What was Alan White famous for? Yes band and John Lennon's drummer passes away at 72

Alan White, the longstanding drummer for the prog-rock band Yes, died at home at the age of 72 following a brief illness, according to his wife, Gigi. The band expressed their shock by saying they were "shocked and flabbergasted" by the news.

White's death was announced in a lengthy memorial by his family. While no official cause of death was disclosed, the musician died following a "brief illness," according to reports.

White was one of the group's longest-serving members, joining in 1972 to replace Bill Burford (who joined King Crimson). The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is best known for his work with Yes, but he also played in the Plastic Ono Band with John Lennon.

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Exploring late Alan White's legacy

On June 14, 1949, Alan White was born in Pelton, Durham, England. He began playing the drums at 12 and began performing at London clubs the following year. In 1969, he received a phone call from John Lennon that changed his life forever.

White said:

“I thought it was a friend trying to joke with me, so I put the phone down.Eventually I got a call back and he told me he was doing a gig in Toronto and was I available to play drums and can he send a car to pick me up the next morning.”

White was on the same flight to Toronto as Eric Clapton, Yoko Ono, and Klaus Voormann. Lennon needed a drummer for a rare live appearance at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival. White performed the show with little to no rehearsal.

However, Lennon was impressed by his spontaneous work and invited him into the studio to work on Imagine. Alan White was one of three drummers on the album, along with Jim Keltner and Jim Gordon, but he was chosen to work on the iconic title track.

Tales from Topographic Oceans, Yes's first UK No. 1 album, was also his first studio album. The band's success continued – 1977's Going For the One was another chart-topper – but by the early 1980s, keyboardist Rick Wakeman and singer Jon Anderson had left.

The band Yes split in 1981, despite the brief additions of Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes.

With Squire, Yes keyboardist Tony Kaye, and guitarist Trevor Rabin, White formed Cinema, whose demos enticed Jon Anderson back into the fold – they soon relaunched the Yes name.

This marked the start of the group's most commercially successful period in the United States, with the single Owner of a Lonely Heart reaching No. 1 in 1983.

Over the years, the lineup has changed – Anderson and Howe returning in 1995, along with Wakeman, for a brief period – and there was another hiatus from 2005 to 2008. Still, White has remained the rhythmic heart of the group throughout.

Alan White is credited as a songwriter on dozens of songs and has appeared on over 40 of their albums. Beginning in 2016, health issues limited his role with the band, but he continued to perform a portion of each live set, with Jay Schellen handling most of the material.

He most recently performed with the band on July 28, 2019, at The Mountain Winery in Saratoga Springs, California.