CHARLIE WATTS Denies He's Quitting the Rolling Stones

     MUSIC NEWS - Despite rumors circulating that he has, Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts has denied he's quitting the group, a spokeswoman said on Wednesday, despite reports from an Australia music blog. The report came from the usually credible Undercover(www.undercover.com.au) and caused a concern around the globe with music fans, since Watts' departure would probably mean the end of the classic rock band.

"Contrary to a fabricated story that ran this morning on a small music web site in Australia, drummer Charlie Watts has not left The Rolling Stones," spokeswoman Fran Curtis said in an emailed statement.

The Undercover report was attributed to "a source within the Stones inner-circle says," and claimed Watts will never record or tour with the group. They wrote that the Stones were looking to replace him with New York session drummer Charlie Drayton, who has played on solo projects with Stones guitarist Keith Richards.

Watts joined the Rolling Stones back in 1963 after he had been in the advertising business.  The group has not released a new record since  "A Bigger Bang" (2005) and ended their previous tour in London back in August 2007. Currently, their plans have not been announced.

His departure would not be a surprise though, as Watts has stated his disdain for touring and the rock n roll lifestyle, preferring to be with his wife, kids, grandkids and Arabian horses at the their horse-breeding farm in Devonshire, England.

This recent rumor comes just a few days after news that the police are likely  to re-examine the death of the Stones’ former guitarist Brian Jones, who drowned in 1969.

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