Charlie Charlie of the Rolling Stones

died and how does the Rolling Stones go

on and all that kind of stuff.

But I thought my Jesus like a you lost

your buddy.

Yeah. Well, it’s very difficult to lose

friends, you know. Um as you get older,

you lose a lot of friends. And not only

friends, you

It was one of the most heartbreaking

moments in rock history and one of the

most puzzling.

When Charlie Watts, the heartbeat of the

Rolling Stones, passed away in 2021,

fans expected his bandmates to be front

and center at his funeral. Instead, they

were nowhere to be seen. No MC Jagger,

no Keith Richards, no Ronnie Wood. The

truth behind their absence is far more

complicated than anyone imagined. Don’t

be shocked to learn this reason. The

story begins in the mid 1980s when

Charlie Watts faces a period of deep

personal turbulence. For most of his

career, Watts had been known as the

quiet counterpoint to the band’s wild

excesses.

While Mick Jagger and Keith Richards

dominate headlines for their rock and

roll lifestyles, Watts maintains a

reputation for moderation. But around

1983, that image began to unravel. His

previously moderate use of alcohol and

drugs escalated into something far more

destructive. Watts would later admit

that his substance use was not about

chasing a rockstar high, but rather an

unhealthy way of coping with mounting

family issues.

They were my way of dealing with family

problems, he reflected.

I think it was a midlife crisis. All I

know is that I became totally another

person around 1983 and came out of it

about 1986. I nearly lost my wife and

everything over my behavior.

It was a startling confession from a man

often described as the Stone’s moral

compass. His wife Shirley had stood by

him since before the band’s rise to

fame, and Watts later acknowledged that

her loyalty was tested to the limit

during those chaotic years. Eventually,

he recognized that if he didn’t change

course, he risked losing not just his

marriage, but his sense of self. By the

latter half of the decade, he had

managed to regain control over his life.

In the late 1980s, Watts made another

major lifestyle decision. He quit

smoking. For a man who had spent decades

performing under the relentless demands

of touring and recording, it was a

significant step toward better health.

However, even this discipline couldn’t

shield him from future medical

challenges.

In June 2004, Watts was diagnosed with

throat cancer. The news was a shock not

only to fans, but also to the band. He

underwent an intensive course of

radiotherapy, enduring months of

treatment before the cancer finally went

into remission. Recalling that time,

Watts said, “I went into hospital and 8

months later, Mick said, we’re going to

do a record, but we’ll only do it when

you’re ready.”

True to their word, the Stones waited.

While Jagger, Richards, and Ronnie Wood

kept themselves busy writing songs, they

didn’t push Watts to return until he

felt strong enough. When he was ready,

he joined them in the studio to work on

what would become a bigger bang, 2005.

Remarkably, just after his recovery, he

embarked on a grueling 2-year world tour

to promote the album. Reflecting on the

experience, Watts joked, “It seems that

whenever we stop, I get ill, so maybe I

should carry on.” For the next decade

and a half, Watts continued to tour and

record with the Stones, seemingly

defying the toll that age and illness

had taken. But by 2021, his health again

became a matter of concern.

On 5 August of that year, the band

announced that Watts would sit out the

resumption of their No Filter US tour.

He had recently undergone a medical

procedure, widely reported as heart

surgery, and in consultation with his

doctors, decided that he needed time to

recover fully before returning to the

road.

The decision marked a rare absence in

Watts’s nearly six decades with the

Stones. To keep the tour going, the band

called upon Steve Jordan, a longtime

friend and collaborator, to temporarily

take over drumming duties. Jordan had

previously worked with Richards in the

expensive Winos and was considered one

of the few drummers capable of filling

Watts’s shoes, even if only for a short

time.

On 24th August 2021, Charlie Watts

passed away at the Royal Brmpton

Hospital in Chelsea, London at the age

of 80. His death was the result of

squamas cell carcinoma, a type of

cancer. In keeping with the dignity and

privacy that had defined his life, Watts

spent his final hours surrounded by his

family. There were no public fanfares,

just the quiet presence of loved ones as

the man who had been the Rolling Stones

heartbeat for nearly six decades slipped

away. The news sent shock waves through

the music world. His surviving Rolling

Stones bandmates, Mick Jagger, Keith

Richards, Ronnie Wood, and even former

basist Bill Wyman all paid heartfelt

public tributes. Jagger shared a joyful

image of Watts laughing, while Richards

posted a simple yet poignant photograph

of a drum kit with a closed sign hanging

from it. Wood spoke of their

brotherhood, and Wyman, who had left the

Stones decades earlier, remembered Watts

as a beautiful man, as a Beyond the

Stones, the outpouring was immense. Rock

legends and musical peers expressed

their grief and admiration. Paul

McCartney and Ringo Star of the Beatles,

Elton John, Brian Wilson, Pete Townend,

Nick Mason, Roger Daltry, the members of

YouTube, Brian Adams, Liam Gallagher,

Brian May, Roger Taylor, Kenny Jones,

Chad Smith, Quest, Love, Peter Chris,

and Max Weinberg were among the many who

saluted Watts’s artistry and character.

To them, he wasn’t just a great drummer.

He was a gentleman of rock, a rare

combination of skill, humility, and

grace. The Rolling Stones official

website became a digital shrine. For 10

days, every page was replaced with a

single black and white image of Watts.

No words, no navigation, just his

presence. It was a powerful silent

tribute.

2 days after his death, musicians Jason

Isbel and Brittney Spencer dedicated a

live cover of Gimme Shelter to Watts, a

reminder of how far his influence

reached beyond the Stone’s own catalog.

Then on 27 August, the band’s social

media shared a moving video tribute, a

montage of photographs and rare film

clips set to the Stone’s 1974 track, If

You Can’t Rock Me. A song that opens

with the lines, “The band’s on stage.”

And it’s one of those nights. The

drummer thinks that he is dynamite. Oh,

yeah.

For longtime fans, the choice was

perfect. It captured both his quiet

dynamism and the knowing humor behind

his stage presence. Watts’s funeral was

a small private affair. He was laid to

rest in Devon, far from the world’s

cameras in keeping with his lifelong

aversion to spectacle. The celebrations

of his life, however, continued.

In October 2022, an authorized biography

of Watts was released, offering a deeper

glimpse into the man behind the drums.

On the first anniversary of his passing,

MC Jagger posted what Rolling Stone

magazine called a moving tribute on

social media, pairing archival images of

Watts with Jagger’s own voice over and

the Stone’s song Till the Next Goodbye.

On the 2nd June 2023, which would have

been Watts’s 82nd birthday, his estate

launched official Facebook and Instagram

accounts. In a statement, the family

explained that Charlie was too modest to

embrace social media in his lifetime,

but hoped fans would use the platforms

to celebrate his huge musical

contribution to the world of rock and

roll, blues, and jazz, and the wonderful

man known and loved to millions of fans

around the world.

Even in death, Watts’s legacy extended

beyond music. In September 2023, it was

announced that his private book

collection would go to auction. Among

the treasures was a signed first edition

of The Great Gatsby, expected to fetch

between 200,000 and 300,000,

a testament to his refined personal

tastes. Then in January 2024, another

unique chapter in his legacy unfolded

when the Bio Museum in France revealed

that it had acquired a life-siz replica

of the bio tapestry from Watts’s estate,

purchased for 16,000 palers. It was a

reminder that Watts, ever the quiet

connoisseur, had collected not only

music but also history and art. And here

comes the most anticipated part, the

real reason why the Rolling Stones

didn’t attend Charlie Watts’s funeral.

It is known that at the time of his

death, the Rolling Stones were already

in Boston, fully submerged in the final

rehearsals for their long delayed no

filter US tour.

This was not a casual run through. It

was a massive operation involving stage

crews, lighting planning teams, sound

engineers, and months of precise

Every element from pyrochnics to video

projections was locked into a tightly

coordinated schedule. Canceling or even

pausing at that point would have created

a ripple effect of delays and financial

losses impacting hundreds of people who

depended on the tour for their

livelihoods.

The band also felt a deep responsibility

to their fans. The tour had already been

postponed once due to the CO 19 pandemic

and ticket holders had waited patiently

for over a year. Another delay would

have been a major blow not only to the

Stone’s reputation but also to the

morale of their audience, many of whom

had been holding on to their tickets

since 2019.

International travel restrictions in

August 2021 made the situation even more

complicated. Flights from the United

States to the UK came with strict

quarantine requirements. Anyone arriving

in Britain faced mandatory isolation and

upon returning to the US, there were

similar rules in place. For Mc Jagger,

Keith Richards or Ronnie Wood to fly to

Devon for Watts’s funeral would have

meant spending weeks in quarantine. Time

they simply didn’t have. The risk was

that the entire tour could have been

cancelled before it even began.

Health and safety were also at the

forefront of their decision. The Delta

variant of CO 19 was spreading rapidly

at the time and any unnecessary

exposure, particularly in crowded travel

settings or gatherings, could have

sidelined key members of the crew or

band. The Stones had worked diligently

to maintain a protective bubble around

their touring party. Breaking that

bubble, even for something as important

as a funeral, risked derailing the tour

and endangering the well-being of

everyone involved.

Beyond the logistics, there was another

factor, one rooted in who Charlie Watts

was as a person. He had always valued

privacy and disliked unnecessary

spectacle. His funeral in Devon

reflected those values. Small, low-key,

and attended only by close family and a

few close friends. Those who knew him

best said it was exactly the kind of

farewell he would have wanted. Former

tour manager Sam Cutler put it plainly.

Charlie would have hated a fuss. The

Stones respected that sentiment,

understanding that turning his funeral

into a high-profile event would have

gone against his nature.

Still, the band found meaningful ways to

honor him. Every night of the no filter

tour, they opened with a moving tribute

video of Charlie behind his drum kit.

The screen filled with archival footage

capturing his elegance and precision.

They altered their legendary tongue and

lips logo to black and white, a subtle

but powerful symbol of mourning.

Performances throughout the tour were

dedicated to his memory, with MC Jagger

often addressing the crowd to speak

about his friend. The tributes extended

beyond the stage. Keith Richards posted

an image of Charlie’s drum kit with a

simple closed sign hanging over it. A

stark wordless message that spoke

volumes. Mc Jagger shared a photo of

Watts smiling warmly, a reminder to fans

of the quiet joy he brought to the band.

These gestures were not grand or overly

theatrical. Instead, they were in

keeping with Charlie’s understated

style, ensuring that the farewell

resonated with millions of fans around

the world. Now, let’s look back at the

time Charlie Watts got involved with his

band. In mid 1962, a young Charlie

Watts, already a respected drummer in

the London jazz scene, crossed paths

with a group of aspiring rhythm and

blues musicians who would soon change

the course of rock history. At the time,

Watts was a familiar face in the city’s

club circuit, particularly in venues

that catered to the growing British

fascination with American blues. It was

in this world that he first met Brian

Jones, Ian Stu Stewart, MC Jagger, and

Keith Richards, all of whom were also

regulars in London’s rhythm and blues

clubs. While there was instant musical

chemistry, Watts didn’t join their

fledgling band right away. In early

1960s London, he was already earning a

steady wage from his gigs, a luxury for

a working musician, and the Stones

simply couldn’t match it. The group was

still playing small venues, often for

little or no pay, and convincing Watts

to give up financial security for an

unproven band was no easy task. It

wasn’t until January 1963 that Watts

finally agreed to come aboard as the

Rolling Stones drummer. His decision

marked a turning point for the group,

solidifying a lineup that would go on to

dominate the music world for decades.

His first public performance as a

permanent member came on 2nd February

1963 at the Eling Jazz Club, a venue

that had become a hub for the British

R&B movement.

From that moment forward, Watts’s

steady, unflashy drumming became the

backbone of the Stones sound. Over the

years, MC Jagger would affectionately

introduce him on stage as the Wembley

Whammer, a playful nod to both his

hometown roots and his powerful, precise

style behind the kit. But Watts was far

more than just the band’s drummer. He

was also a visual artist who lent his

creative talents to the Stone’s image

and stage craft.

In the early days, Watts contributed

graphic art and comic strips to the

group’s releases, including The Sleeve

for Between the Buttons. He also

masterminded one of the band’s most

memorable publicity stunts, the 1975

tour announcement press conference in

New York City. Instead of facing

reporters in a traditional setting, the

Stones shocked everyone by rolling down

Fifth Avenue on the back of a flatbed

truck playing Brown sugar in the middle

of Manhattan traffic.

The spectacle was Watts’s idea, inspired

by the way New Orleans jazz bands would

promote their shows with street

performances.

His artistic influence extended to the

design of the Stone’s elaborate touring

stages. Working closely with Jagger,

Watts helped conceptualize and execute

some of the most ambitious stage designs

in rock history. His contributions began

with the lotus shaped stage for the 1975

tour of the Americas and continued

through later productions such as the

steel wheels urban jungle tour, the

bridges to Babylon tour, the licks tour,

and the a bigger bang tour. Each was a

massive technical feat, blending music

with theater in ways that would inspire

future generations of live performers.

Watts’s professional discipline was

legendary. Over his decades with the

Stones, he never missed a single

concert, a record that spoke volumes

about his reliability and dedication.

His final live performance with the band

took place on 30 August 2019 at Hard

Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida, closing

out the No Filter Tour before the CO 19

pandemic brought live music to a halt.

Alongside Jagger and Richards, Watts was

one of the only members to appear on

every album in the Rolling Stones

discoraphy, further cementing his status

as an irreplaceable part of the band’s

core identity. His drumming wasn’t

flashy, but it was precise, economical,

and perfectly in service to the song, a

quality that many credited as the secret

to the Stone’s enduring groove. Even

after his death in 2021, his presence

was still felt in the Stone’s music. In

October 2023, the band released Hackne

Diamonds, their first studio album in 18

years. Among its tracks were two songs,

Mess It Up and Live by the Sword,

featuring Watts on drums. These

recordings, completed before his

passing, served as a bittersweet

reminder of his timeless touch and his

unshakable role in shaping the sound of

one of the greatest rock bands of all

time.

Are you curious about Charlie Watts’s

personal life?

On 14th October 1964, Charlie Watts

married Shirley Anne Shepard, 11th

September 1938, 16th December 2022. The

woman who had captured his heart even

before he joined the Rolling Stones.

Their courtship predated the band’s

meteoric rise and surely would remain a

steady presence throughout the whirlwind

years of rock and roll fame that

followed.

Unlike many of his contemporaries whose

relationships were often tumultuous and

heavily publicized, Watts maintained a

private, deeply committed marriage. He

often credited Shirley with keeping him

grounded, providing a stable anchor amid

the chaos of touring, recording, and the

rock lifestyle.

The couple had one daughter, Saraphina,

born in March 1968, who later gave birth

to Watts’s only grandchild, a girl named

Charlotte.

Watts cherished his family and valued

the privacy of his domestic life above

all else. While the media and fans often

focused on the glamour and excesses of

his bandmates, Watts consistently kept

his personal life out of the spotlight,

reinforcing his image as a reserved,

introspective figure who preferred the

quiet pleasures of home over celebrity

attention.

The marriage endured for 57 years, a

remarkable feat in any era, and

particularly notable given the pressures

of fame. Watts and Shirley’s enduring

partnership was rooted in mutual

respect, shared interests, and a deep

understanding of each other’s

personalities.

Even during the height of the Stone’s

success, the couple managed to keep

their home life separate from the

demands of the band, creating a

sanctuary where Charlie could unwind and

reflect.

Their home, Hollden House, was located

near Dalton, a rural village in North

Devon. The property was more than just a

residence. It was a reflection of

Watts’s love for nature and animals.

Here he ran an Arabian horse stud farm,

a passion that offered him both solace

and creative satisfaction. The stud farm

allowed him to immerse himself in the

care and breeding of horses, an interest

far removed from the frenetic world of

rock music. Friends and colleagues often

remarked that this part of his life

revealed a side of Watts rarely seen on

stage. meticulous, patient, and quietly

joyful. In addition to his rural

pursuits, Watts was financially astute

and had a stake in the Rolling Stones

corporate entities, ensuring that his

involvement extended beyond performance

into the business side of the band.

Despite the Stone’s collective love of

luxury automobiles, Watts himself never

obtained a driving license. He preferred

to admire cars as works of art,

appreciating their design and

craftsmanship rather than their utility.

To him, a car was an object of beauty,

not a means of transport, a reflection

of his unique and somewhat private

approach to life. Private approach.

Watts also nurtured a lifelong interest

in cricket, a sport deeply rooted in

British culture. He collected

memorabilia with the same meticulous

attention he applied to drumming and

stage design. Treating cricket not

merely as a hobby but as a passion that

connected him to a quieter, more

traditional world. His collection

included signed bats, vintage

photographs, and other artifacts

underscoring his respect for the history

and artistry of the game.

Through all these pursuits, family,

horses, cricket, and art, Watts

cultivated a life that balanced the

extremes of fame with the serenity of

personal fulfillment.

While the Rolling Stones played to

stadiums filled with tens of thousands

of fans, Watts retreated to his North

Devon estate, surrounded by the rhythms

of nature and the quiet loyalty of

family. This duality defined his

existence. The public persona of a

legendary rock drummer and the private

man devoted to home heritage and simple

enduring pleasures.

What do you think about Charlie Watts?

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