Top 5 Fav Drummers (inspirational to your style)

hmmm...yes...experienced drummers don´t need to physically bash their drums to get a loud sound...but i was thinking more of the last two licks of ¨Hot Stuff¨ (album version), the intro cracks of ¨Beast Of Burden¨ and ¨Tumbling Dice¨ (before the drums are lowered in the mix.

then again, maybe it was Martin Chambers i was thinking of....lol.

¨All Down The Line¨, ¨Heartbreaker¨" and ¨Bitch¨ are examples of the PUSH i was referring to.

regarding INXS - ¨Don´t Change¨ is some FINE drumming and is next on my list of Licks To Get.

Yeah, Hot Stuff is great. My fave Stones and Charlie track is Can't You Hear me Knocking. Very tasty stuff.

For Jon Farris, may I recommend Burn for You.


you don't have to listen to Meg to hear simplicity!

That's true, Swiss. However, I can't change the past and it was Meg who did the job for me. Yeah yeah, I know she's extraordinary in her ordinariness but I like kinda dodgy drummers - they give me hope :)

I know Vinnie can and does do everything but he's not one of my go-to guys - especially not for simplicity. I'm an Earthling and he's an alien ...
 
Tony Williams
Jack De Johnette
Art Blakey
Buddy Rich
John Bonham

If it were a pure favorites list Elvin Jones would replace De Johnette.
 
I like the "inspirational to your style" qualifier here. Makes the list more interesting. It also makes me wonder if others would hear the same influences in our playing that we cite here.

Steve Gadd
Tony Williams
Elvin Jones
Neil Peart
Max Roach
 
I always forget about those two...lol

I think his best album with them was either Ghost Reveries, Blackwater Park, or Still Life.
They're all great though

Yah i know what you mean. Orchid and Morningrise almost seem like they're from a completely different band (I like them, but not at the level that I'm obsessed with the rest of them).

Still Life was the 1st Opeth album I checked out and has always been my favorite (which is probably obvious from my avatar).
 
He was amazing to watch play. But he was really arrogant, I guess thats just part of the Chicago way though

You must have caught him on a really bad night! I have followed his entire career; from the early jamming days of Chicago (late '60's, early '70's) when he was incredible fast, creative, but appropriately "reserved" as someone said. Mid to late '70's when he really matured as a player and incorporated more jazz into his playing. During the '80's with the ballads was really a waste of his talents. His recent re-entry into playing shows that, like most of us old farts, he came to realize sometimes less is more.
He maybe can't do some of the things of his youth, be he still is a great, creative drummer. Never bought or understood Chicago firing him for his "declining chops". I saw him on his last tour with them in '89/'90; he could still cook!
I was fortunate enough to see him with his then new band, CTA, a few years back on a trip up north. They are a super tight, great group of musicians! I spoke with Danny at two different gigs back then and he could not have been nicer and more humble! We continue to exchange emails occasionally and he comes across as just a great guy. He has a new book out called "Street Player; My Chicago Story". An interesting/easy read. CTA also has a new cd coming out and Danny has a new instructional dvd.
By far, he was most influential in my playing. Gadd, Steve Smith, Ritchie Hayward and Rich being the others. Sorry you had a bad experience with him; that doesn't appear to be the type of person he is, at least now days.
 
My teachers.
Virgil Donati.
Sunil De Silva.
Peter Luscombe.
Ken Campagna.
Graham Morgan.
 
You must have caught him on a really bad night! I have followed his entire career; from the early jamming days of Chicago (late '60's, early '70's) when he was incredible fast, creative, but appropriately "reserved" as someone said. Mid to late '70's when he really matured as a player and incorporated more jazz into his playing. During the '80's with the ballads was really a waste of his talents. His recent re-entry into playing shows that, like most of us old farts, he came to realize sometimes less is more.
He maybe can't do some of the things of his youth, be he still is a great, creative drummer. Never bought or understood Chicago firing him for his "declining chops". I saw him on his last tour with them in '89/'90; he could still cook!
I was fortunate enough to see him with his then new band, CTA, a few years back on a trip up north. They are a super tight, great group of musicians! I spoke with Danny at two different gigs back then and he could not have been nicer and more humble! We continue to exchange emails occasionally and he comes across as just a great guy. He has a new book out called "Street Player; My Chicago Story". An interesting/easy read. CTA also has a new cd coming out and Danny has a new instructional dvd.
By far, he was most influential in my playing. Gadd, Steve Smith, Ritchie Hayward and Rich being the others. Sorry you had a bad experience with him; that doesn't appear to be the type of person he is, at least now days.
I always saw him as a nice guy too. Actually I think the break was more about him trying to take over the day to day responsibilities of the band seeing as how most of the other guys were having bad habit problems that were getting in the way of the business. During all that time Seraphine was supposedly the straight arrow guy. They resented him for trying to in their eyes take over the band, so they sacked him and dissed him in public. The declining chops crack was pushed out there to be especially hurtful because it was a surreal accusation. No less than Buddy Rich himself had praised Seraphine's chops.

None of us were there but a great deal of that came out in the VH1 Behind the Music episode about them.
 
My top 5 favs, and top 5 inspiration to my style are two different things.

Top 5 favs would read:
1) Terry Bozzio
2) Neil Peart
3) Greg Bissonette
4) Gene Krupa
5) Steve Smith

top inspirations to way I actually sound in bands
1) Scott Rockenfield
2) Deen Castronovo
3) Larry Mullen Jr
4) Stan Lynch
5) Kenny Arnoff
 
Yeah, Hot Stuff is great. My fave Stones and Charlie track is Can't You Hear me Knocking. Very tasty stuff.

For Jon Farris, may I recommend Burn for You.

you may indeed. i checked it out, but didn´t want to derail the thread anymore than we already have (if indeed we have : ) ).

ahhh sweet pontification.

we can continue with these and other thoughts if you like. name the time and place.
 
Yah i know what you mean. Orchid and Morningrise almost seem like they're from a completely different band (I like them, but not at the level that I'm obsessed with the rest of them).

Still Life was the 1st Opeth album I checked out and has always been my favorite (which is probably obvious from my avatar).

Still Life is an amazing album. That, Ghost Reveries and Watershed are my favorites. I can't get sick of them no matter how hard I try!
 
Yah i know what you mean. Orchid and Morningrise almost seem like they're from a completely different band (I like them, but not at the level that I'm obsessed with the rest of them).

Still Life was the 1st Opeth album I checked out and has always been my favorite (which is probably obvious from my avatar).

I'm the other way around, Morningrise is my favourite Opeth album, the only albums that compare are Damnation and Orchid.
 
i checked it out, but didn´t want to derail the thread anymore than we already have (if indeed we have : ) ).

ahhh sweet pontification.

we can continue with these and other thoughts if you like. name the time and place.

Never mind, it's just a bunch of lists and a chat about Danny Seraphine's personality :) BTW, I loved Danny's style on Chicago's early albums, especially the debut album. Was never much of a fan of their songs but the raves they'd go on mid-song when the band would open up were well worth the price of admission. Really enjoyed Terry Kath's raw SG sound too ... poor guy only made it to his 30s.

Listening back to Job Farris's playing in INXS it struck me what a bizarre time the 80s was ... if you didn't have that weird ultra-gated, super-compressed sound (or synth drums) you were considered dated. Some good pop came out of the 80s but it seems like only Larry Mullen Jr and Stewart Copeland are regulars in these lists from that era. I relate to that because I always preferred the more organic styles from the 60s and early/mid 70s.
 
Never mind, it's just a bunch of lists and a chat about Danny Seraphine's personality :) BTW, I loved Danny's style on Chicago's early albums, especially the debut album. Was never much of a fan of their songs but the raves they'd go on mid-song when the band would open up were well worth the price of admission. Really enjoyed Terry Kath's raw SG sound too ... poor guy only made it to his 30s.

Listening back to Job Farris's playing in INXS it struck me what a bizarre time the 80s was ... if you didn't have that weird ultra-gated, super-compressed sound (or synth drums) you were considered dated. Some good pop came out of the 80s but it seems like only Larry Mullen Jr and Stewart Copeland are regulars in these lists from that era. I relate to that because I always preferred the more organic styles from the 60s and early/mid 70s.

k.

i like Chicago too. it is a CRIME that they aren´t in the Rock Hall. guess those 80´s ballads really did them in rep-wise. even still, there was a good amount of uptempo tunes among in those 80´s singles. they seemed to lose the jazz and experimental flavor though and now that i think about it, i don´t remember the horns being present at all. ¨Along Comes A Woman¨ and ¨Stay The Night¨ weren´t ballads AND they were really good songs. and most of the ballads were pretty good too. i hate Bill Champlain though.

the INXS song was mostly a drum machine bed with overlaid rim shots. i´m not a fan of rim play (or bell work), but i usually like Farris´ rim work, as on ¨I Need You Tonight¨. his rim hits are more solid than other player´s and less rattley. i like that.

the Funk Hump (as i call it)...the lick that goes Ba-dooomp :p is one of my favorite licks (hopefully i don´t use it too often). i feel it is better utilised in more focused tracks like this:

MFSB - Love Is The Message
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuUvGh9-Ef4

and this:

Prince - Sexy Dancer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnaZkkm306Y
 
Listening back to Job Farris's playing in INXS it struck me what a bizarre time the 80s was ... .
Farris was (is) an interesting drummer. Totally different approach then really anyone. He wasn't much into playing the drum set in a normal fashion. He loved to layer tracks and using odd sounds. He was almost more a percussion composer than a drum set player. But then he could surprise you with totally tasty normal drumming on "Never tear Us Apart."

I always loved what he came up with for songs like "The One Things" "Don't Change" and others.

Larry Mullen Jr has always been a favorite. What I love about his drumming on those early albums is he didn't play beats and fills, he played rhythmic hooks that became just as important has the guitar hooks in making the songs. What may have lacked in technically skills he more than made up for in being super creative.
 
UFF, you're probably right about Chicago. When they took out the jazzy and edgy bits they poured out the beer and only offered up froth. I don't think losing the personality of Danny's drumming helped either.

But I can't find the "ba-doomp" lick you're referring to in those links. Can you help out an old lady and give me the times when it's done? :)

DED, I always thought Jon played those things as one track rather than overdubbed. It's all do-able (which of course doesn't mean it was done :). But yeah, some of the quirks that really made the song for me were missing live (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_yeVpAVDXs). That ultra-staccato sound in the studio is very unforgiving - your timing has to be spot on (eg. I Send A Message). Michael Urbano was perhaps one of the best drummers of the 80s bands. Tight as a fish's behind but he was never an influence on me.

80s drumming is the style that caused me to quit playing - having to play fat monster backbeats super-clean and to strip out so much of the ghosting and little musical interactions that I pretty well live for when I play. I never played more tightly than I did back then - every note was scripted - and I never found drumming to be such a chore. Once I realised I couldn't "make it" and avoid the dreaded normal 9-to-5 existence and all the family crap there was nothing to hold me.

I consider myself a 60s/70s kind of drummer influenced by people of those times, so every time I play someone a track of my old bands and someone says it sounds 80s I die a little lol
 
DED, I always thought Jon played those things as one track rather than overdubbed. It's all do-able (which of course doesn't mean it was done :). But yeah, some of the quirks that really made the song for me were missing live (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_yeVpAVDXs). That ultra-staccato sound in the studio is very unforgiving - your timing has to be spot on (eg. I Send A Message). Michael Urbano was perhaps one of the best drummers of the 80s bands. Tight as a fish's behind.
l

I never meant to imply everything was over dubbed. The One Thing and such are doable.
But on Kick, songs like "Need You Tonight" have two parts going on at the same time. There has to be overdub unless he grew a 3rd arm.. "Devil Inside" is a mix of loops and real drums. "Mystify" is interesting. Was it all e-pads, or layers? I'm not sure.
The only point was he was never afraid to experiment. It's clear the idea of "I'll do this to impress other drummers" never crossed his mind. Heck, "Mediate" is just a drum machine, and even in the live version, John just plays a shaker over the machine part.
 
I never meant to imply everything was over dubbed. The One Thing and such are doable.
But on Kick, songs like "Need You Tonight" have two parts going on at the same time. There has to be overdub unless he grew a 3rd arm.. "Devil Inside" is a mix of loops and real drums. "Mystify" is interesting. Was it all e-pads, or layers? I'm not sure.
The only point was he was never afraid to experiment. It's clear the idea of "I'll do this to impress other drummers" never crossed his mind. Heck, "Mediate" is just a drum machine, and even in the live version, John just plays a shaker over the machine part.

Okay, I see what you mean. I was thinking more of his earlier stuff. He definitely an original approach.
 
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