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Post by CentreHice on Dec 19, 2014 20:08:06 GMT -5
As a rock drummer, I completely understand why lead guitarists and singers garner the main attention of the general public, which is why they're most likely to be successful in solo careers should they decide to go that route.
But I think inspirational drummers deserve their own thread. Not that my story is any great shakes….just thought I'd use my experience as the context to appreciate 11 (!! represents sticks) influential drummers who arose in the classic rock era--1964-75.
It's important to note that the classic rock era is a turning point in drumming. In the 40s, drummers like Gene Krupa, Buddy Rich, and Lionel Hampton were making drums a focal point of mainstream music…but in the 50s, drummers returned to being sidemen for singing idols. Drums came back to the forefront in 60s popular music and have remained huge. (Drums have always been prominent in jazz…Art Blakey, Billy Cobham, Tony Williams...but that's for a separate thread.)
My list is certainly not exhaustive….I became aware of many more great rock players of that era later in life who influence me to this day. Some, like Bobby Caldwell and Cozy Powell, can put many on my list to shame, skill-wise….but these are the ones who inspired me at the time, acknowledging that mass exposure, band success, and my age/environment had a lot to do with it. I also have to pay homage to the drummers of the Motown era, in which I was immersed living so close to Detroit. I didn't know there was a Funk Brothers at the time…but a tip of the hat to Benny Benjamin, Richard Allen, and anyone else who originated those great grooves.
I'll go in order of personal awareness. I wonder how my list compares with other rock drummers of my vintage, music critics, and just classic rock fans in general. Comments are more than welcome!
#1. Richard "Ringo Starr" Starkey
February 1964. I know it perhaps should've been Pete Best on that drum riser on the Ed Sullivan show...but it is what it is…and Ringo would prove to be the real deal. I was all of 5 years and 2 months, and I remember focussing on that kit…and his presence behind it. I probably started banging on pots and pans around that time.
Ringo took a lot of heat among my peers. Yeah, I had to admit, he wasn't the best…he wasn't the flashiest…but he was solid and came up with some brilliant ideas and performances. He was an innovative minimalist par excellence, IMO. Every album from Rubber Soul on is going to have something inspirational on it. He used the drums to colour many songs, not just provide the beat. The White Album and the medley to finish Abbey Road are jam-packed with cool stuff.
The mini drum solo in "The End" (Abbey Road). That's still cool!
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 19, 2014 23:14:24 GMT -5
#2. Charlie Watts.
I heard "Get Off Of My Cloud" in 1965 or 1966. I loved the pattern he came up with…and that they chose it to start the song. Another solid, innovative minimalist drummer in the Ringo vein. Not flashy….just did tasty things at the right times. Great choices/grooves in "Honky Tonk Women" and "Paint It Black"….to name just two more.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 20, 2014 0:03:08 GMT -5
#3. Ginger Baker
Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love" was a big hit in 1968…and Baker's drumming was a big part of it. So different from what other mainstreamers were doing at the time. Lots of tom work and tribal rhythms. Along with Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce, they were the first big power trio of the classic rock era. Baker was and still is an extraordinary drummer. I've also included his solo in "Do What You Like" from his days with Blind Faith. He was the first rock drummer I heard use double kick drums.
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Post by franko on Dec 20, 2014 8:48:58 GMT -5
kits were so much simpler then.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 20, 2014 9:47:37 GMT -5
#4. Carmine Appice
I was about 10 when I saw Vanilla Fudge on the Ed Sullivan Show…and I was mesmerized by what the drummer was doing. Stick twirls, cymbal chokes, one-handed fills, arm flair….showmanship. And he was singing. Appice has played with so many greats over the decades…and still going strong.
YouTube brings back all the memories….
The bassist in Vanilla Fudge is Tim Bogert. He and Appice later formed Cactus…then joined with Jeff Beck. Beck, Bogert & Appice is worth checking out. So is Cactus.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 20, 2014 10:14:19 GMT -5
#5. Keith Moon
The ultimate crazy man behind the kit….and most places, it turned out.
I heard "Won't Get Fooled Again" in 1971, after just getting my first drum kit. Never heard a rock drummer that "busy" before. I doubt he played many songs the same way twice. Unorthodox fills galore, cymbal crashes in random places….but it all worked and was delivered with precision.
Just found Moon's isolated drum track from that tune. The energy and proficiency is undeniable. Drummers can still learn many things from him.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 20, 2014 10:29:20 GMT -5
#6. Don Brewer
I took drum lessons for two winters in 1971 and 1972. My drum teacher told me to buy a Grand Funk album to hear clear examples of syncopated foot/hand rhythms in songs. He was right. I have all their albums and know every beat. Never anything crazy like Moon, Brewer was easy to follow…and still rocky enough to be cool. The first album I bought was "Grand Funk Live Album". A double LP for $5. My parents were happy about the price…but I was moved out to the barn to practice once I really got into it. Brewer is as rock solid as you'd want in a drummer…powerful and fast…but not flashy. "We're An American Band", which he wrote, was recognized by Q107 Toronto as the #1 cowbell rock intro. He's still touring with his version of GFR….and has been Bob Seger's main drummer since the mid-80s. In fact, they were just on Letterman.
Part of Brewer's solo from a 1974 concert at the L.A. Forum.
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Post by franko on Dec 20, 2014 11:14:47 GMT -5
ah, the 70s, where every concert featured a drum solo.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 20, 2014 12:35:13 GMT -5
ah, the 70s, where every concert featured a drum solo. The drum solo is still a part of many rock shows to this day….as there are so many great drummers who deserve the spotlight. The rock bass solo before the drum solo was a definitely a staple of the era in this thread. And that took its pattern from jazz, which gave every player centre stage to show off. The jazz/progressive rock drummers have always been insanely great....but that's another thread. #7. John Bonham Got into Zeppelin around 1973, so I had some catching up to do. Zeppelin has come under fire in recent years for "stealing" riffs from blues and other artists…but Bonham was a powerhouse innovator. Not much needs to be said about his drumming. His influence is timeless. It took me years to figure out the timing of his intro to "Rock and Roll" on their 4th album. Still learning from his work, as I recently got his signature groove in "Fool in the Rain"….polyrhythmic in the chorus, as the ride cymbal plays 6 beats in the space the hi-hat foot plays 4, and the kick and snare continue the verse pattern. Very cool. Here's the isolated drum track from that song. (Sorry about Bonzo's f-bomb at the beginning…but can't be helped.) |
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Post by franko on Dec 20, 2014 13:22:31 GMT -5
ah, the 70s, where every concert featured a drum solo. The drum solo is still a part of many rock shows to this day obviously I'm going to the wrong concerts.  |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Dec 20, 2014 18:56:05 GMT -5
I couldn't tell you which drummers made a difference to me, but being a Black Sabbath fan I'd have to say Bill Ward was impressive ... not a classic rock band, but very influential just the same ...
Cheers.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 20, 2014 19:45:10 GMT -5
Black Sabbath was "hard" classic rock….a pre-cursor to metal….but still classic rock in my books, Dis.
Ward wasn't one of my influences at the time, but when I listen now, he certainly could've been. So many great drummers of that era.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 21, 2014 10:28:47 GMT -5
#8. Ian Paice
"Smoke on the Water" hit AM radio in 1973…but it was the other songs on Deep Purple's "Machine Head" that got me intrigued with Ian Paice. His fills were loaded with rudiments…i.e. long rolls, paradiddles, six-stroke rolls, etc….and I had never focussed on that before. Of course, jazz drumming has always been full of lightning-fast rudimentary players, but I wasn't into jazz at that point. Paice was the fastest I'd heard in rock to that point, so he became an instant inspiration.
A classic Paice solo from 1972.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 21, 2014 10:42:41 GMT -5
#9. Carl Palmer.
I can't name many Emerson, Lake, and Palmer tunes. Never owned an album, 8-track, or cassette of theirs back in the day. I wasn't a fan of all their music…just Palmer's drumming.
Another drummer who inspired me to practice rudiments. Here's a solo from last year, aged 63.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 21, 2014 11:06:00 GMT -5
#10. Neil Peart
Duh! Only me and every other drummer on the planet would cite him as an influence. Clean, fast, surgical, technological.
"Fly By Night" came out in 1975, and it's the only Rush album I've owned as I wasn't a fan of their esoteric lyrics and multi-movements….and Lee's voice grated on me. Personal taste.
But their mainstream hits "Fly by Night, The Spirit of Radio", "Limelight", etc…told me all I needed to know about their proficiency.
Still going strong as a world-wide draw into their 60s….but here's a clip of them performing to the "Anthem" track in-studio….1975.
Just kids of about 22.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 21, 2014 11:21:17 GMT -5
#!!. Mitch Mitchell
Have to go backwards for this one. I wasn't into the Jimi Hendrix Experience until my mid-teens. I was too young for "Are You Experienced" in 1967. And I hadn't seen any clips of Hendrix, other than some Woodstock footage here and there. Nothing extensive in order to focus on Mitchell.
But I decided to pick up a copy of that album in about 1975, solely because of the number of great, classic tunes on it: "Hey Joe", "Purple Haze", "Foxy Lady", "The Wind Cries Mary", "Manic Depression", "Fire"…and was amazed at Mitchell's playing. He, too, was using rudiments for lightning quickness…and he became an instant influence.
A Mitchell solo from 1969.
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Post by CentreHice on Dec 21, 2014 12:18:41 GMT -5
Honourable classic rock mentions. I'll add to the list as I recall them.
*Bobby Caldwell (Captain Beyond; Johnny Winter; and others).
*Cozy Powell (Rainbow; Jeff Beck Group; and others)
*Neal Smith (Alice Cooper)
*Bill Ward (Black Sabbath) I've seen clips on YouTube of the early Sabbath days. Wow! Powerful and quick.
*Ron Bushy (Iron Butterfly….just for his classic solo in "In-a-Gadda-da-Vida")
*Jerry Edmonton (Steppenwolf)
*Jim Gordon (Derek and the Dominos; Delaney & Bonnie; and countless sessions/hits including the Everly Brothers, Beach Boys "Pet Sounds", Steely Dan "Pretzel Logic". Gordon developed schizophrenia and, tragically, murdered his mother in 1983. Still serving time in a psychiatric prison in California.)
*Garry Peterson (The Guess Who) His work on "Undone" remains a listening staple.
*Reg Isidore (Robin Trower) His work on Trower's "Bridge of Sighs" album is worth a listen.
*Clive Bunker (Jethro Tull). Tull's "Aqualung" is full of great Bunker performances.
*Corky Laing (Mountain; West, Bruce & Laing)
*The session drummers used for The Monkees recordings. Even though Mickey Dolenz plays on their "Headquarters" album, he served as zero inspiration, as I knew he was faking it on the show. I mention the Monkees only because I was right in their TV show demographic, being 7 when it began airing. So, I got the albums and pored over every song, definitely being influenced by some tight drumming.
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Post by CentreHice on Jul 5, 2017 12:37:29 GMT -5
Modern-day drummers....wow! A ton of monster players out there. Sadly, one such drummer passed away recently-- John Blackwell Jr.He was only 43....known mainly for being in Prince's band. Speed, dynamics, and precision--with stick twirls thrown in for flair. |
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Post by blny on Jul 5, 2017 17:30:32 GMT -5
"You done it. You done hired the hit maker." Perhaps the most prolific session drummer of all time. His shuffle famously aped by Bonham in "Fool in the Rain" and Porcarro in "Rosanna".
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Post by CentreHice on Jul 5, 2017 19:09:56 GMT -5
Good one, blny. Purdie was very influential.
I've recently learned both of those grooves...Fool and Rosanna. Very tasty.
They're not exact copies of the Purdie Shuffle, but based on the same elements.
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Post by blny on Jul 5, 2017 20:16:01 GMT -5
Good one, blny. Purdie was very influential. I've recently learned both of those grooves... Fool and Rosanna. Very tasty. They're not exact copies of the Purdie Shuffle, but based on the same elements. They put they're own spin yeah. Porcaro even admits in his Drummerworld demo from back in the day that he borrowed heavily from both and added the Bo Diddley beat on the kick drum. Nothing new really. Artists 'borrow' from those that influence them all the time. |
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Post by CentreHice on Jul 5, 2017 20:32:01 GMT -5
Good one, blny. Purdie was very influential. I've recently learned both of those grooves... Fool and Rosanna. Very tasty. They're not exact copies of the Purdie Shuffle, but based on the same elements. They put they're own spin yeah. Porcaro even admits in his Drummerworld demo from back in the day that he borrowed heavily from both and added the Bo Diddley beat on the kick drum. Nothing new really. Artists 'borrow' from those that influence them all the time. Yes, that's how it all evolves. Learn from what the previous/current greats have done/are doing and move it to the next level. I enjoy paying tribute to the pioneers/previous generations....but I'm going to start a thread on today's monster drummers...players who are on another planet. |
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Post by blny on Jul 5, 2017 20:39:24 GMT -5
They put they're own spin yeah. Porcaro even admits in his Drummerworld demo from back in the day that he borrowed heavily from both and added the Bo Diddley beat on the kick drum. Nothing new really. Artists 'borrow' from those that influence them all the time. Yes, that's how it all evolves. Learn from what the previous/current greats have done/are doing and move it to the next level. I enjoy paying tribute to the pioneers/previous generations....but I'm going to start a thread on today's monster drummers...players who are on another planet. Check out Meytal Cohen (on youtube) if you haven't already. She does covers largely, but has been involved in some original works. She covers a lot of heavy music, but there is a mix in there if you search. She's quite good and genuinely enjoys the act of playing. |
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Post by CentreHice on Jul 5, 2017 20:46:02 GMT -5
Yes, I've seen her vids. Excellent drummer.
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Jul 6, 2017 6:29:27 GMT -5
I can't post any You Tube vids because they block You Tube here at work ... I knew Tommy Price played for Joan Jett and the Black Hearts, but I didn't know he also played for Blue Oyster Cult, one of my fave bands of the 70's/80's ... never knew he drummed for Billy Idol also ... another drummer I liked was the late Dave Early ... I knew of him when he drummed for Chris Rea, but I never knew he played for Sade and Van Morrison ... Cheers. |
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Post by CentreHice on Apr 23, 2018 9:25:46 GMT -5
Another prolific drummer in the "session" era of Top 40 hit-making was Hal Blaine of "The Wrecking Crew". He couldn't help but be influential...as his work was pervasive in the 60s and into the 70s. Here's a partial list of Blaine's studio repertoire. Hal BlaineFrom Wikipedia: He has played on 40 number one hit singles, 150 top ten hits and has performed on, by his own accounting, over 35,000 recorded tracks. He is widely regarded as one of the most prolific drummers in rock and roll history, having "certainly played on more hit records than any drummer in the rock era".
A little known Grammy Awards achievement by Blaine is that he played on six consecutive Record of the Year winners:
Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in 1966 for "A Taste of Honey";
Frank Sinatra in 1967 for "Strangers in the Night";
The 5th Dimension in 1968 and 1970 for "Up, Up and Away" and "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In";
Simon & Garfunkel in 1969 and 1971 for "Mrs. Robinson" and "Bridge over Troubled Water".
In 2018, Blaine received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.From one YouTube video: Bruce Gary of The Knack once said he was disappointed to find out that 10 of his favorite drummers were Hal Blaine.  |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Apr 23, 2018 13:42:06 GMT -5
#2. Charlie Watts. I heard "Get Off Of My Cloud" in 1965 or 1966. My mother always had the Stones or Beatles playing in the house ... the flipside to "Get Off of My Cloud" was "Play with fire" and it was a 45 that would play quite a bit in our house ... "Brown Sugar" was a huge fave in our house, but I'm not so sure Mom would've liked it had she known what the song was about ... oh yeah ... drummers ... don't want to be too harsh on one of the most well-known drummers of his time, but while Charlie Watts could carry a beat I didn't find him 'up there' as far as spectacular drummers went ... question for you, CH ... what kind of drummer was Garry Burghoff ... |
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Post by CentreHice on Apr 23, 2018 16:35:15 GMT -5
Agree on Watts, Dis. He wasn't spectacular....but influential nonetheless being in one of the most famous rock and roll bands. The AM Top 40 hit machine was the way to go....and you had to keep it simple.
I think Watts may have a jazz background...which many of that era shared as rock and roll was fairly new. I know that he formed a jazz band later in his Stones' career, so maybe he shows more proficiency in that style.
Back then, rock drumming was evolving from jazz/big band/swing/blues...and Watts was one of the pioneers, no question.
Burghoff was also a jazz drummer....don't think he was famous for it, though.
He had a deformed left hand, which he hid most of the time from the M*A*S*H cameras...using a clipboard, e.g.
I mention it only because it certainly didn't seem to hurt his traditional left-hand stick grip.
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Post by CentreHice on Mar 12, 2019 11:35:08 GMT -5
Another prolific drummer in the "session" era of Top 40 hit-making was Hal Blaine of "The Wrecking Crew". He couldn't help but be influential...as his work was pervasive in the 60s and into the 70s. Here's a partial list of Blaine's studio repertoire. Hal BlaineFrom Wikipedia: He has played on 40 number one hit singles, 150 top ten hits and has performed on, by his own accounting, over 35,000 recorded tracks. He is widely regarded as one of the most prolific drummers in rock and roll history, having "certainly played on more hit records than any drummer in the rock era".
A little known Grammy Awards achievement by Blaine is that he played on six consecutive Record of the Year winners:
Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in 1966 for "A Taste of Honey";
Frank Sinatra in 1967 for "Strangers in the Night";
The 5th Dimension in 1968 and 1970 for "Up, Up and Away" and "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In";
Simon & Garfunkel in 1969 and 1971 for "Mrs. Robinson" and "Bridge over Troubled Water".
In 2018, Blaine received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.From one YouTube video: Bruce Gary of The Knack once said he was disappointed to find out that 10 of his favorite drummers were Hal Blaine. Blaine passed away March 11th at 90. |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Jun 13, 2020 11:11:23 GMT -5
... it's a bit dated but it caught my interest in Twitter ...
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