Although they posted tributes earlier in the week on their respective social media accounts, the surviving members of the Rolling Stones honored drummer Charlie Watts in a video uploaded to their Twitter account. Watts died earlier this week at the age of 80.
The video plays “If You Can’t Rock Me” throughout the montage, including photos and videos of Charlie. An older Mick Jagger at a press conference pokes at Charlie: “If you have any questions, Charlie will answer,” while Ron Wood pipes in, “Here he is, the wonderful illusionist!” Charlie just laughs along with the crowd.
Check out the tribute below.
An outpouring of support has been shown for Watts and the Stones by many artists throughout the week. The band recognized Watts as the backbone of the group, and drummers deem him an innovator in the rock ‘n’ roll drum sound.
Matt Cameron wrote that Watts “gave the Stones an authentic swing that partly came from his love of African American Be-Bop masters like Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk. I always admired the jazz sensibilities in Charlie’s playing, he refused to be defined as merely a rock drummer, he was so much more than that.”
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards posted powerful photos for Charlie on Instagram with no captions. Ronnie Wood wrote on his: “I love you my fellow Gemini~ I will dearly miss you ~you are the best🙏❤️☀️”
That he was.
