Jim Gordon Orbituary

Jim Gordon was a musician and songwriter from the United States. Jim Gordon died in prison on March 13, 2023, after being convicted of murdering his mother in 1983 while suffering from schizophrenia. He was 77.

Jim Gordon was a member of Clapton’s band Derek and the Dominos and is the credited co-writer of the classic 1970 hit “Layla,” as well as a member of the Wrecking Crew, an elite group of session musicians.

He also played with Joe Cocker’s “Mad Dogs and Englishmen” band, Delaney and Bonnie and Friends, and was one of the main drummers on George Harrison’s seminal 1970 album “All Things Must Pass.”

His work on the Incredible Bongo Band’s 1972 song “Apache” is one of hip-most hop’s sampled drum breaks.

Gordon eventually began to exhibit signs of mental illness, and he allegedly punched his then-girlfriend, singer-songwriter Rita Coolidge, in a hotel in 1970.

Gordon killed his 72-year-old mother, Osa Gordon, with a hammer and a knife on June 3, 1983. He confessed, claiming that a voice inside his head told him to kill her. Following his arrest, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia.