Jim Beck Gordon, legendary late 60s, 70s, and early 80s session drummer, has died in the custody of the California prison system at the age of 77.

https://variety.com/2023/music/news/jim-gordon-drummer-layla-cowriter-dead-1235555775/

Gordon, who played drums on hundreds of recordings in all sorts of genres, spent more than half of his life in the slam after having been convicted of murdering his own mother with a hammer and a butcher knife back in ‘83.

He is “officially” credited with composing the piano coda of the hit song Layla, but fellow musicians Bobby Whitlock and Rita Coolidge (who he physically abused) have stated that he ripped it off from Rita. Eric Clapton (another woman abuser) ignored Rita’s claims of credit.

Huge, huge waste of talent. “The saddest thing in life is wasted talent.”

He co-wrote the song "Layla" with Eric Clapton.

The coda is great piece of music, rarely heard due to DJs cutting it off for air time.

I never knew his background.

So sad.

That guy played on every single record I bought in the early to mid 70s. John Lennon, George Harrison,  Eric Clapton, Jackson Browne, Joan Baez, EVERYBODY. TV commercials and movies too (back when they used live drummers). An enormously talented musician. His is a sad tale.

That guy played on every single record I bought in the early to mid 70s. John Lennon, George Harrison,  Eric Clapton, Jackson Browne, Joan Baez, EVERYBODY. TV commercials and movies too (back when they used live drummers). An enormously talented musician. His is a sad tale.


He even drummed on fare such as “Rock the Boat” by The Hues Corporation, “Midnight at the Oasis” by Maria Muldaur :-*, and “Sundown” by Gordo Lightfoot. Dude was everywhere in his heyday. But then he blew it all with the dope, drinking, and the woman-beating. Clapton was not too far behind him and to this day I do not care to listen to anything that either guy did.

He even drummed on fare such as “Rock the Boat” by The Hues Corporation, “Midnight at the Oasis” by Maria Muldaur :-*, and “Sundown” by Gordo Lightfoot. Dude was everywhere in his heyday. But then he blew it all with the dope, drinking, and the woman-beating. Clapton was not too far behind him and to this day I do not care to listen to anything that either guy did.


Um, not exactly. Gordon exhibited erratic behavior, including assaulting his then girlfriend Rita Coolidge on the famed Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour. And yes, he indulged in some of the vices of the day with all the other musicians. But this was not the cause of his problems. In 1983 he killed his own mother by striking her in the head with a hammer. He said voices in his head told him to do it. He was diagnosed with acute  schizophrenia (apparently also the cause of the assault on Coolidge). The man was severely mentally ill. You make it sound like he was just doing because he was an a-hole.

Um, not exactly. Gordon exhibited erratic behavior, including assaulting his then girlfriend Rita Coolidge on the famed Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour. And yes, he indulged in some of the vices of the day with all the other musicians. But this was not the cause of his problems. In 1983 he killed his own mother by striking her in the head with a hammer. He said voices in his head told him to do it. He was diagnosed with acute  schizophrenia (apparently also the cause of the assault on Coolidge). The man was severely mentally ill. You make it sound like he was just doing because he was an a-hole.


Beat his wife too.  Beat more than one girlfriend. A jury that had more info than you or I found him guilty. Parole boards for the past 4 years found him unparolable. At the end of the day we’re all responsible for our actions. You beat your wife, you beat your girlfriends, you take credit for their songwriting, and kill your mother… yeah, that makes one an A-hole.

Beat his wife too.  Beat more than one girlfriend. A jury that had more info than you or I found him guilty. Parole boards for the past 4 years found him unparolable. At the end of the day we’re all responsible for our actions. You beat your wife, you beat your girlfriends, you take credit for their songwriting, and kill your mother… yeah, that makes one an A-hole.


Did you not get the part about the mental illness? Do you need to look up acute paranoid schizophrenia, which he was diagnosed with twice, to make sure there was no doubt?

At his trial in Los Angeles last spring, James Beck Gordon was found guilty of second-degree murder and sentenced to sixteen years to life. The defense had argued insanity – but a tough new California law makes it almost impossible to prove that anyone is legally insane. Still, no one — neither the prosecution nor the presiding judge — disagreed with the diagnosis of the five defense psychiatrists that Gordon was an acute paranoid schizophrenic.
-Rolling Stone Magazine
June 6, 1985

Oh, and by the way, the refusal to give Coolidge credit for "Layla" came from Robert Stigwood, who told Coolidge to go eff herself when she confronted him about it. This seems part of that rampant Harvey Weinstein type sexism among entertainment executives that went on.

I didn't know how much he contributed to - it appears to be a lot.  Very sad story  :\'(  :\'(  :\'(

R.I.P. Jim Gordon