Jim Capaldi R.I.P.

Traffic star dies, aged 60

By Sherna Noah

Published : 29 January 2005

Jim Capaldi, the drummer with the West Midlands psychedelic-rock group Traffic, died yesterday aged 60.

Capaldi, who formed the group in 1967 with fellow Birmingham musician Steve Winwood, was suffering from stomach cancer. The band's most famous song was "Hole in My Shoe" which captured the psychedelic mood of the late Sixties. Capaldi also achieved independent success with "Love Hurts", a version of the Roy Orbison song, in 1975.

Around 25 million copies of songs written or co-written by the musician were sold in his lifetime. Among the most famous were his lyrics to the reggae anthem "This is Reggae Music".

Extrovert drummer, singer and songwriter with the rock group Traffic.

The British band Traffic were the first group "to get their act together in the country" when the founding members Jim Capaldi (drums, vocals), Steve Winwood (vocals, keyboards, guitar), Dave Mason (guitar, vocals) and Chris Wood (flute, saxophone) retreated to a cottage in rural Berkshire before making their recording début for Chris Blackwell's Island Records in 1967. Since then, many other groups have taken to renting a farm in the middle of nowhere to write and rehearse.