Clyde Stubblefield, 73, legendary rock drummer . Associated Press .
MADISON, Wis. - Clyde Stubblefield, a drummer for James Brown who
created one of the most widely sampled drum breaks ever, died Saturday.
He was 73. His wife, Jody Hannon, told the Associated Press that Mr.
Stubblefield died of kidney failure at a Madison, Wis., hospital around
noon. He had been suffering from kidney disease for 10 years, and had
been hospitalized for a few days, she said. Mr. Stubblefield performed
on several of Brown's classics in the 1960s and early '70s, including
"Cold Sweat," "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud," "I've Got the
Feelin'," and the album "Sex Machine. But he was best known for a short
solo on Brown's 1970 single, "Funky Drummer. Rolling Stone magazine
said it was sampled on over 1,000 songs and served as the backbeat for
countless hip-hop tracks, including Public Enemy's "Fight the Power,"
Dr. Dre's "Let Me Ride," LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out," and
Run-D.M.C.'s "Run's House. It even turned up on Ed Sheeran's
"Shirtsleeves" and George Michael's "Freedom '90," the magazine said.
Hennon said Mr. Stubblefield saw "very little" in royalties and never
expected them. But Mr. Stubblefield was held in high esteem by his
fellow musicians. When Prince got wind in 2000 that Mr. Stubblefield
was deep in debt from a fight against bladder cancer, he personally
paid $90,000 to cover his bills, she said. "Clyde was considered his
favorite drummer," she added. Mr. Stubblefield was "a very nice
southern gentleman" from Chattanooga, Tenn., but had lived in Madison,
his wife's hometown, since the early 1970s, she said. He had long been
a fixture on the local music scene. "He played here one time with James
Brown and just fell in love with it," Hannon said. Services are
pending.
