Charles Robert Watts (2 June 1941 – 24 August 2021) was an English drummer who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Rolling Stones. He was one of the band's longest serving members, joining in January 1963 and remaining a member until his death in 2021.
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Originally trained as a graphic artist, he started playing drums in London's rhythm and blues clubs, where he met Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, and Keith Richards. In January 1963, he joined their fledgling group, the Rolling Stones, as drummer, while doubling as designer of their record sleeves and tour stages. Watts, along with Jagger and Richards, are the only band members to have been featured on all of their studio albums. He cited jazz as a major influence on his drumming style. He toured with his own group, the Charlie Watts Quintet, and appeared in London at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club with the Charlie Watts Tentet.
In 2006, Watts was elected into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame; in the same year, Vanity Fair elected him into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame. In the estimation of music critic Robert Christgau, Watts was "rock's greatest drummer". In 2016, he was ranked 12th on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Drummers of All Time" list.[1]
