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Legendary Yardbirds Co-Founder Chris Dreja Dies at 79
2 Oct
Summary
- Chris Dreja, co-founder of pioneering British rock band The Yardbirds, has died
- Dreja was the band's rhythm guitarist and later shifted to bass
- He declined an invitation to join Led Zeppelin, instead pursuing a career as a photographer
Chris Dreja, a co-founder of the pioneering British rock band The Yardbirds, has died at the age of 79. Dreja, who was originally the band's rhythm guitarist, later shifted to bass after Jimmy Page joined the group in 1966. Though The Yardbirds never achieved the same level of fame as contemporaries like the Rolling Stones, the band was enormously influential, with Dreja co-writing many of their songs.
Dreja was invited to join Led Zeppelin after The Yardbirds dissolved in 1968, but he declined, opting instead to pursue a career as a photographer. He went on to shoot the band photo on the back cover of Led Zeppelin's first album, as well as capturing images of other music icons like Bob Dylan and Andy Warhol.
In the 1980s, Dreja returned to music, performing with former Yardbirds bandmates as Box of Frogs. He later launched a Yardbirds revival in the 1990s, though he suffered a series of strokes in 2012 and retired from music. Dreja's passing leaves Jim McCarty and Paul Samwell-Smith as the sole surviving original members of The Yardbirds.
