Remembering Charlie Watts of The Rolling Stones

And he had been headliner at Eastleigh's Concorde Club, an international jazz mecca.

Regarded as the greatest drummer of his generation, Charlie died at the age of 80 in a London hospital and tributes have poured in from his rock 'n roll peers including former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney.

As the rock world continued to mourn, the Stoneham Lane club posted a tribute on its website which read: “Very sorry to hear the passing of Charlie Watts. He performed at The Concorde 10 years ago and was a lovely man! Once again the world is a poorer place today."

Jazz was always his first love and away from the frenzy of rocking arenas around the world Charlie was able to indulge in his passion for this genre of music by touring with various jazz outfits including the Charles Watts Quintet.

He was also a member of The A,B,C & D of Boogie Woogie, taking its name from the first initials of the four members of the band, Axel Zwingenberger, Ben Waters, Charlie Watts & Dave Green, on double bass, who has made countless appearances at The Concorde. They quickly established a reputation at the forefront of boogie woogie music.

Charlie Watts of The Rolling Stones on July 1, 2015.

Charlie, known as the quiet man of pop, made his first public appearances in the late fifties with Dave Green who was his next door neighbour and childhood friend.

Former Daily Echo journalist Duncan Eaton recalled when Charlie starred at the Concorde for a Boogie Concert.

He said: “The rock star with a jazz pedigree got a red carpet welcome from the club's jazz faithful and delivered a masterclass on drums.

“ It was an incredible experience to see this rock icon weave magic on the drums in a intimate jazz night setting away from a big stadium.”

Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts, Brian Jones, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards pose for a photograph in the dressing rooms of the Gaumont on September 25, 1965.

He also took his jazz drum sticks into another top Southampton music spot, The Brook in Portswood.

Charlie's parents gave him his first drum kit in 1955 allowing him to play along to his favourite jazz records which included those by Duke Ellington and Charlie Parker.

By the age of 16 he was drumming in jazz groups and a regular on the London club scene which was focused on the parallel world of jazz and blues rock.

It has been reported that he did not much care for rock 'n roll and at first had been reluctant to join Brian Jones and Mick Jagger's new band in 1963.

Sir Paul McCartney paid tribute to Charlie Watts

He was attracted by their bluesy approach and became the lynchpin and beating heart of one of the greatest rock bands in the world.

Charlie had been a Rolling Stone for nearly 60 years and for all those years he and his famous bandmates had wowed Southampton fans with their first gig at the city going back to the early sixties.

At Southampton's Gaumont – now The Mayflower – they appeared four years running during the sixties.

Fans queued for hours and around the block for tickets and when they got into the theatre their deafening roar sometimes drowned those Stones' classic tunes like I Can't Get No Satisfaction, Time is On My Side and Under My Thumb.

The Rolling Stones performing at St Mary's in Southampton on May 29, 2018. Picture by rockstarimages.co.uk

They could hardly have foreseen that more than 55 years later they would be playing up the road at the city's football stadium to about 25,000 people – a relatively intimate show by their record breaking standards.

Baby boomers and the Stone's new generation of fans packed St Mary's Stadium to hear songs which were the soundtrack to many teenagers' lives.

And Charlie Watts will always be fondly remembered for the man who kept the beat to the music which filled arenas and jazz clubs around the globe.