Iconic drummer and Fela Kuti collaborator Ginger Baker dies at 80

Baker was the co-founder of the 1960s rock band Cream and his work behind the drum kit in the 1960s and 1970s gave him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer". He will be remembered for pioneering a drumming style that blended jazz with African rhythms. Ginger is a nickname he earned because of the colour of his hair.

He was born Peter Edward Baker in London on 19 August 1939, a few weeks before the start of World War II. He began playing drums at 15 and in the early 1960s was already a feature at local jazz shows. His eccentricity and dexterity made him the talk of the town, and in 1966 he formed Cream with guitarist Eric Clapton and the late bassist Jack Bruce. The band found unprecedented but short-lived success and broke up two years later, after conquering the world with what Carlos Santana called "supersonic music" during an interview for the documentary Beware of Mr Baker.

After Cream's break-up, Baker, who battled heroin addiction for a large part of his life, formed Blind Faith alongside Clapton, Steve Winwood and Ric Grech, as well as Ginger Baker's Air Force, a fusion supergroup featuring Winwood, Grech and Denny Laine, among others.

In 1970, Baker thought it would be an interesting experience to travel across the Sahara Desert. The journey, which was filmed and became a documentary, took him to Ghana where he visited his close friend Guy Warren, also known as Kofi Ghanaba, whom he named his son after.

"The other day I had a beautiful visit with my dad ... we talked about memories and music and he's happy that I'm keeping his legacy alive," Kofi Baker, who follows in his father's footsteps as a drummer but has said in the past that the two had a difficult relationship, said in a statement. "Our relationship was mended and he was in a peaceful place. Thank you all for the kind messages and thoughts. I love my dad and will miss him always."

While in Ghana, Baker became fascinated by the music that he heard on a Nigerian radio station. He then travelled to Nigeria to witness the local music scene during a time when the country was reeling from the aftermath of a three-year civil war. Baker sent a telegram to Fela Kuti, whom he had first encountered playing at The Flamingo Club in London a few years earlier. He subsequently made Nigeria his home, starting a period that marked an extraordinary turn in his career as a musician.

In November 1971, he set up a recording studio in Lagos and by 1973 Batakota (ARC) Studio became the first 16-track recording facility in the country. It operated successfully through the '70s, hosting both local and western musicians. Paul McCartney and Wings recorded part of the album Band on the Run there.

“Ginger Baker, great drummer, wild and lovely guy. We worked together on the Band on the Run album in his ARC Studio, Lagos, Nigeria. Sad to hear that he died but the memories never will. X Paul,” Paul McCartney wrote on Twitter after news of Baker's death.  

The album Live! was recorded in 1971 by Fela Kuti's Africa 70 band, with the addition of Baker on two songs. A bonus track on the Barclay CD reissue features a 16-minute drum duet between Baker and Africa 70 drummer Tony Allen recorded at the 1978 Berlin Jazz Festival.

Baker was mesmerised by the Yoruba talking drum. He frequently visited Osogbo, an ancient city with deep traditional roots, where he learnt how to play African drums, analysing critically the techniques that the local drummers were using. 

By the late 1970s, after various scandals and the failure of his studio, Baker left Nigeria and settled in various parts of the world, including South Africa later on.

In 2005 he reunited with Cream for a series of shows at the Royal Albert Hall and Madison Square Garden. He was an avid polo player and often invested all his earnings in the sport.

Below are social media posts from music royalty remembering Baker's life:

Brian May: "RIP Ginger Baker – who thrilled us all with his massively innovative drumming in CREAM. When I advertised on my (Imperial) College notice board for a drummer to form a group with (1969, I think), I put 'Wanted: a drummer who can play like Keith Moon, Mitch Mitchell and GINGER BAKER...'"

Mick Jagger: "Sad news hearing that Ginger Baker has died, I remember playing with him very early on in Alexis Korner’s Blues Incorporated. He was a fiery but extremely talented and innovative drummer."

Carl Palmer: Ginger Baker was a big influence when I was in my teens. The Cream were one of my favourite all-time bands. I went to see them 8 times. Ginger was always on fire!"

Brian Wilson: "I’m sorry to hear that Ginger Baker passed. He was a great drummer and we all were fans of Cream back then. “Sunshine Of Your Love” was a great one. Love & Mercy, Brian."

Billy Bragg: "Sorry to hear of the passing of Ginger Baker. Regular readers of this page will know he was a regular poster in the threads over the past couple of years. I knew him in the late 70s when me and my pals in Riff Raff lived in Oundle, Northamptonshire, and he was a big figure on the local music scene. His daughter Nettie covered our time there in her recent book ‘Tales of a Rock Stars Daughter’. Ginger got in touch to tell me about the book and stuck around to offer his opinions in the threads. My thoughts are with Nettie and the family.

Flea: "So much freedom in his playing. What a wildman. Rhythms we’ve heard all our lives he plucked them out of the sky. Rest In Peace Ginger Baker."