\n<\/p>\n
Chris Dreja, one of the five original members of the Yardbirds<\/a>, has died. The guitarist was 79.<\/p>\n His death was confirmed by his sister-in-law, Muriel Levy, on Threads<\/a>.<\/p>\n “This is with a deep sadness that I have to announce that my brother-in-law Chris Dreja, former member of legendary band the Yardbirds, rhythm guitarist and also bass player, has passed away after years of health problems,” she wrote.<\/p>\n “I share the pain with my sister Kate, who took care of him during all those years, and his daughter Jackie. … May he RIP.”<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> Top 100 Live Albums<\/a><\/p>\n Dreja was born in Surrey, England, in 1945, and was introduced to guitarist Top Topham by his brother. The duo made their debut live performance at a show by British blues singer Duster Bennett, which also featured Dreja’s future Yardbirds bandmate Jimmy Page<\/a>.<\/p>\n Topham and Dreja formed the Metropolitan Blues Quartet in 1963; singer Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty and guitarist Paul Samwell-Smith joined soon after. They renamed themselves the Yardbirds the same year.<\/p>\n After Topham quit the band, he was replaced by Eric Clapton<\/a>, and it wasn’t long before the quintet started to make a name for themselves with their energetic live shows around England.<\/p>\n Over the next few years, the Yardbirds released a string of Top 10 singles, including “For Your Love,” “Heart Full of Soul” and “Evil Hearted You,” as well as an influential concert album, Five Live Yardbirds<\/em>.<\/p>\n Frustrated with the blues group’s push toward a commercial sound, Clapton exited in 1965 and was replaced by Jeff Beck<\/a>. With their new guitarist, the Yardbirds recorded a self-titled 1966 album, better known as Roger the Engineer<\/em>, which included a cover drawing by Dreja.<\/p>\n The guitarist was also responsible for cowriting many of the songs on the album. Later that year, Samwell-Smith left the band and was replaced by Page. Dreja then switched over to bass. Before long, Beck was out of the band, too.<\/p>\n The Yardbirds broke up in 1968, with Page temporarily considering naming his new group the New Yardbirds before changing it to Led Zeppelin<\/a>. Dreja was asked to join the band but declined to pursue his interest in photography. (He shot the back portrait of the band on Led Zeppelin’s debut album.)<\/p>\n In 1983, Dreja was a member of the band Box of Frogs, alongside former Yardbirds members Samwell-Smith and McCarty; they released two albums before breaking up in 1986.<\/p>\n The Yardbirds, with Dreja and McCarty, reformed in 1992 and continued to play with the band until 2013, when he quit after a series of\u00a0strokes. He was replaced in the group by Topham. (Topham died in 2023<\/a>.)<\/p>\n Dreja’s health continued to worsen over the year before his death.<\/p>\n A look at those we’ve lost.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Gallery Credit: Ultimate Classic Rock Staff<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nWhat Yardbirds Songs Did Chris Dreja Play On?<\/h3>\n
What Did Chris Dreja Do After the Yardbirds?<\/h3>\n
In Memoriam: 2025 Deaths<\/h2>\n