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The Rolling Stones were reportedly forced to miss the funeral of their drummer Charlie Watts due to Covid-19 restrictions.
Sir Mick Jagger, 78, Keith Richards, 77, and Ronnie Wood, 74, were unable to attend the small private ceremony in Devon which took place last week.
According to The Sun, the group have remained in Boston amid pandemic rules where they are rehearsing for their rescheduled world tour which begins on September 26 in St Louis, Missouri.
Restrictions: The Rolling Stones were reportedly forced to miss the funeral of their drummer Charlie Watts due to Covid-19 restrictions (L-R, Charlie Watts, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood)
Charlie’s funeral was said to have taken place with minimal fuss, according to his family’s wishes.
The musician died on August 24 aged 80 with a statement saying he had ‘passed away peacefully in hospital surrounded by his family’.
It had been announced on August 5 that Charlie would not take part in the upcoming tour due to a recent emergency surgery and had been replaced with Steve Jordan.
He said in a statement: ‘After all the disappointment with delays to the tour caused by Covid, I really don’t want the many Stones fans in the States to have another postponement or cancellation.
Ceremony: Sir Mick Jagger, 78, Keith Richards, 77, and Ronnie Wood, 74, were unable to attend the small private ceremony in Devon which took place last week (pictured together in 2014)
‘I have therefore asked my great friend Steve Jordan to stand in for me.’
MailOnline has contacted representatives for The Rolling Stones for comment.
The band lead an outpouring of grief following the news of Charlie’s passing, with Ronnie sharing a picture of the pair with the caption: ‘I love you my fellow Gemini ~ I will dearly miss you ~you are the best’.
Rolling Stones frontman Mick shared a poignant photo of a smiling Charlie on both Twitter and Instagram, without a caption, while guitarist Keith posted a Twitter photo of the Rolling Stones’ drum kit with a ‘closed’ sign hanging from it.
Travel: The group have remained in Boston amid pandemic rules where they are rehearsing for their rescheduled world tour which begins on September 26 in St Louis, Missouri (pictured in 2005)
Ronnie’s wife Sally, 43, shared a slew of throwback pictures of the drummer that she captioned: ‘We love you Charlie. The whole world will miss you xx ❤️’.
Charlie joined the then-fledgling band in 1963 after meeting Mick, Keith and Brian Jones while playing in rhythm and blues clubs.
Along with Mick and Keith, Charlie featured on every one of the band’s studio albums. He was widely regarded as one of the greatest drummers of all time.
His London publicist, Bernard Doherty, confirmed his passing in a statement, saying: ‘It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Charlie Watts.
‘He passed away peacefully in a London hospital earlier today surrounded by his family.
Heartbreaking: The group were left devastated by Charlie’s passing aged 80 but they are said to believe he would have wanted them to carry on with their tour
‘I will dearly miss you’: Mick, Ronnie and Keith shared poignant tributes to Charlie after the Rolling Stones rocker passed away
Poignant: Keith shared a poignant Twitter photo of the Rolling Stones’ drum kit with a ‘closed’ sign hanging from it
‘Charlie was a cherished husband, father and grandfather and also as a member of The Rolling Stones one of the greatest drummers of his generation.
‘We kindly request that the privacy of his family, band members and close friends is respected at this difficult time.’
In 2004, Charlie was treated for throat cancer at London’s Royal Marsden Hospital and he was given the all-clear after a four-month battle with the disease, involving six weeks of intensive radiotherapy treatment.
The drummer was diagnosed after discovering a lump on the left side of his neck.
Doctors performed a biopsy which confirmed the tumour was malignant and he was diagnosed with throat cancer in June that year.
History: Alongside frontman Sir Mick and guitarist Keith, Charlie (pictured centre) was among the longest-standing members of the Stones, which has seen a shifting line-up of musicians including Mick Taylor, Ronnie and Bill Wyman
His spokesman said at the time that Charlie’s treatment had ‘not interfered with any tour or recording plans for the group, who have been ‘relaxing between work commitments”.
Following his recovery, the band began work on their 22nd studio album, A Bigger Bang.
Charlie, who reportedly gave up smoking in the 1980s, said during an interview with Rolling Stone magazine at the time that he felt ‘very lucky’ doctors had caught the cancer early.
Statement: Charlie’s publicist Bernard Doherty said: ‘Charlie was a cherished husband, father and grandfather and also as a member of The Rolling Stones one of the greatest drummers of his generation’
It comes after Mick Brigden, a music tour manager who traveled the world with artists including The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, died earlier this month aged 73.
The UK native injured himself while digging a grave for his pet dog on the property of his Santa Clara home in Northern California last week.
He was taken to a local hospital, and eventually succumbed to his injuries and passed away on September 5, according to The Press Democrat.
Tragedy: It comes after Mick Brigden, a music tour manager who traveled the world with artists including The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, died earlier this month aged 73
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