Keith Moon

  • Thread starter tuckerduncan2002
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I agree with speedy i have to say- watching isle of white- no exaduration-hands down- will shut you up...do not listen to him on record cause its plain and simple s***....and anything after 1973 is also s***......catch him from any time between 1968 and 1973 and u will see.......the isle of white drumming performance almost made me quit drumming entirely after 7 years of drumming......
Keith moon was a legend....and it is because of his antics on and off stage that he dosnt get enough wrap for his drumming....and in a way that is his fault....because if he hadnt of been so wild....his name would have been much stronger than bonhams or any other.....you have to look at his influence also.....considering the style of play of other drummers around the early sixties like him....they were all plain time keepers......he made drummers noticed......any drummer today who performs on stage....should pay their respects to this drummer....because if it wasnt for his way of thinking....drummers would probably still be sitting in the shadows on stage.....instead of being such an integral part of the band.
 
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I can appreciate that last post about Moon being the first drummer to really stand out from the other instruments, but what about John bonhamn, Buddy rich, Gene Krupa, and all of these showmanship style drummers who did put the drums at the forefront of the performance? I've read and heard statements like 'Moon made the drummer noticed again,' but how can that be with Bonham and all them ripping up the stage? Is it only in Rock that this phenomon happened? If so, what about Mitch Mitchell, or Ginger Baker? It seems like drummers before them were very noticed within the context of a performance.
 
i understand what your saying curtis.....but its the timing.....keith had come out with the who a few years before bonham came out with led zeppelin......so keith was noticed for doing it first........but yeh ur right about rich and krupa....but i mean thats jazz.....when u look at rock drummers in the early 60s......you didnt have much inspiration to choose from........ringo starr (although i respect him he didnt do much for drumming....showman wise....he was just a time keeper) same as kinks drummer....i think his name was mick avory.....and stones drummer aswell...umm charlie watts or who ever he was......and whats even scarier is that keith was younger when he made it big with the who....he was only 17-18 when he had started with the who......he had played like that since his first first band the beach combers.....i mean the guy once played so hard that he sent his drum kit through the wooden floor of the stage.....that was when he was 15....i mean cumon.....that is freaky.....but yeh back to my original point.....its the timing.....he had come out before bonham and that......
 
Keith Moon... couldn't play consistently... never had a drum kit at home (so never practiced and had to re-learn to play each time he recorded) overplayed... had sloppy technique.
And that is why he's a legend.
 
I look at Keith as a representitive of a new, harder rock era. It was a turning point in the late 60's when rock drummers were becoming more "rock" and less jazz drummers playing rock.

The hitting became heavier, and the antics more outrageous. It became the norm to have a heavy-handed drum solo, and an outrageous kit.

His appeal seemed to be that of a wildman. His "Pictures of lily" was one of the first wild and customized rock kits. There was a lot to look at. He had this flailing, spastic style that mesmerized the then-audiences where were not used to such and aggressive and bombastic drumming display. Looking at that vista-lite video, the solo would not fly today. It was about hitting everything and being loud...not structure.

I have always liked the Who, but from that era, I prefer the drumming styles of Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge) and Bonzo. I was never a real big Moon fan.
 
I think The Who have some great tunes (if a bit one-dimensional) 'Won't get fooled again' 'Baba O'Reilly' and 'Pinball Wizard' are all great tracks, sometimes I would prefer to hear another drummer, sometimes I can't imagine anyone else playing those parts.

Incidentally, my mum met Pete Townsend when she was small... so that would have been early-mid 60's.
 
JW89 said:
i heard something, i dont know if its true or not, but pete townshend was talking in an interview about moon, and he said a doctor was examining moons footspeed, and his one foot alone was compatable with the speed of a machine gun, thats disgustingly fast, it makes me wanna stop playing

I am so bold to guess that this is complete nonsense
 
JW89 said:
i heard something, i dont know if its true or not, but pete townshend was talking in an interview about moon, and he said a doctor was examining moons footspeed, and his one foot alone was compatable with the speed of a machine gun, thats disgustingly fast, it makes me wanna stop playing
1. Why would a doctor be examining his foot speed?

2. Why would it take a doctor to count beats per minute?

3. The machine guns being used in the 1960's could fire between 4,000 and 6,000 rounds per minute.
 
Speedy said:
Heck No!!! lol....Bonham at one point did have a double bass setup, but he hated it with a passion.

He learned to roll his right foot so good because he was listening to Vanilla Fudge one day and he heard Carmine Appice do a double stroke on the bass drum. So Bonham thought he would try it. It took him a little bit of time but he got it. He found out one day that the double stroke Carmine did was on a double bass set and Bonham only did it with one foot! After that he speed kept on growing and growing....

Really? I'm very interested in hearing your sources for that story.
 
Just watched the goldfish video... I'm just going to say this: It's a damn good thing that gold fish have short memories.
 
Lunatic-finesse said:
i understand what your saying curtis.....but its the timing.....keith had come out with the who a few years before bonham came out with led zeppelin......so keith was noticed for doing it first........but yeh ur right about rich and krupa....but i mean thats jazz.....when u look at rock drummers in the early 60s......you didnt have much inspiration to choose from........ringo starr (although i respect him he didnt do much for drumming....showman wise....he was just a time keeper) same as kinks drummer....i think his name was mick avory.....and stones drummer aswell...umm charlie watts or who ever he was......and whats even scarier is that keith was younger when he made it big with the who....he was only 17-18 when he had started with the who......he had played like that since his first first band the beach combers....i mean the guy once played so hard that he sent his drum kit through the wooden floor of the stage.....that was when he was 15....i mean cumon.....that is freaky.....but yeh back to my original point.....its the timing.....he had come out before bonham and that......

What are you talking about? Where did you get this information? Actually I think I know what you are talking about, because after Keith Moon drummed through a wooden floor, Jesus Christ came and resurrected all the dead and sent all the believers to heaven. True story.
 
dothecrunge said:
Really? I'm very interested in hearing your sources for that story.

Check out the book "A thunder of drums" it has photos of an early double kick Ludwig that Carmine Appice got Bonzo.

0879306580.01._AA400_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
 
Re: Keith Moon video- playing vistalite solo with gold fish

Thinshells said:
Here: (scroll down)

Goldfish solo

FWIW: I really don't like the solo. Yeck.


that was one pathetic solo. yuck. but i think keith was a real rock star and could certainly wail on the drums when he wanted to. and his foot was mighty quick. i still love "live at leeds" to this very day.
 
Lunatic-finesse said:
that keith drummed straight through a wooden floor on a stage!.....

Are you sure it was Keith's drumming and not the termites?
 
Speedy said:
Bonham had an extremly heavy foot but also very fast. No one can match his right foot speed. He can keep up his bass roll forever with a great amount of speed.
Ummm....

Time to do some research!
Mike Mangini:
Current WFD Records:
Matched Grip Singles - 1,247,
Bare Hands Singles - 1,138,
Traditional Grip Singles - 1,126,
Endurance 13,222 Feet Singles in 15 Minutes
15 minutes = 900 seconds
13,222 / 900 = 14.69 beats/second! SMOKIN'

Of course John Bonham isn't around to compete against Mr. Mangini but if you've ever seen Mangini perform, you'd know just how blazing fast he is!
 
ok? I wonder where he got the bare hands idea from ;-)
 
Curtis said:
If so, what about Mitch Mitchell, or Ginger Baker?

I'm sure a drummer in a power trio would get more attention than other bands drummers. I'm not trying to argue, just saying it. I would agree that Buddy Rich and Gene Krupa brought drums to the front.
 
Speedy said:
ok? I wonder where he got the bare hands idea from ;-)

He got the idea from a jazz drummer. I don't know who.
 
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