Yes: Alan White, drummer, dies

Enlarge image

Alan White on drums

Photo: Dean Rutz/AP

Alan White, drummer for progressive rock band Yes, has died, his family announced on his Facebook page.

It said he died Thursday at his home in Seattle after a short illness.

White was 72 years old.

A few days earlier, Yes had announced that White would not be taking part in the upcoming 50th anniversary tour of the album Close to the Edge due to health reasons.

The band called White their "much-beloved drummer and friend of 50 years" on their Twitter account.

White joined Yes in 1972, replacing original drummer Bill Bruford.

In a band known for frequent line-up changes, White has been a constant and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 as a member of Yes.

He played with Lennon, Harrison and Clapton

White, who lived long in the Seattle area, was born in 1949 in Pelton, County Durham, England.

According to his family, he started taking piano lessons at the age of six and started playing the drums when he was 12.

In the 1960s he played with various bands in England.

In 1969 he was asked by John Lennon to join his Plastic Ono Band.

In a 2021 interview with the Seattle Times, White said he initially thought the famous Beatle's call was a hoax.

White also shared the stage with Eric Clapton and contributed drums to George Harrison's 1970 solo album All Things Must Pass.

In 1972, Yes released her album Close To The Edge, which is considered her greatest hit and sold millions of copies.

White did not appear on it, but has featured on every subsequent studio album spanning nearly five decades, including the band's most recent release, The Quest, which came out last year.

ngo/AP