SEATTLE (AP) – Alan White, longtime drummer of progressive rock pioneer Yes, who also played on projects with John Lennon and George Harrison, is dead. He is 72 years old.
White’s death was announced by his family on his Facebook page. The post says he died Thursday at his Seattle home after a brief illness. A few days ago, Yes announced that White would no longer be joining the band’s next UK tour due to health problems to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the cult album “Close to the Edge”.
White joined Yes in 1972, replacing original drummer Bill Bruford. In a band that has featured frequent lineup changes, White was permanent and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 as a member of Yes.
Although he never played “Close to the Edge,” he performed on all of his subsequent Yes studio albums for nearly five decades, including the band’s latest release, “The Quest,” which was released last year. .
White has stayed with the band on many of its repetitions. A signature act in the English progressive rock scene that became popular in the early 1970s with bands such as Genesis, Pink Floyd and Jethro Tull. Yes is particularly known for its intricate arrangements and the musical mastery of the individual members.
When progressive rock became obsolete in the late 1970s, many bands associated with the genre struggled.
After another lineup change, yes, White, who was still behind the theater team, reinvented himself in the 1980s as a more sophisticated group that attracted younger audiences increasingly combined with heavy metal and visuals. cues from the music video. In 1983, Yes released the big hit album “90125”.
A longtime resident of Seattle County, White was born in 1949 in Pelton, County Durham, England. According to his family, he started playing the piano at the age of 6 and started playing the drums at the age of 12.
White played with the band in England in the 1960s. In 1969 John Lennon asked him to join his Plastic Ono Band. In an interview with the Seattle Times in 2021, White said he thought the Beatles ’famous phone call was a joke.
“The voice said,‘ Hi, I’m John Lennon, ’” White said.
White performed in Toronto in 1969 with the Lennon Ensemble, which also included guitarist Eric Clapton. White also played drums with the other Beatles on George Harrison’s 1970 solo album, All Things Must Pass.
In a statement about his death, his family wrote: “Alan is very much: a certified rock star to fans around the world; The group befriends a few favorites, while the gentleman is friends with everyone who knows him.
Source: Huffpost
