Influential and iconic drummer, Ginger Baker has died at the age of 80. The announcement was made via a post to Facebook on Sunday morning October 6, saying that the veteran musician “passed away peacefully.”
Ginger Baker’s family had previously made it public that the veteran drummer was critically ill.
One of the founding members of ‘Cream’, the drummer left England for Nigeria in 1970, following the dissolution of the band, and set up the Batakota recording studio in Lagos, collaborating with the Afro beat legend Fela Kuti and his band Africa 70 on 1971’s Live. A body of work chronicled in the 1971 documentary Ginger Baker in Africa.
Baker later released his debut solo album in 1972, ‘Ginger Baker at His Best’, and went on to enjoy a long and fulfilling career, playing with Blind Faith, Hawkwind, and contributing to Public Image Ltd’s 1986 release, Album.
Ginger Baker’s astounding career was characterized by a notorious reputation for being temperamental, volatile and sometimes abrasive. This flaws were captured in the 2012 documentary ‘Beware of Mr. Baker.’
Source: Fact Magazine
Image via QED.ng
