Charlie Watts earned global renown for nearly six decades as the drummer of the Rolling Stones, where his understated yet propulsive backbeat and deceptively straightforward grooves formed one of the group’s signature sonic characteristics. Away from the band’s commitments, he pursued his original passion through acclaimed jazz performances with an assortment of British ensembles ranging from small combos to larger outfits. Like his work with the Stones, these jazz outings avoided showy technique, instead reflecting an unmatched sense for placing notes in ways that best supported the material. The enduring reliability of his Stones contributions appears throughout their 2002 retrospective Forty Licks, while key jazz releases include the 1992 album A Tribute to Charlie Parker with Strings, a heartfelt nod to one of his key influences; 2004’s Watts at Scott’s, documenting a performance at London’s leading jazz spot; and 2017’s Charlie Watts Meets the Danish Radio Big Band, which found him collaborating with a noted European orchestra.
Charles Robert Watts entered the world on June 2, 1941, in London, England. His father operated a lorry and his mother worked in a factory. He spent his childhood in Wembley, Middlesex, where he and his friend Dave Green began amassing 78 rpm records that spanned Charlie Parker to Jelly Roll Morton. Eager to play an instrument, Watts purchased a banjo in his early teens, but soon abandoned the fingerings and instead detached the neck, mounted the head on a stand, and used brushes in the manner of Gerry Mulligan drummer Chico Hamilton. Recognizing his potential, his parents acquired an inexpensive drum kit for him in 1955, after which he devoted his earnings to jazz discs and drum upgrades. Following secondary school, he attended Harrow Art School and later secured employment as a graphic designer and illustrator at an advertising agency. During off-hours he performed with a jazz ensemble, yet rhythm and blues was rapidly gaining traction in London, prompting Alexis Korner to ask him to join Blues Incorporated. Watts accepted and appeared with Korner whenever his schedule allowed. His precise, economical style and solid groove drew notice from another British blues outfit seeking a drummer, and although he initially remained with Blues Incorporated, the Rolling Stones’ offer of five pounds weekly persuaded him to switch, leading to his debut performance with them in February 1963. By year’s end the band had built a formidable live reputation, signed with British Decca (with London Records handling North American distribution), and scored a moderate hit with their first single, “Come On.” In April 1964 they issued their debut album and, capitalizing on the Beatles’ American breakthrough, turned toward the U.S. market. “Time Is on My Side” reached the American Top Ten, and “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” released in June 1965, became a worldwide phenomenon, after which the Stones began billing themselves as the Greatest Rock & Roll Band in the World.
While excess defined the lifestyle of most bandmates, Watts remained indifferent to fame’s trappings. He married his art-school girlfriend, Shirley Ann Shepherd, in 1964, and the union lasted 57 years. After shows he typically avoided revelry, opting instead for rest and sketches of his hotel rooms. His wealth funded collections of vintage suits, thoroughbred horses, and classic cars, even though he never drove. Amid the Rolling Stones’ turbulent history he provided consistent stability behind the kit. A restrained drinker who steered clear of drugs, he nevertheless entered a two-year period of hard-drug use in 1983 triggered by a midlife crisis and family strains; he ultimately quit both substances permanently upon recognizing the damage to his marriage.
Despite the Stones’ demands, Watts sustained his jazz engagement. In 1964 he authored and illustrated the children’s book Ode to a High Flying Bird, drawing from Charlie Parker’s life. During late-1970s downtime he played with Rocket 88, Ian Stewart’s boogie-woogie outfit, which issued a self-titled live album recorded in Germany in 1979 and released in March 1981. Following his recovery in the mid-1980s, he assembled the 33-piece Charlie Watts Orchestra, featuring prominent British jazz musicians, which toured the United Kingdom, Europe, and the United States; a March 1986 concert yielded the album Live at Fulham Town Hall. In 1991 he released From One Charlie, featuring Parker repertoire and including a reprint of his earlier book. Further tribute came with 1992’s A Tribute to Charlie Parker with Strings, credited to the Charlie Watts Quintet and spotlighting saxophonist Peter King. Vocalist Bernard Fowler, already part of the Stones’ touring personnel, joined for 1993’s Warm & Tender, a subdued set of standards. Fowler returned for 1996’s Long Ago & Far Away, again backed by the London Metropolitan Orchestra. With studio drummer Jim Keltner, Watts issued the 2000 Charlie Watts Jim Keltner Project, nine percussion-centric, electronics-tinged pieces honoring admired drummers. Traditional jazz reappeared on 2004’s Watts at Scott’s, recorded live at Ronnie Scott’s with his Tentet. He also formed the ABC & D of Boogie Woogie with Axel Zwingenberger, Ben Waters, and Dave Green, releasing Live in Paris in 2012. In 2017 he guested with the Danish Radio Big Band on Charlie Watts Meets the Danish Radio Big Band, which included jazz treatments of three Rolling Stones songs alongside standard repertoire.
These jazz endeavors occurred during intervals between Stones touring and recording, which remained active into the twenty-first century. The band’s August 19, 2019, concert in Miami, Florida, marked their final performance before a hiatus, concluding amid rain. The COVID-19 pandemic led to canceled 2020 dates, and on August 3, 2021, the group announced that Watts would miss rescheduled September shows owing to health concerns, with Steve Jordan—previously heard on a Keith Richards solo project—filling in temporarily. Watts died on August 24, 2021, at a London hospital at age 80, with family present.
