James Kottak, Scorpions and Kingdom Come drummer, dead at 61

Former Scorpions and Kingdom Come drummer James Kottak died Tuesday morning in Louisville, Kentucky. He was 61.

No cause of death has been given.

His death was announced by his daughter Tobi and Kottak’s former band Scorpions paid tribute to Kottack in a Facebook post.

“Very sad news … our dear friend and Drummer for 20 years James Kottak has passed at the age of 61,” the band wrote alongside a black-and-white image of Kottak. “James was a wonderful human being , a great musician and loving family man … he was our Brother from another Mother and will be truly missed . … Rock ‘n Roll Forever. RIP James.”

Kottak was behind the skins for the German rock band — whose hits include 1984’s “Rock You Like a Hurricane” — from 1996 to 2016, making him the longest-running member in the band.

Prior to that, he was the original drummer for another German rock band, the Led Zeppelin-esque Kingdom Come, from 1987 to 1995. 

Kottak also made some reality TV show appearances, most notably in 2012’s “Ex-Wives of Rock.” 

Kottak was open about his battle with alcoholism, which led him to be arrested for public drunkenness in 2014. And his drinking problems would also cause him to fired by the Scorpions in 2016.

“We reached the point — or he reached the point —where it was just not worth it,” said Scorpions guitarist Matthias Jabs.

And Kottak told Detroit’s 101 WRIF that he his recovery was a “work in progress” in 2018.

“Over the last 10 years, I would say I was 90 percent sober, and then I’d have these struggles and I’d go through a bad two- or three-week period,” he said.

“So right now it’s, like I said, to use a cliché, it’s one day at a time and I work the program.”

The Louisville-born Kottak was married to Tommy Lee‘s sister Athena from 1996 to 2010. A custody battle ensued over their son Matthew.

In 2019, Kottak also came out about his politically conservative views when with his song “Get Out of My Kountry.”

“We don’t need anymore outsiders,” he said. “We can’t even fix the homeless problems?! When homeless problem is solved, w take care [of] everyone else…”