It’s a miracle that he was still alive.”. He bought a farm in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, but upset the local all-white polo club by importing a team of black Nigerian players. Ginger Baker, the volatile and propulsive drummer for Cream and other bands who wielded blues power and jazz finesse and helped shatter boundaries of time, tempo and style in … Winwood and Grech stayed long enough to appear on the group’s first album, a double LP live recording of a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in January 1970, before departing to join a reunited Traffic. By the end of the decade he had played with Terry Lightfoot’s New Orleans Jazzmen and bands run by the jazz clarinettist Acker Bilk and the jazz guitarist Diz Disley. (If you haven't seen the great doc 'Beware Of Mr Baker' do check it out) pic.twitter.com/2ZaJcbcmK2, "Dad passed away peacefully," his daughter Nettie Baker told CNN in a statement. The Graham Bond Organization ended when Baker fired Bruce at knifepoint. Ginger Baker, the volatile and propulsive British musician who was best known for his time with the power trio Cream, has died at 80, his family says. Jay Bulger’s documentary Beware of Mr Baker premiered at the SXSW festival in 2012, and its raw portrayal of Baker’s extraordinary life won it the grand jury award for best documentary feature. • Peter Edward “Ginger” Baker, drummer, born 19 August 1939; died 6 October 2019, Trailblazing drummer who performed alongside Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce in the 1960s rock supergroup Cream. Born in Lewisham, south-east London, Peter Baker – his red hair earned him the unoriginal nickname of “Ginger” – was the son of Ruby Streatfield, who worked in a tobacconist’s, and Frederick Baker, a brick-layer who was killed while serving with the Royal Corps of Signals in 1943. However, in the late 90s, problems with the tax and immigration authorities forced him to leave the US for good. Clapton agreed to join with Baker to form Cream in 1966 -- if Bruce came too -- and the world's first rock supergroup formed by already established musicians was born. "Fly high Ginger! Ginger Baker, one of the most innovative and influential drummers in rock music, has died at the age of 80. — Ginger Baker (@GingerBDrums) October 6, 2019 The family confirmed Baker's death to NBC News. After he left Nigeria Baker moved to Italy where he ran a wine ranch and then he moved to the US. Baker was always bitter that Bruce and the lyricist Pete Brown (the unofficial “fourth member” of Cream) had claimed most of the songwriting royalties from Cream, and so with Air Force and most of his future projects he figured prominently in the writing credits. His daughter said he suffered "from many long term conditions" notably chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which "he spoke of in many more recent interviews," she said in a statement Sunday. Baker fully immersed himself in the rhythms of African music, and also joined the Lagos Polo Club. Disraeli Gears (1967) was a formidable demonstration of their instrumental and compositional skills, while the live half of Wheels of Fire – a US chart-topper – illustrated the self-indulgence they were capable of in concert. In 2005, Cream reunited for a series of concerts at the Royal Albert Hall and New York’s Madison Square Garden, preserved on the album Royal Albert Hall London May 2-3-5-6 2005. Hits such as I Feel Free (1966), White Room (1968), Sunshine of Your Love (1968), Tales of Brave Ulysses (1967) and Badge (1969) are some of the most atmospheric, rhythmic and distinctive compositions of their era. He was 80. Spandau Ballet songwriter Gary Kemp and film director Edgar Wright also paid tribute to a musician who inspired countless others. Following the death of Ginger Baker at the age of 80, many of the artists he collaborated with or influenced turned to social media to pay tribute to the late Cream drummer. The family of drummer Ginger Baker, the volatile and propulsive British musician who was best known for his time with the power trio Cream, says he died, Sunday Oct. 6, 2019. In 1962, Baker replaced Charlie Watts as drummer in the blues band Alexis Corner's Blues Incorporated when the latter left to join the Rolling Stones. According to Neil Peart, the drummer from the Canadian band Rush: “Every rock drummer since has been influenced in some way by Ginger, even if they don’t know it.”. Cream was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993. He brought Winwood and Grech into a new jazz-rock fusion project, Ginger Baker’s Air Force. Ginger Baker's offical web-site; legendary jazz percussionist and sometime hellraiser, he won critical acclaim in the early 60's touring the UK with The Graham Bond Organisation. During his spell in Lagos, Baker featured on Kuti’s 1971 album Live!, while Kuti appeared on Baker’s Stratavarious (1972). Gary Kemp from Spandau Ballet was another musician offering tributes following the death of Ginger Baker Cream split up at the end of the year, departing with … In 2009 Baker published Hellraiser: The Autobiography of the World’s Greatest Drummer, co-written with his daughter Nettie. Baker, who has died aged 80, pioneered the image of the rock drummer as a flamboyant virtuoso, engaged in a dynamic interaction with the musicians around him. Ginger Baker, who helped redefine the role of the drums in rock and became a superstar in the process, died on Sunday in a hospital in southeastern England. Baker then joined the Graham Bond Organization, a blues band that quickly became popular in the UK with Bond and bassist Jack Bruce with whom Baker had a legendary tumultuous relationship. Baker began playing drums at about 15 years of age. The band was undeniably adept, however, at creating unusual but commercially potent singles. It is with sadness as we learnt that popular talented drummer and bandleader, Ginger Baker was pronounced dead at age 80 October 6, 2019, leaving family and friends in total devastation. Cream’s debut single, Wrapping Paper (1966), was uncharacteristic light jazzy pop, but their debut album, Fresh Cream, released that December, found the group already hitting its distinctive stride in powerful tracks such as NSU, I’m So Glad and Spoonful. Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and Eric Clapton of Cream during their farewell performance at the Royal Albert Hall, London, 1968. The same year, an impoverished Baker had to sell up and leave South Africa. There he hooked up with the father of Afro-beat, the legendary Fela Kuti, and for a while the two men were inseparable. A second album, Ginger Baker’s Air Force 2, was released in December 1970, but it failed to recapture the spontaneous magic of its predecessor, and both album and band slid into obscurity. You were a one off and and a true legend...We were honoured to work with you...RIP x, RIP the great Ginger Baker. He continued to play with some of the great names of rock 'n' roll including Public Image Ltd, the band of former Sex Pistols front man Johnny Rotten. The young Ginger was aimless and unmotivated until he discovered a passion for competitive cycling. Without Winwood or Clapton, however, Baker could not pull the crowds. The reason so many drummers wanted a double-bass drum. Psychedelic rock band Hawkwind, which worked with Baker, tweeted their condolences on his death Sunday. Last modified on Sun 6 Oct 2019 16.24 EDT. #GingerBaker pic.twitter.com/FXXWsxmsqo, RIP the music giant that was Ginger Baker. Baker was bitterly disappointed to find that Clapton was jumping ship (he departed to form Derek and the Dominoes) and decided he would form a band of his own. So very, very sorry to hear this.....Fly high Ginger! An unfortunate side-effect of his stints in London jazz clubs was a heroin habit that would dog him into the 80s. His next venture was Ginger Baker's Airforce -- band that fused rock with jazz and African influences. Ginger Baker, the volatile and propulsive British musician who was best known for his time with the rock supergroup Cream, has died at 80, his family says. Updated 1822 GMT (0222 HKT) October 6, 2019. Baker was also nominated for a Grammy in 1968 as Best New Artist. In 1974 Baker formed the hard rock band Baker Gurvitz Army back in London, with brothers Adrian and Paul Gurvitz (on the guitar and the bass respectively), but after three albums – the last two of which failed to chart – in two years, the group fizzled out. "He saw something about me that I never thought before, he would say it is about time," said Clapton in the acclaimed 2012 documentary about Baker "Beware of Mr Baker. “The farm was a disaster,” Laswell commented of Baker’s Tuscan retreat. Ginger Baker was born in Lewisham, South London, on Aug. 19, 1939. A statement on his Twitter page announced the news today, weeks after the drummer was confirmed to … The beat behind too many favourite songs from Cream, The Graham Bond Organisation and Alexis Corner's Blues Incorporated. Ginger Baker Cause Of Death: While Baker was a jazz drummer in London clubs, Ginger Baker begun using the drug. Despite being a short and scrappy collection of live and studio tracks, it gave them a UK No 1, and their four albums sold 15m copies between them. Baker decided to form his own band and invited guitarist Eric Clapton to join him. Ginger Baker, the drummer and founder of Cream, has died.He was 80 years old. He managed to fit in stints with the Ginger Baker Trio, with the guitarist Bill Frisell and the bassist Charlie Haden, and even briefly reunited with Bruce alongside the guitarist Gary Moore in BBM. Before the arrival of Ginger Baker, the drummer used to be the quiet one sitting at the back of the stage whose job was to keep time. Ginger Baker, one of the world's most iconic drummers, has passed away at the age of 80. It reached No 6 on the UK album chart. Baker and Clapton continued with the group Blind Faith but only for a year. Finding himself penniless and reduced to selling drugs, Baker left his wife, Liz (nee Finch), whom he had married in 1959, and their three children, and headed for Tuscany with his girlfriend, Sarah, to try to survive as an olive farmer (the pair married in 1983, but divorced the following year). Ginger Baker, esteemed as one of the most virtuosic drummers ever to sit behind a kit through his innovative work with English rock bands Cream and … Baker then approached Clapton, the rising star of British blues, with a view to forming a new group. He returned to London and formed a new quartet, Jazz Confusion, which in 2014 released Why? Ginger Baker, drummer with legendary rock band Cream, dies aged 80. The group split up in November 1968, at least partly because of the violent antagonism between Baker and Bruce, and a fourth album, Goodbye, appeared in February 1969. Rock legend Ginger Baker died Sunday, October 6th at the age of 80. He was 80. "He was in no pain and had recently been able to see and speak to his children, close family and special friends.". Ginger Baker, the legendary drummer known for forming the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame-inducted ‘60s supergroup Cream with Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce, died Sunday at … Cream’s stage shows often featured improvisations lasting 20 minutes or more, and the group’s 1968 double album Wheels of Fire included a 16-minute version of the Willie Dixon song Spoonful, and 16 more minutes of Baker’s drumming showcase Toad. Sad to hear that he died but the memories never will. He learnt about African rhythms from his hero, another British jazz drummer Phil Seaman -- who also introduced Baker to heroin, a habit that scourged much of his life. • Peter Edward “Ginger” Baker, drummer, born 19 August 1939; died 6 October 2019 He began playing music part-time while working as a signwriter and then with an advertising agency, but after earning £12 for a week’s work with the Storyville Jazz Band he decided to turn professional. His father was killed in World War II when Baker was only four years old. Baker often claimed he never practised, but relied on spontaneous inspiration when playing with other musicians. Steve Winwood remembered his former Blind Faith band mate Ginger Baker Sunday, hours after the Cream drummer’s death at the age of 80. Baker spent his last years on a ranch in South Africa with his polo horses. Ginger Baker, the volatile and propulsive British musician who was best known for his time with the power trio Cream, died Sunday at age 80, his family said. From left, Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and Eric Clapton at London Airport on their way to Los Angeles in 1967. However, the opinionated, combative Baker found himself frustrated by both his bandmates and the music’s stylistic limitations. Many tributes have been shared since the death of legendary drummer Ginger Baker over the weekend, and now Eric Clapton has broken his silence since the passing of his Cream and Blind Faith bandmate.. Clapton shared the photo below via his Facebook page along with the simple caption of, “Ginger… You were a one off and and a true legend...We were honoured to work with you...RIP," the band's Twitter page said. The 11-piece lineup included drummers Seamen and Remi Kabaka, Bond on Hammond organ and saxophone, Denny Laine on guitar and a trio of brass players. The band released two further albums during its lifetime. His daughter Nettie told CNN that her father had "passed away peacefully" Again forced to move, he resettled in Tulbagh in the Western Cape. He was rescued by the record producer Bill Laswell, who tracked Baker down and took him to New York to play on Album (1986), the fifth studio album by John Lydon’s Public Image Ltd (PiL). In 2010, he was married for the fourth time, to a Zimbabwean woman, Kudzai Machokoto. Also that year he recorded Sunrise on the Sufferbus with the hard rock band Masters of Reality, an album that produced the hit single She Got Me (When She Got Her Dress On). He was not abnormally fast or flashy, but he was innovative, using twin bass drums and displaying a flair for African-influenced beats, to which he had been introduced by the British jazz drummer Phil Seamen. Baker, who had been suffering from degenerative osteoarthritis and a smoking-related pulmonary condition, is survived by Kudzai, his children, Nettie, Leda and Kofi, and a stepdaughter, Lisa. This ended abruptly after his bike was wrecked in a collision with a London taxi. Ginger Baker, Cream drummer, dead at 80 00:38. London (CNN) Ginger Baker, notorious hellraiser and celebrated drummer in the supergroup Cream, has died at the age of 80 at a hospital in the United Kingdom. Ginger Baker pictured at home with his children in December 1974. “I thought, good God, at last there’s something I can do,” he recalled. Ginger Baker performing with Baker Gurvitz Army, 1975. at least partly because of the violent antagonism between Baker and Bruce. Ginger Baker had been battling health issues in the final years of his life (Picture: Getty Images) Legendary Cream drummer Ginger Baker has passed away … The story goes when late bassist Jack Bruce was a few hours from death in 2014, he phoned up close friends to say goodbye. “There was no electricity, and he had this tiny bed he would sleep in with his dogs. Ginger Baker, the volatile and propulsive drummer for Cream and other bands who wielded blues power and … Despite the huge success of Blind Faith’s eponymous 1969 album, which topped both the US and British charts and sold half a million copies within a month of release, the band disintegrated that October, after completing a US tour. When Ginger Baker died Sunday at the age of 80 after years of ill health, the rock era lost its first real superstar drummer.. Updated at 10:42 a.m. Baker weaned himself off the drug in that decade and, following, his work with PiL, continued to collaborate with Laswell, with his own album Horses & Trees (1986), an eclectic set featuring the violinist L Shankar and percussionist Aïyb Dieng, and Middle Passage (1990), a mix of Afrobeat, rock and jazz-fusion. Baker found fame with Cream, the 1960s rock trio also featuring Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce, whose two-year career inspired a new wave of blues-based rock bands. In 1993 he moved to a ranch in Colorado to raise polo ponies. Again, that only lasted just a year. Ginger Baker of Canterbury, United Kingdom, passed away causing so much heartbreak and agony to the beloved family, all further details concerning this news will be updated upon confirmation. ", "Ginger was pretty dismissive and anti-social, seriously anti-social but he had the gift, he had the spark, the flair, the panache ... he had it in spades.". Bullied at school, he began playing drums at the age of 16, and, and was earning a living as a professional musician a year later, becoming a fixture of London's 1950s Soho jazz scene. ET There are lots of firsts and superlatives in the career of Ginger Baker, the … Cream first reunited in 1993 at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in. In 1962 Baker, then a jobbing drummer in London’s jazz clubs, had been recommended by Charlie Watts, the future Rolling Stones drummer, for a job with Alexis Korner’s Blues Incorporated, where he first encountered Bruce. “A very sad loss, and my … “Ginger Baker, great drummer, wild and lovely guy. Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney recorded his classic 1973 album "Band On The Run" there with his band Wings. Baker said he suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease from years of heavy smoking, and chronic back pain from degenerative osteoarthritis in 2013. Rock musicians mourn the loss of iconic Cream drummer Ginger Baker. However, they also developed a hostility that eventually led to Baker firing Bruce from the band. In 1973 Paul McCartney and Wings recorded Picasso’s Last Words (Drink to Me), from Band on the Run, at ARC, on which Baker shook a tin of gravel as percussion, though he was disgruntled that McCartney recorded the rest of his album at EMI’s Lagos studios. The Cream drummer died at a hospital in the United Kingdom. He retained his enthusiasm for horses and polo for the rest of his life. Baker also played the first ever long on-stage drum rock solos. Legendary British drummer Ginger Baker died Sunday at the age of 80. In the early 1960s he took lessons from Phil Seamen, one of the leading British jazz drummers of the post-war era. But jazz was always Baker's first love, and during this period he also played alongside some of jazz's greatest drummers such as Max Roach and Elvin Jones before deciding to put his drumsticks where his heart was and drove his Range Rover across the Sahara Desert to Nigeria. The music was an exuberant and improvisational blend of blues, R&B, jazz and African music. Just a month prior, his official Twitter shared news that Baker checked in to a hospital due to an unknown illness. Late last month the musician's family announced he was critically ill at a hospital. After just two years Cream split, due largely to the tension between Bruce and Baker, having trail-blazed musical techniques that led many to call it the first ever heavy metal band. Baker set up Nigeria's first 16-track studio and stayed there for several years. Baker also learnt to play polo in Nigeria, a passion that remained with him forever, but led to a fall-out with Kuti as many of the members of the Lagos Polo Club were Kuti's enemies. Ginger Baker, performing with Cream in 1966. In 1966, he teamed up with Bond bassist Jack Bruce and up and coming guitarist Eric Clapton, formed Cream and shot to fame with such classic songs as Sunshine of Your Love and White Room. Clapton was enthusiastic, but insisted on bringing in Bruce on bass. Baker brought a freewheeling energy to his drumming, prompting comparisons to the jazz drummer Art Blakey. Baker, also known as 'the most terrifying man in music', founded Cream along with Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce in 1966. 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