How did Jim Gordon die? Eric Clapton drummer and 'Layla' songwriter was convicted of murdering his mom after suffering from schizophrenia
VACAVILLE, CALIFORNIA: Jim Gordon, the Grammy-winning rock drummer for Eric Clapton and George Harrison, died at the age of 77. In 1983, while suffering from schizophrenia, he was found guilty of murdering his mother. Gordon played drums for Eric Clapton in 'Derek and the Dominos'.
Gordon served as one of the lead drummers on Harrison's first solo album, 'All Things Must Pass', after the split of The Beatles. He collaborated with many other legendary performers, including Nancy Sinatra, and is listed as a co-writer for Clapton's 1970 famous song 'Layla'. His publicist confirmed on Wednesday to the New York Post that Gordon died on Monday at the California Medical Facility.
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Gordon's career trajectory
One of the more well-known early 1970s rock drummers, Gordon, was also one of the darkest cases in the genre. James Beck Gordon, born in California in 1945, started playing the drums as a youngster. By the end of the 1960s, he was one of Los Angeles' top drummers, having performed with artists such as the Everly Brothers, Joe Cocker, Andy Williams, and Glen Campbell, as per Drummerworld.
Gordon backed many significant rock records of the 1960s and '70s, including Carly Simon's 'You're So Vain', Nancy Sinatra's 'These Boots Are Made For Walkin', and most famous, 'Layla', as a member of Eric Clapton's band 'Derek and the Dominos'. Gordon was regarded by his contemporaries as the "only living metronome" and contributed a subtle yet distinctive groove to hundreds of tunes that went on to become radio hits.
Per IMDb, at the age of 17, he joined the 'Everly Brothers' on tour in England, giving him his big break in the industry. During the following 20 years, Gordon played professionally, touring and recording with some of the best rock musicians, such as Frank Zappa, Joe Cocker, Harry Nilsson, and George Harrison. 'Derek and the Dominos' was founded in 1970 by Clapton, bassist Carl Radle, and keyboardist Bobby Whitlock courtesy of Gordon's work on Harrison's 'All Things Must Pass'.
Although brief, that band produced a massive hit with 'Layla', which Gordon co-wrote. He played the song's iconic melancholy piano refrain instead, which was his greatest musical accomplishment despite not including the drums. Following the success of Clapton's 'Unplugged', chosen Album of the Year, Gordon earned a Grammy in 1993 for Best Rock Song for 'Layla' while he was incarcerated.
How did Jim Gordon die?
Gordon died on Monday in the government-run California Medical Facility in Vacaville, where he was receiving a prison term for the murder of his mother. Bob Merlis, his publicist, confirmed his death and stated that Gordon died naturally "after a long incarceration and lifelong battle with mental illness," reports Los Angeles Times.
Gordon was given a schizophrenia diagnosis at the height of his career. His mental instability and substance abuse posed a risk to his position in the industry. Gordon reportedly assaulted Rita Coolidge, a singer-songwriter, in a hotel in 1970 when he started to exhibit symptoms of mental illness. While Coolidge called Gordon "an amazing guy, just really so charismatic," he showed minimal signs of disturbed behavior to his fellow musicians. According to court documents, Gordon visited the doctor at least 15 times starting in 1978.
He fatally stabbed and then tortured his mother, Osa Gordon, 72, in June 1983, alleging that voices had instructed him to do so. In 1984, he received a 16-year to life term in prison after being given an official diagnosis of schizophrenia, where he died. He repeatedly applied for parole, but it was rejected.