Jim Gordon was sentenced to 16 years in prison after he murdered his mother in 1983
Jim Gordon, a convicted musician, died Monday at the age of 77.
The late drummer died in a state-run medical facility in Vacaville, California, where he was serving a sentence for murdering his mother in 1983.
His brilliant record of playing for various bands and artists was tainted by his mental health condition, which led him to kill his mother, Osa Marie Gordon.
The musician, real name James Beck Gordon, was born on July 14, 1945, and raised in Sherman Oaks, California.
His versatile credits include features on recordings by Eric Clapton, John Lennon, Cher, Jackson Browne, Alice Cooper, George Harrison, Yoko Ono, Neil Diamond, Tom Petty, the Byrds, and many others.
Gordon also ranked Number 59 on Rolling Stone‘s list of the 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time.
In an interview with Rolling Sone in 1985, Gordon admitted to being an “alcoholic,” saying, “Before, I was drinking every night, but I wasn’t getting up in the morning for a drink; I would put a needle in my arm. When I stopped taking the heroin, I began to drink all day.”
On June 3rd, 1983, the artist murdered his mother using a hammer and a butcher knife, after which he was sentenced to 16 years of prison.
“I had no interest in killing [my mother],” he told the outlet. “I wanted to stay away from her. I had no choice. It was so matter-of-fact like I was being guided like a zombie. She wanted me to kill her, and good riddance to her.”