Jellybean Johnson Passed Away!

Jellybean Johnson passed away days after his birthday.

Prince's former band group The Time was a popular group in the mid-1980s.

The Time is an American funk rock band founded in Minneapolis in 1981. They contributed to the development of the Minneapolis sound, an eclectic fusion of funk, R&B, new wave, synth-pop and dance. Led by singer-songwriter Morris Day, the band members are known for having been close associates of musician Prince, and are arguably the most successful artists who have worked with him, achieving success with singles such as "Get It Up", "The Bird", "Cool", "777-9311", "Jungle Love" and "Jerk Out".

Alexander O'Neal, Morris Day, Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and Jesse Johnson were notified of a passing. Their longtime drummer and co founding member Jellybean Johnson passed away two days after celebrating his birthday.

Garry George "Jellybean" Johnson passed away from natural causes.

Best known as the drummer in the hit R&B band the Time, Johnson was a guitarist at heart, playing in Jay Bee and the Routine, St. Paul Peterson and the Minneapolis Funk All Stars and other Twin Cities bands. He collaborated with Prince, Janet Jackson and New Edition as well as local heroes Alexander O’Neal and Mint Condition.

The Time.

A pillar of the Minneapolis music scene, Johnson collapsed Friday at his Brooklyn Park home and died at North Memorial Health Hospital. He had turned 69 on Wednesday.

“He was an absolute icon,” said Paul Peterson, who played in bands with Johnson since 1983. “He not only was an architect of the Minneapolis Sound, but he mentored young players. He went out every night to see the next generation. He didn’t want to sit on the couch. Dude played every night because he loved it. It was his lifeblood.”

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame producer/songwriter Jimmy Jam called Johnson “the ambassador of Minneapolis music because he was immersed in it in every way.”

Marty Bragg, Johnson’s partner, took him to see the “Purple Rain” musical for his birthday after dinner at the Capital Grille in downtown Minneapolis on Wednesday.

On his birthday, Johnson wrote on Facebook: “I’ve been blessed to live a life shaped by music, community, and the love of people who believed in me long before the world knew my name. When I look back, I don’t first think about the big stages or awards — I think about The Way… that little community center on the North Side of Minneapolis where a bunch of young kids picked up instruments and discovered who we were meant to be.”