham crazy, but you’re keeping time and setting energy levels fir the band all nite long.
 
Mad Mike said:
Find underestimate a drummer in a blues band. It’s not Moon, Bonham crazy, but you’re keeping time and setting energy levels fir the band all nite long.
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Yes, it is the drummer who sets the tempo for the band, and Charlie did that well. He was what the Stones needed, nothing less, nothing more.
 
Watts was the perfect drummer for a band like the Rolling Stones. They were (are?) a band focused on tight songs and stagecraft, not improvisation or showy musicianship. Much like Ringo and the Beatles, Watts held time in a way that was both ideal for what the band was trying to do and gave them a subtle signature feel. The Stones were never my favourite band, but Watts was my favourite Stone...

(PS - on a personal preference level, I don't like the Moon/Bonham comparison: Moon sounds like someone kicked a drumkit down the stairs, Bonham was a soul drummer in a rock band. Both could be busy, but Bonham could shuffle and groove like Bernard Purdie when needed. Of course, this is just my taste. Lots, whose opinion I value, love Moon's unorthodox craziness. It's just not for me, as I like space and feel in drumming...)
 
Too bad. RIP Charlie.

I don't know what your views on Life and Death are but wouldn't it be nice if he was now reunited with all the people from his past that had already passed on and some of the other great musicians that have already left us. Maybe he's doing an impromptu jam session with Brian Jones right now?

I think some of the stuff he did outside the Rolling Stones may have been his best work. I like those recordings by the Charlie Watts Quintet and the Big Band stuff was really good. You could tell he was influenced as much, or maybe more, by people like Charlie Parker as he was by blues and R&B. I saw him once with Jools Holland and Axel Zwingenberger rocking out some amazing Boogie Woogie.
 
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