Remembering Alan White & Andy Fletcher
• The music industry lost two notable figures on Thursday — Alan White, best known as the longtime drummer of progressive-rock titans Yes, and Andy Fletcher, keyboardist and a founding member of Depeche Mode.
White died at his home in Seattle after a brief illness at the age of 72. White’s family initially broke the sad news on Twitter. In a follow-up Facebook post, White’s family added, “Throughout his life and six-decade career, Alan was many things to many people: a certified rock star to fans around the world; band mate to a select few, and gentleman and friend to all who met him.”
As Variety notes, White, who originally joined Yes in 1972 (and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Yes in 2017) also worked with John Lennon and George Harrison during their solo careers. He also backed Lennon (alongside Eric Clapton, Klaus Voorman and Yoko Ono) at Lennon’s famous Live Peace in Toronto concert in 1969. He also lent his skills to Lennon’s albums and singles at the time, most notably his 1970 song “Instant Karma!” He also played on Lennon’s Imagine album as well as George Harrison’s 1970 masterpiece All Things Must Pass.
• Andy Fletcher‘s death at the age of 60 was announced via Depeche Mode’s Twitter feed, noting, “We are shocked and filled with overwhelming sadness with the untimely passing of our dear friend, family member and bandmate, Andy ‘Fletch’ Fletcher. Fletch had a true heart of gold and was always there when you needed support, a lively conversation, a good laugh, or a cold pint.”
Fletcher co-founded Depeche Mode in 1980 with Dave Gahan, Martin Gore and Vince Clark. As the Variety story describes him, “‘Fletch’ was the least outwardly showy of the core trio, often wearing shades as he stood behind the keyboards while the more demonstrative Gahan and Gore roamed the stage, but still raising his arms to rouse the rabble.”
Over the course of Fletcher’s tenure with Depeche Mode, the group sold over 100 million records worldwide and had 54 songs chart on the UK Singles Chart. As a member of Depeche Mode, Fletcher was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020.
