Ginger Baker (RIP)

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Apparently he'd been ill for a while.

Ginger Baker, the iconic drummer best known for his work in Cream, died today, his family announced. He was 80. Baker co-founded Cream in 1966; the band released four studio albums over the three years. Following Cream’s dissolution, Baker went on to release several solo albums, including his most recent, 2014’s Why?. In 1993, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Cream.

On September 25, 2019, Baker’s family revealed that he was “critically ill” in the hospital. In recent years, Baker was beset with health problems. Baker was forced to cancel a tour due to “serious heart problems” in early 2016. Later that year, Baker underwent open heart surgery.

 

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Absolute prick apparently. I remember watching this doc and it not exactly covering him in glory.

 

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[padraig (u.s.)]

not exactly covering him in glory

don't half doubt it, and as a person with a shitty absentee father I empathize with his son in that trailer

and I can't stand Cream, albeit 99.99% cos of Clapton

having said all that, he made a record with Fela in 71, and it's pretty great


almost certainly the first big white/Western rock name to do that, and by a wide margin

and he was a great drummer, probably on par with Bonham + just behind Moon in the greatest rock drummers of the dad canon

 

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I remember marveling at the sleeve of my dad's copy of Disraeli Gears, hard to take your eyes off it. That title really sticks in the memory too, rolls off the tongue.