latzanimal
Silver Member
Actually, the bottom photo (above) logo looks like Ludwig w/the L connecting to the G. Maybe?
It is... my Ludwigs on my cage that used to belong to Tommy.....
Actually, the bottom photo (above) logo looks like Ludwig w/the L connecting to the G. Maybe?
It is... my Ludwigs on my cage that used to belong to Tommy.....
Tommy is a great drummer and influence to a lot of drummers. A double bass master back in the day and now. The problem is that now w/the likes of, Lang, Minnimen, Donati, and Grant Collins they have taken double bass to a new extreme. And Jordison, Roddy, Adler and many more have extreme speed. So by todays standards, as great as Tommy is he could get looked at as average along w/ Alex Van Halen, Deen Castronova, Gregg Bissonette and others that have used it well but not gone to the extremes.
Still, Tommy is a big influence to many, many drummers. Myself included.
anyone have any pics of tommys sonors i'd kinda like to see those
Please. All the drummers you mentioned are worth listening to. A lot of the "old school" players you listed have so much more going on than sheer speed or crazy independence. Guys like Gregg Bissonette have done such a wide variety of gigs including jazz, latin, big band, pop, ect. I wonder if some of the "extreme" drummers of today could be as diverse and make it sound authentic. A lot of them are mainly doing the freakshow clinic thing, demonstrating things that would be of little use to aspiring drummers.
Tommy Aldrige is clearly influenced by drummers like Bonham, Carmine Appice, ect. He has that rock sound and feel to his playing.
I've seen certain extreme drummers sit in on straight up rock gigs and a couple times I thought it just wasn't working. Like they were out of place, with a need to throw in all the busy crazy fills. In that respect you can say that many of the old school guys are better suited for rock gigs.
Sometimes speed for speeds sake might be to blame for what's killing the art of drumming. Speed is important but not at the expense of everything else like pocket and groove.
Ok. Thats exactly my point. Cant tell if your trying to rip me or what. Tommy is a great drummer. An Icon in the Rock world. I was saying he could be considered basic by speed guys that only know about speed. Bissonette is my favorite. A versitle drummer that cant even touch Speed drummers. But thats what appeals to me about Gregg. He can play just about anything that can keep him working and in demand. The "Extreme guys have their place, but guys Like Tommy, Alex, or Neil should not be forgoten for their contribution to the drumming world. Whether today or 20 years ago.
I just think the whole speed for speeds sake is getting out of hand. It can be frustrating when you have drum students that mostly are into the extreme and speed drummers because they have a lot of trouble learning how to make music with other musicians. I'm not trying to rip anybody, just making sure that the guys that matter get their due, including a guy like Tommy Aldrige.
Fellows,
Enjoy Tommy's picture.
Cheers,
Please. All the drummers you mentioned are worth listening to. A lot of the "old school" players you listed have so much more going on than sheer speed or crazy independence. Guys like Gregg Bissonette have done such a wide variety of gigs including jazz, latin, big band, pop, ect. I wonder if some of the "extreme" drummers of today could be as diverse and make it sound authentic. A lot of them are mainly doing the freakshow clinic thing, demonstrating things that would be of little use to aspiring drummers.
Tommy Aldrige is clearly influenced by drummers like Bonham, Carmine Appice, ect. He has that rock sound and feel to his playing.
I've seen certain extreme drummers sit in on straight up rock gigs and a couple times I thought it just wasn't working. Like they were out of place, with a need to throw in all the busy crazy fills. In that respect you can say that many of the old school guys are better suited for rock gigs.
Sometimes speed for speeds sake might be to blame for what's killing the art of drumming. Speed is important but not at the expense of everything else like pocket and groove.
AMEN BRUTHA!! Extreme drumming is cool, no doubt about it and there's plenty I enjoy listening to, but I must say too much it lacks the toe tapping fun and last but not least, MUSICAL approach that makes drumming worthwhile. It seems to be a way to showcase the drummers talents and endurance and doesn't seem to be a vehicle for showcasing songwriting at least that I can hear. There of course are the exceptional talents like Derek and Flo who have time and again showed their abilities to incorporate other styles of music into their playing even though they are well known for extreme drumming.
On to Tommy,
I was quite fortunate to be able to see Tommy Aldridge with Ozzy right after Randy Rhoads passed away, it was bittersweet as it was my first time seeing Tommy in a band situation so I was excited to see that, but was sad to know Randy was gone.
I got to see him in a clinic setting out in New Jersey (a 4+ hour drive one way for me) and luckily I was there early enough to have been hanging at the local drum store there and Tommy was there hanging out too. He is a very nice man, sincerely interested in talking with folks as we found out and he was just havin' fun and cracked a few jokes as we checked out the store and conversed a bit.
I'm having trouble remembering the date and If I can dig it up I'll edit this post and add the date, but it was a clinic with Tommy Aldridge, Joe Franco and a couple of other drummers were there too, but I was so blown away with Tommy and Joe that I paid all my attention to them and I pretty much blocked out the rest! L0L!! Tommy and Joe were just mind bending, I wish I had a video to watch of that clinic.
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There ya go. That's what I'm talking about.
I hadn't seen Tommy Aldridge live in concert till more recently. I saw him play with Whitesnake maybe 4 years ago. I loved it, although he didn't do a drum solo. I think because they were on a double bill with the Scorpions so they had to do an abbreviated set. But it was amazing to see him play. That's what made me really become interested in his playing. My old drum teacher gave me a VHS copy of his instructional video from way back. Not sure if it's on DVD but they should release it that way because it's such a great video. I was also turned on to the Pat Travers record "Live: Go For What You Know" with Tommy. A definite classic.
Joe Franco is another guy I've heard a little about but should do more research on. Any key records with him to look into?
Here's an OLD pic that might bring you some laughs!!anyone have any pics of tommys sonors i'd kinda like to see those
Tommy IMHO is the only drummer that comes close too Bonham when it comes tooI just picked up a dvd of Tommy's old hot licks videos.
It has "Rock drum soloing" and "Beyond the groove". It's got some nice ideas on double bass variants vs just 16th's.
He is an interesting guy and a power drummer that is from the Appice/Bonham mold. He clearly decribes stuff Bonham did to influence him. And the new drummers aren't as "extreme" in difference as one might assume. Tommy has a ton of licks and he knows how to describe them.
I have always loved his work. I also have his Whitesnake DVD... Tommy rocks!!!