Goodbye Charlie Watts

 

The Rolling Stones music has meant a lot to Disaster Amnesiac for a long damn time. I recall marveling at how ugly they looked on copies of my mom's LP's, back in the early 1970's. That was not off putting to me in the slightest. When I first started to really listen to music, to hear music, Start Me Up was a current hit, and I loved it. My appreciation for the band grew during high school years, especially their post-Brian Jones works. As I've aged, the purity of their approach has never been lost on me. One has to figure that this has a lot to do with Charlie Watts. Mick, Keith, Bill, and whomever else they recruited over the years were so fortunate to have such an uncomplicated musical thinker behind them. Watts never strayed from the essential back beat-rooted nature of Rock 'n Roll, and why should he have? He always seemed to have that Big Beat front and center within his concept, and, in doing so, he allowed the other Stones the room to shine in their singular, successful ways. Disaster Amnesiac often marvels at the humble, rooted groove of Watt's drumming as I inevitably tap my toes to any song by the Rolling Stones that I may be listening to. Many other drummers have made their reputations with flash; Charlie made his by playing the song, pure and simple, and leaving it at that. Charlie Watts always served the music, and music has lost a truly singular practitioner with his passing. We won't be seeing the likes of him again. Rock 'n Roll on, Charlie Watts, and thanks for giving us all of that hip shake.