Jon Brookes, Charlatans Drummer, Dead at 44

Charlatans drummer Jon Brookes in 2008. Photo: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic/Jo Jakeman on Flickr

Jon Brookes, the drummer for English alt-rockers the Charlatans, died yesterday morning in a hospital in England, the BBC reports. He was 44. Brookes had been receiving treatment for a brain tumor after suffering a seizure onstage while touring with the band in 2010.

“Jon was a brilliant drummer, an inspiration, a founding member of the Charlatans, part of our family and a friend to everyone in and around the band,” the Charlatans said in a statement. “Losing someone who was always so full of life is a tragedy that will be shared by so many. Our thoughts are with Debbie and all of Jon’s family.”

Brookes had continued working on new material with the band despite undergoing several surgeries, including one in July. Though the band said the most recent operation had gone well, Brookes had remained in the hospital for further treatment. The drummer was first diagnosed with a brain tumor after he collapsed onstage while the Charlatans were performing in Philadelphia in 2010.

“We are torn apart,” Charlatans singer Tim Burgess tweeted this morning. “Love & thoughts to Jon’s family.”

The Charlatans formed in 1989 in the West Midlands region of England. Brookes was a founding member of the band, whose 2010 LP Who We Touch is the most recent of their 11 studio albums. The group has had 22 Top 40 hits in Britain, including “The Only One I Know” and “One to Another.”