CHARLIE WATTS: KING OF THE AIR DRUMS

A lot of folks have been asking me about Charlie Watts’ air drumming on the Global Citizen One World At Home concert Saturday night, and I am here with the scoop — on good authority from my friend John DeChristopher, the drumming superstar behind the drumming superstars, who actually spoke to Mr. Watts the day after! Accept no imitations!

Contrary to some suspicions, Charlie’s sticks weren’t cuing any sounds like those toy drumsticks that have become popular (or software like Freedrum or Aerodrum that has sensors in the sticks), in fact there was ZERO tech on the drum side of things — that was just pure Charlie Watts joy! That was his armchair! His record collection! The only thing missing was his copy of my book! So you know: They were all playing along to a pre-recorded drum track (of dubious origin) to keep them in sync and beat the inevitable Internet delay (remember they aren’t even on the same continent), and for a change, the Stones did what they do best: K*I*S*S, as in KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID!

I know the performance split crowds, some people chiming in that the old trouts were dreadful (I have no idea what anyone expected — Jumpin’ Jack Flash with full pyro and a cherry picker?) and asking with a smirk what the fuck was Charlie doing, like maybe someone should have told him there were no drums there, or better, he should have brought some out (which would have created all sorts of problems, believe me) — and others who thought it was wonderful. Well, the way I see it, is Charlie brought some much needed lightness to the whole sitch — it wasn’t like it was gonna come from the Lang Lang and Celine Dion Dept. — and if you know Charlie, he was just happy to be there. See Charlie smile! See Charlie twirl his sticks! See the least self-conscious of rock musicians actually having fun! He could have easily bailed, but he’s a warrior poet in the truest sense, a soldier with a sense of humor.

And so, maybe it wasn’t the best version of that song they’ve ever twirled (like that was ever gonna happen), but we have witnessed no less than the coronation of a New King of Air Drums — which is just one more reason Why Charlie Watts Matters! Long Live the King!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgHRxxZTrl8

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