LONDON (AP) – Charlie Watts, the drummer who provided the backbone of the Rolling Stones’ songs for more than half a century, has died, his publicist said. He was 80.

Bernard Doherty said Tuesday that Watts “passed away peacefully in a London hospital earlier today surrounded by his family.”

Doherty said: “Charlie was a cherished husband, father and grandfather and also as a member of The Rolling Stones one of the greatest drummers of his generation.”

Drummer Charlie Watts of the Rolling Stones, at a British concert and sporting a new David Bowie style feather cut. (Photo by Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

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