The 20 Best Drummers of All Time _ L.A

12/5/2015 The 20 Best Drummers of All Time | L.A. Weekly

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BY L.A. WEEKLY

THE 20 BEST DRUMMERS OF ALL TIMETUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014 | 6 MONTHS AGO

Keith Moon circa 1975.

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As anyone who's ever started a garage band knows, you can get away with only knowing

three chords and two basslines but if your drummer can't keep a beat, you're never making

it out of that garage. Behind every great band lies an even greater drummer, and hidden away

behind all those cymbals and high-hats, many of the greatest ones never get their due.

So in the words of the immortal James Brown, let's give the drummer some! Here are -"

8FFLMZ's picks for the 20 greatest drummers of all time, in any genre.

20. Tommy Lee



20. Tommy Lee

The comedian Dane Cook once said of Tommy Lee: "He's the only guy in the world who fucks

as often as he uses the word fuck." So what does Lees sex life have to do with his drumming?

Well, when it comes to banging (the drums), voraciousness counts for a lot. Lees actual skill

level can be questioned, sure. But with the exception of maybe Keith Moon, no other

drummer gives off the giddy mojo of his grooves in quite the same way, even amidst pyro,

props and his bandmates attention-whorish antics. Beyond the rotating stage contraptions

and roller-coaster-riding solos of later-era Cre, Lees shameless charisma and ear for dancier

rhythms gave both his bands sound and showmanship something special and not just Dirk

Diggler special. Lina Lecaro

Max Roach in New York, circa 1947.

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19. Max Roach

Known for his work with every member of jazzs high nobility and for his role in creating

bebop, Roach not only advanced the art of drumming, he pretty much invented it. Before he

came around, bands used drummers exclusively as beat and time-keeping machines. But the

teen prodigy, needing space to create in the '40s, changed the entire game. By moving the

driving beat to the ride cymbal, rather than the bass drum, he made room to innovate on the

rest of the kit while maintaining flow and rhythm for his bandmates in effect turning

drummers into four-limbed artists. While this seems like a no-brainer today, it was like

shifting from tintype to HD overnight. Paul T. Bradley



Neil Peart in concert with Rush, 2004.

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18. Neil Peart

In his 40-year run with Canadian prog-rock legends Rush, Neil Peart has taken the virtuosic

excesses of rock n roll to amazingly absurd extremes. His intricate flourishes and complex

time signatures match his lyrics about philosophy, mythology, fantasy and fame. His oversized

drum set has compelled an untold number of gear heads to blow their savings on extraneous

cymbals and toms. His extravagant, eight-minute-plus concert solos in which his kit has

been known to literally rotate mid-beat are as delightful as a Six Flags thrill ride. Peart and

his bandmates have gotten a lot of guff from critics over the years, but among multiple

generations of musicians and fans, the 62-year-old drum maestro remains a deeply inspiring

figure, always rocking as hard as he can in his trademark kufi cap. Peter Holslin

17. Questlove

Now that The Roots are 5IF5POJHIU4IPX's house band, it's easy to forget that back in their

early days, the notion of a rap group with live instruments was practically hip-hop heresy.

That they eventually won not only acceptance, but reverence, was thanks largely to their

drummer, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, a Philly kid with jazz training, a spectacular 'fro, and

a prodigious gift for reproducing hip-hop's looped, syncopated rhythms with fluid, muscular

precision. Questlove does with his sticks what a great DJ does with his record crate, distilling

50 years of popular music down to a few indelible grooves, serving up history in a snare hit.

And on relentless Roots classics like "The Seed" and "Here I Come," it's history you can shake



And on relentless Roots classics like "The Seed" and "Here I Come," it's history you can shake

your ass to. Andy Hermann

Alex Van Halen behind his kit, 2012.

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16. Alex Van Halen

Hes responsible for some of the most exceptional drum rock intros of all time (Hot For

Teacher, Everybody Wants Some), but thats not all that sets Alex Van Halen apart from the

smack pack. Like his brother Eddie, Alex Van Halen is a bona fide virtuoso, a drummer

possessed of equal parts technical chops and playful enthusiasm. Using his kit, sticks and

body in ways others never quite pulled off, Alexs audacious assaults were the perfect

backdrop for Eddies dizzying guitar work and Diamond Daves frontman flamboyance. He

didnt have to do as much during the Van Hagar era, but its the early materials crazy snare

patterns, speed-metal tempos and ingenious kick drum arrangements that prove the band

name is as much in homage to him as his brother. Lina Lecaro

15. Tony Williams

When someone like Miles Davis says: There aint but one Tony Williams when it comes to

playing the drums. There was nobody like him before or since. He's just a motherfucker.



playing the drums. There was nobody like him before or since. He's just a motherfucker.

Well, thats really all that need be said. Williams, a man possessed by demons of beat and the

skills to make nice with them, elevated jazz drumming beyond what anyone had previously

thought possible. Recruited by Davis as a teenager, he already had the chops to be make a

nice name for himself in the already-established bop scene. But with an unhinged fury

through the 60s and 70s, he went cosmic distances on a fusion drive built on polyrythmic

complexity and powered by psych-rock voltage. Even if his jazz fusion remains (unjustly)

uncool, metalheads can still revel in the blast beats that likely wouldnt exist without him.

Paul T. Bradley

14. Chuck Biscuits

Known for his use of huge marching band sticks and even huger kits, Biscuits is the beast-like

standard-bearer of 80s hardcore drumming. Starting out as the core of Vancouvers D.O.A.,

he took his skills to Black Flag and the Circle Jerks where much of his recorded work

remains (sadly) unreleased and then on to Danzig and Social Distortion. From his early live

performances, he looks and sounds like a man taking all of his generations collective

frustrations out on his drums, smashing the shit out of them like they killed his grandma. Even

in those tinny recordings and blurry old videos, Biscuits comes through clear and ferocious.

While he faded from the public in 1999, rumors of his death have been greatly exaggerated

(and completely fabricated). Paul T. Bradley



Danny Carey at the Modern Drummer Festival, 2005.

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13. Danny Carey

At 6' 5" and built like a mythological Norse warrior, Danny Carey commands his kit like a

Viking sailing into battle, transporting every ounce of his being into Tool's complex evocation

of everything from King Crimson to ancient geometry. He has all the elements of a trained jazz

drummer and prog-rock master, able to improvise on smaller setups with his band Volto!,

while taking Tool's visceral spirit from "the manifestation of matter into the physical world."

Just listen to his unreal tribal attack on "Ticks and Leeches" for a better understanding of why

Carey is the drumming equivalent of Magic Johnson: hard rock's most complete drummer,

grooving like Bill Bruford (King Crimson/Yes), attacking like Dave Lombardo (Slayer), and

pounding his cast-bronze kit like a Shawn Kemp roundhouse drunk. Art Tavana

Janet Weiss drumming with Wild Flag at Coachella, 2012.

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12. Janet Weiss

With beats so solid you could practically bang your head against" them, according to her

bandmates, Janet Weiss has plowed through the last two decades of rock. Rhythmically

beating the hell out of a kit in acts like Steven Malkmus and the Jicks, Wild Flag, Quasi, and

the recently reunited Sleater-Kinney, Weiss has come to be known as one of the best, and

most fun, performers to watch. Stints with the Shins (for their 2012 album 1PSUPG.PSSPX),



most fun, performers to watch. Stints with the Shins (for their 2012 album 1PSUPG.PSSPX),

Bright Eyes and Conor Obersts solo work show off a softer side to the typically aggressive

Weiss. But its her forceful, attack-mode drumming (and her gorgeous, signature, circa 73

Ludwig kit) that we love her for. Artemis Thomas-Hansard

Dave Lombardo of Slayer, circa 2009.

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11. Dave Lombardo

On their crushing epic, 1986's 3FJHOJO#MPPE, Slayer's former speed demon drummer Dave

Lombardo earned the right to be called "Godfather of Double-Bass." Twenty years later, on

2006's $ISJTU*MMVTJPO, he took it to another level by showing off his scary fast technique.

Playing with Metallica during the 2004 Download Festival, Lombardo's double-bass brutality

on "Battery" sounded like a muffed machine gun which made Lars' drumming seem more

like a hobby shop BB gun. But he's not just fast; on tracks like "At Dawn They Sleep," off

1985's )FMM"XBJUT, Lombardo shows off his ability to play slow-burn and grungy, as well as

lightning fast. In other words, he was Slayer's most versatile part, and probably the most

influential metal drummer of the last 30 years. Art Tavana

10. Phil Collins

Listen to Phil Collins on 1971's "The Musical Box," where his kit carries the 10-minute Genesis

masterpiece through a precisely crafted prog drumming showcase, to understand how skilled

he was. Fast-forward to the 1980s to understand how great he was. In 1980, working on Peter

Gabriel's third solo album, Collins added reverb to his drums on the opening track "Intruder,"

followed by gating, or cutting short, the echo on his snare. The effect produced what would

become his distinct sound: gated drum reverb. Combined with his love of both tribal beats

and Motown soul, Collins created a sound that evoked the grandiosity of the era. On his first



and Motown soul, Collins created a sound that evoked the grandiosity of the era. On his first

solo single, "In the Air Tonight," it all came together on the sleekest, most melodramatic drum

break in history. Art Tavana

9. Buddy Rich

No drummer from the jazz world had more influence on rock percussion than Bernard

"Buddy" Rich. His arrival in the late '30s was without precedent: a flashy, aggressive, self-

taught Jewish kid from Manhattan, taking extended solos that showcased his dazzling speed

and intricate stick work at a time when most drummers were content to be timekeepers. Over

the years, he recorded and performed with everyone from Frank Sinatra to Louis Armstrong,

but he was best-known for leading (and berating he was famously ill-tempered) his own

high-energy bands. After his death in 1987, everyone from Neil Peart to Max Roach paid

tribute to the man who probably did more than anyone to unlock the drum kit's full potential

as an endless source of both polyrhythms and showmanship. Andy Hermann

Josh Freese performing with Devo in 2008.

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8. Josh Freese

He gives Devo a pogo-dancing backbone. Hes delivered full-body rhythmic workouts with

Nine Inch Nails. Hes proven himself a kick-ass punk drummer as a longtime member of

Orange County staples The Vandals. Oh yeah, and he co-wrote the title track to Guns N

Roses $IJOFTF%FNPDSBDZ. Josh Freese comes from humble beginnings his first gig, at 12



Roses $IJOFTF%FNPDSBDZ. Josh Freese comes from humble beginnings his first gig, at 12

years old, was playing with a Top 40 cover band at Disneyland. But this celebrated drummer-

for-hire has become a ubiquitous presence in the world of rock, having thrown down with

everybody from A Perfect Circle to Weezer to, uh, Puddle of Mudd. The fact that he can

maintain his hectic schedule at all is a small wonder, but whats truly extraordinary is his

ability to deliver solid beats no matter who he's working with. Peter Holslin

Dave Grohl at Austin City Limits, 2009.

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7. Dave Grohl

Dave Grohl may be our favorite Valley Dad (sorry, Kanye), but hes also been behind the drum



Dave Grohl may be our favorite Valley Dad (sorry, Kanye), but hes also been behind the drum

kit in some of our favorite bands: Queens of the Stone Age, Nine Inch Nails, Them Crooked

Vultures and, of course, Nirvana, inarguably one of the most influential rock acts of our time.

As one of the most skilled multi-instrumentalists in the industry today, Grohl's musical

resume runs deep (he's even played guitar with David Bowie). But its his refined yet

sledgehammer style that makes him one of the best drummers of all time, a title he earned

even before he achieved rock-god status as the leader of Foo Fighters. Artemis Thomas-

Hansard

6. Sheila E.

While most of us are barely figuring out our lives in our early twenties, Shelia E. had already

been discovered by Prince and performed with Herbie Hancock, Lionel Richie, Marvin Gaye

and Diana Ross. Growing up around countless musicians her father Pete and uncle Coke

were percussionists for Santana, and her godfather was the great Tito Puente Sheila E. was

influenced by Latin jazz, funk and rock, each of which contributed to making her drumming

style the amalgam of awesomeness shes praised for. Whether shes playing on 1VSQMF3BJO,

with Ringo Starr (and Beyonc, Gloria Estefan, Kanye West you get the point), or living The

Glamorous Life as a solo artist, Sheila E. has kept the beat to some of the most important

music of the last four decades. Artemis Thomas-Hansard

5. Stephen Perkins

Janes Addictions deep, guttural rhythms are as vital to the bands sound as Perry Farrells

cosmic wail and Dave Navarros ravaging riffs. And though Eric Averys basslines might grab

more attention on track lead-ins and chorus breaks, its the drums that hold down all the good

stuff in between. Stephen Perkins has not only held down this signature sound for the L.A.

bands two-decade-plus career, hes elevated it and evolved with it. With the Janes side

project Porno for Pyros, he explored more tribal-style percussion and proved he didnt need

sticks to conjure entrancing beats. Hes a badass on the bongos and the congas, too. Then

theres Banyan, a project formed with bassist Mike Watt and guitarist Nels Cline to showcase

his more experimental leanings. But whomever he's playing with, Perkins highly recognizable

tumbling and pummeling never ceases to be riveting. Lina Lecaro



Keith Moon circa 1975.

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4. Keith Moon

Keith Moon never practiced a lick. He never trained his left foot to lead, while he jumped off

his throne and fell into a whirlwind of fills in and out of time, like a spider on speed. No,

"Moon the Loon" conducted the Who like Jackson Pollock splattering through a self-

destructive existential crisis. As a result, he gave The Who their high-flying, uncontrolled style.

To contain his exploding palette, Moon's kit would mutate into a war-like apparatus that

expanded the arsenal of the rock drummer. The big-kit setup of metal and prog was

popularized by Keith Moon in the '60s and '70s. His work on "I Need You" and "I Can't

Explain" cannot be replicated by human hands, so in a way, Moon was like a cosmic

apparition. He came and went (dead at just 32), so if you missed it, you missed the kit's most

beautiful natural disaster. Art Tavana



Charlie Watts in Switzerland, 2010, with his other band, The ABC&D of Boogie Woogie.

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3. Charlie Watts

While its been said that his bandmate Keith Richards cannot be killed by conventional

weapons, Charlie Watts is simply immortal. A self-taught jazz fanatic with an insane work

ethic, he makes 50 years of anchoring the worlds most prolific rock band look like he just

rolled out of bed that way. For someone with the skills to unleash an insane fury of beats, its

Watts groove-tinged restraint that makes his stick work so phenomenal. While the energy of

Paint it Black or the complexities of Dandelion show off his genius, the tight perfection he

displays on 4PNF(JSMT elevates him to the pantheon. Its hard to say that he alone invented

rock and roll drumming, but its quite easy to say that without him, Jagger and Richards would

be just two pub-trampled Kentish blokes and not the Rolling freakin' Stones. Paul T.

Bradley

2. Clyde Stubblefield

Watching Clyde Stubblefield break down the drum pattern from "Funky Drummer" is akin to

watching Leonardo da Vinci give a Bob Ross-style lesson on how to paint the .POB-JTB. As

James Brown's timekeeper from 1965 to 1971, Stubblefield is one of the most sampled

drummers in history, the man whose uncanny ability to deconstruct pop music's simple 4/4

rhythms into a thousand different sly syncopations laid the foundation not only for funk, but

for most of hip-hop, as well. Next time you find yourself in a club or at a wedding reception

dancing uncontrollably to "Cold Sweat," "Mother Popcorn" or, for that matter, "Mama Said

Knock You Out," just remember that you're getting down with your bad self to what

Questlove once called "a marksmans left hand unlike any drummer['s] in the 20th century."

(Honorable mention to John "Jabo" Starks, who took Stubblefield's signature style and ran

with it on later Brown hits like "Sex Machine" and "Super Bad".) Andy Hermann

1. John Bonham

Most can agree that Stairway to Heaven has been played to death, but what about John

Bonhams mammoth groove on When the Levee Breaks? Its been 43 years since it dropped

on Led Zeppelins landmark fourth album and 28 since the Beastie Boys lifted it for Rhymin

& Stealin but that beat still bangs like a mofo. And that helps explain why, after all these

years, amidst the rise of DJs and electronic music and the waning of guitar-driven rock n roll,

Bonzo is still the best. Nobody handles rhythm like he did. Nobody else has brought quite that

balance of muscle, groove and showmanship.

In the time before his death in 1980, Bonham sounded as hardy as a lumberjack. But he also

had soul, and for all the mind-bending timpani runs and hiccupping, single-foot bass-drum

triplets he could pull off on those never-ending Moby Dick solos, its his most compact

beats that make him the ultimate drum god. Stairway runs for eight minutes. The Levee

break lasts less than eight seconds and yet it holds strong, able to be looped for time

immemorial. Peter Holslin

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