Vince Charles; Steel Drummer for Neil Diamond

Vince Charles, 55, steel drummer with Neil Diamond for the past 25 years and previously with Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, died June 3 in Los Angeles.

Born in St. Kitts and reared in the Virgin Islands, Charles performed in the Caribbean Pavilion at the New York World’s Fair in 1964-65. Then, after playing at Canada’s Montreal Expo ‘67, he moved to Los Angeles, where he became a studio musician and worked with Alpert.

His work can be heard on the Beach Boys’ hit recording “Kokomo” and on such movie soundtracks as “Cocktail,” “The Little Mermaid” and “Trading Places” and sequels to “Ghostbusters” and “Police Academy.”

First asked to work with Diamond on “Reggae Strut” for the 1973 album “Serenade,” Charles joined the band in 1977 and had toured with Diamond since. Charles also played Los Angeles clubs with his own group, Vince Charles and Friends, and recorded three albums, “Mixture 44,” “Soliloquy” and “Caribbean Christmas.”