Features
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.
Ian Paice
Recording Deep Purple’s Turning to Crime When fans and critics talk about the pantheon of British greatness in heavy-rock drumming, there are the beatmasters, such as John Bonham, Ginger Baker, Keith Moon, Cozy Powell, Phil Rudd, Bill Ward, and so…
Tony Succar
Percussion Powerhous The brisk, social-media tidbit on producer/percussionist Tony Succar is that he is a wildly successful musician who has won two Grammys. There’s also the temptation to credit Succar’s accomplishments to some wild-eyed DNA profiling forged by his grandparents…
Lynn Perko-Truell
Punk-Rock Pioneer Drumming found Lynn Perko-Truell at a sweaty punk-rock show in the basement of a house in Reno, Nevada, and the spell that was cast transformed her into one of the iconic drummers of the hardcore and grunge scenes…
Hella Fun!
The 2021 Hella Mega Tour Revived Stadium Shows A stadium tour during a global pandemic could have been a disaster of epic proportions. But thanks to vaccinations being finally available, as well as stringent COVID-crowd controls, open-air venues, and a…
Jesse Bivona
The Interrupters’ Family Affair It’s clear that Sly Stone is a musical genius, but is he clairvoyant, as well? When he sang the chorus to “It’s a Family Affair,” could he have been beaming from the ‘70s into the late…
Patrick Wilson
Weezer’s Commander of Feel The waiting must have been brutal on the ferociously industrious Weezer camp. Two albums done, dusted, and ready to go—the orchestral OK Human and the hard-rocking Van Weezer—and an epic Hella Mega Tour looming, and then…
Andy Hurley
Fall Out Boy’s Disciple of Discipline Andy Hurley is ripped and super healthy. He committed to self-care early in life, becoming straight edge when he was 15 years old (no drugs, alcohol, tobacco, or any other such poisons), and going…
Tré Cool
Green Day’s Gear Geek Tré Cool has a drum warehouse. Few people outside of the Green Day family likely know exactly how many drums are in there, but after talking to Cool about his collection, I’m kind of thinking it…
Charlie’s My Darling...
The reluctant rock star.The loving husband to his beautiful wife Shirleyfor over a half a century.The fantastic father to his Seraphina.The brilliant grandfather to his Charlotte.The jazz lover/enthusiast.The Dapper Dan.The dog lover/owner.The Arabian horse owner.The classic car collector.The vintage drum…
That Seductive Charlie Watts Groove
One Style I Could Never Mimic Charlie loved music of all kinds. One of the many things we had in common. And he loved all the same drummers I did—mostly the jazz guys. But we also agreed on how great…
Charlie Watts
A Personal Remembrance and Tribute Ringo Starr and I waited at the top of his Los Angeles driveway. It was November 2006, and as noon approached, I turned to ask Ringo, “When was the last time you and Charlie saw…
Don McAulay Charlie Watts’ Drum Tech
Drums are at the center of many lives, and Don McAulay seems to live in all of them. McAulay is a drummer, a woodworker, drum restorer, studio owner, vintage-drum collector, and technican for bands such as Neil Young, My Morning…
Why Influencers Matter
The Drummers Who Forged Charlie Watts’ Style As a teenager in early ‘50s London, Charlie Watts discovered the American jazz art form and was transformed. He became obsessed with anything and everything regarding the American jazz movement—including the fashion and…
A Distinguished Gentleman
My Photographic Journey with Charlie Watts Charlie Watts was a distinguished man, grounded, considerate of others. In 1981, years after we had worked together, he called me from the road when he heard my father passed away. He brought so…
