Living Dead Drummer
Platinum Member
I was just informed about the passing of my friend Ndugu Chancler. He and I met at a NAMM show some 4 or 5 years back. We quickly became friends and started having regular social meetings over coffee.
As a musician who's worked more than half his life at getting "the big prize" I've become a bit jaded. Therefor I've had very few "religious experiences" when watching others perform. One of these moments came the first time I watched Ndugu play. It was one specific moment at a privet event. While performing with a trio, he did a drum fill. But it wasn't a fill. It was nothing. It was a pause in the song, when he simply accentuated a one bar rest. Yet in my head I heard a flurry of notes around the drums that wasn't really being played. It was the most emotional thing I'd ever felt watching another drummer.
I'm sorry to see you leave, but glad to have called you my friend.
As a musician who's worked more than half his life at getting "the big prize" I've become a bit jaded. Therefor I've had very few "religious experiences" when watching others perform. One of these moments came the first time I watched Ndugu play. It was one specific moment at a privet event. While performing with a trio, he did a drum fill. But it wasn't a fill. It was nothing. It was a pause in the song, when he simply accentuated a one bar rest. Yet in my head I heard a flurry of notes around the drums that wasn't really being played. It was the most emotional thing I'd ever felt watching another drummer.
I'm sorry to see you leave, but glad to have called you my friend.