Spinner

Twisted Tales: Ace Session Drummer Jim Gordon's Crazy Beat

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame began inducting extraordinary sidemen in 2000. Session drummers Hal Blaine and Earl Palmer, Motown bassist James Jamerson and Elvis guitarist Scotty Moore were among the inaugural class.

Based on his astounding track record, drummer Jim Gordon should be on any voter's short list for the honor. He played with the Byrds, the Everly Brothers and three-fourths of the Beatles and was a member of Traffic and Derek and the Dominos. He's one of the most sampled musicians of all time. He was even the original recording artist behind Animal, the Muppets' super-furry drummer.

But murdering your mama is a surefire way to find yourself in a different kind of institution.

Born in Los Angeles in 1945, James Beck Gordon was a natural talent. By the age of 17, he was already accompanying the Everly Brothers. Blaine, the legendary session man, soon began offering his young protégé gigs he couldn't make. By the end of the '60s, Gordon had played on albums by the Byrds and the Beach Boys and on Mason Williams' blockbuster instrumental, 'Classical Gas.'

But it was a chance opportunity to fill in for another standout drummer, Jim Keltner, that led to Gordon's true breakthrough. The blue-eyed-soul husband-and-wife team of Delaney & Bonnie hired Gordon; when their band joined forces with Eric Clapton, the short-lived supergroup Derek and the Dominos was born. Gordon set himself up for a lifetime of BMI checks when he contributed the gorgeous piano coda to the band's signature song, 'Layla.'

Through Clapton, Gordon played on George Harrison's 'All Things Must Pass' triple album, which in turn led to work with John Lennon (including the 'Imagine' LP) and Ringo Starr. At the same time, the drummer was bouncing wildly around the L.A. studio scene, from sessions with pop acts like Bread and the Carpenters to somewhat less commercial ventures such as Frank Zappa's. His work on the Incredible Bongo Band's 1973 album 'Bongo Rock' featured a percussion-heavy version of the song 'Apache,' which became a hip-hop staple adopted by pioneering DJs like Kool Herc and Grandmaster Flash.

But the relentless pounding was evidently taking its toll. By the late 1970s, Gordon was becoming less and less reliable, struggling with mental illness. "The voices were chasing me around," he once recalled. "Making me drive to different places. Starving me. I was only allowed one bite of food a meal. And if I disobeyed, the voices would fill me with a rage, like the Hulk gets."

According to some accounts, he checked himself in and out of psychiatric hospitals as many as 14 times, complaining of oppressive voices in his head. One day in 1983, he snapped, murdering his own mother with a hammer and a butcher's knife. Institutionalized ever since, Jim Gordon reportedly hasn't touched a drum kit in years.

All the AOL Music info you want to know

Usher, Tameka Foster Trial: Crooner…

The Boombox

Kevin Mazur, WireImage Usher took the stand in his ongoing child custody…

Nas Complex Cover: Rapper Compares…

The Boombox

Complex Nas proves that life is good even while experiencing trials and…

Electric Guest, 'This Head I Hold' --…

Spinner

Artist: Electric Guest Video: "This Head I Hold" Highlight: "While doing the…

See all AOL Music »

Add a Comment

Sign in »
*0 / 3000 Character Maximum

6 Comments

Filter by:
THX1136

Does anyone know if Jim has any chance of parole? Jamie Thompson had link to a petition to ask for his release, but that was back in 2007. The petition doesn't exist at his link any more.

October 15 2011 at 10:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Susan Rogan

Yes, I do know him personally and yes my relationship is private. Do you think my name is really "Layla Gordon?"

He does play from time-to-time in the institution and I'm not revealing much by saying so. He's not bouncing off walls, but rather does play on occasion.

Okay, I'll go back into hiding.....

June 07 2009 at 4:00 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Susan Rogan's comment
mitch

Hi Susan ! Thanks for sharing your info on one of the biggest influences to me in music and how to play drums with any type of music. I've listen to my hero so many times...over and over again,just to hear if he played a single accented beat or a flam, to get his groove thru any passage,whether it was quiet or busy part of a song.
I really enjoy his playing on the Gordon Lightfoot album :
Sundown. I hope he is still playing...i know how empty i feel when I can't play,due to a busy work week or other clumsy assignments in the way. But like me...i'll bet he has some kind of pattern going thru his head,even when the music stops. Please tell him that he'll always be my hero and favorite drummer

May 12 2010 at 2:38 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
lakewood

Regarding your entry. It is full of speculation.Too many "I've heard ", "I truly don't think"& "I think"s.Anyone who is interested in JG can get this generic info via the internet. True friendships with someone in this situation are guarded and private. Does he consent to you acting as his intermediary with the outside world? 'LaylaGordon'is mighty presumptuos and an attention getter, but isn't that the point, afterall?

March 08 2009 at 7:43 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
LaylaGordon

Not true. Jim has played within the prison walls and I've heard that he sounded wonderful. I truly don't think he is interested in receiving any additional recognition for his playing. I think he would be quite content to be released from prison after serving the appropriate time for the crime that was not his fault, but rather a disease that he did not ask to contract.

March 07 2009 at 9:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
steadyeddie08

So sad! Today he could have gotten the help he needed! Jim will always be one of my hero's

August 13 2008 at 11:44 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply