The Greats
Modern Drummer is the world’s most widely read drum magazine, is dedicated entirely to the art of drumming and caters to the needs of amateur, semi-pro, and professional drummers.
Rashied Ali : Coltrane’s Free Thinker
Rashied Ali was one of the progenitors of “free jazz” drumming, a stylization in which the typical guidelines and expectations of time and meter are ignored in favor of a looser approach that seeks to incorporate ideas of rhythm, melody,…
Barrett Deems: The Original Speed Demon
Though Barrett Deems was known as “the world’s fastest drummer”—resulting in his earning premier billing at Chicago’s Randolph Square in the 1940s and accolades from Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich—Deems’ effortless swing, solid time, and propulsive drive were the traits…
Roger Taylor: Queen’s Big Beat
Queen was one of the most influential rock bands of the ’70s and ’80s, and continues to be massively popular today despite the untimely death of lead singer Freddie Mercury nearly twenty years ago. Churning out hit after hit, Mercury…
Earl Palmer: An Original, By Any Measure
If you said that Earl Palmer is famous for being the most recorded drummer in history, you wouldn’t get too many arguments. But you’d also only be telling half the story. As house drummer at Cosimo Matassa’s J&M Studio in…
Kenny "Klook" Clarke
Kenny Clarke emerged from the swing bands of the '30s, but was actually the first important drummer of the bop era. Born in Pittsburgh in 1914, Clarke began his career with Roy Eldridge and around the Midwest with the Jeter-Pillars…
O’Neil Spencer: Show Drumming’s Shooting Star
Solidly rooted in the Sid Catlett school of drumming was O’Neil Spencer, a somewhat lesser-known player who nonetheless had a significant effect on the musicians he played with and the drummers who heard him. Spencer was born in Cedarville, Ohio,…
Simon Phillips: The Drummer As Perfectionist
It was an exciting time for drumming. The year was 1980, and a twenty-three-old drummer from England, Simon Phillips, was being introduced to the global music community through his stellar work with artists such as Jeff Beck, Pete Townshend, and…
Chuck Biscuits: Punk Journeyman
Chuck Biscuits has had a major impact on punk music. Even if you don’t know his name, you’ve surely heard of some of the bands he’s pounded the skins for: Danzig, Social Distortion, Fear, D.O.A., Circle Jerks, and Black Flag,…
Fred Below: Elder Statesman Of Chicago Blues Drummers
After graduating from DuSable High School, Fred Below joined the Army in 1945, returned to the Windy City in ’46 and attended the famed Roy Knapp School Of Percussion, and re-enlisted in 1948. Returning to Chicago in 1951, Below began…
Todd Sucherman: Exploring Every Angle With Styx
Styx is a band known for their over-the-top stage shows and epic chart-toppers like “Mr. Roboto,” “Too Much Time On My Hands,” “Come Sail Away,” and “Babe.” When original Styx drummer John Panozzo was unable to tour in 1996, Todd…
Sheila E: Way Beyond Latin
Sheila E, daughter of veteran percussionist Pete Escovedo, developed her natural talent by watching family members and friends gather in her home. Sheila was only eighteen when she carved her spot in music history, playing the hippest of gigs, like…
Ray McKinley: Jimmy Dorsey And Glenn Miller’s Authoritative, Sensitive Swinger
Ray McKinley was born in Fort Worth, Texas, and began playing at the age of four. Though self-taught, he was inspired to play by pit drummer Jimmy Grimes. His career began in the Fort Worth and Dallas areas with local…
The Greats: Jack DeJohnette
When Jack DeJohnette hooked up with trendsetting trumpeter Miles Davis in 1969, the drummer was immediately thrust into the media spotlight as he became a main rhythmic catalyst behind Davis’s revolutionary electronic jazz sound. With that band, Jack appeared on…
The Greats: Jeff Porcaro
Jeff Porcaro was born on April 1, 1954, in Hartford, Connecticut. After moving to California with his family, he took an interest in drumming at an early age and began studying with his dad, Joe, who remains a well-known studio…
