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Note: Some MD articles are only available in pdf format. Those articles do not appear in this list. Subscribers to Digital and All-Access can view every Modern Drummer issue in their available formats. Browse all MD issues from our archive here.
December 2021:
Art Blakey

Excerpted from the September 1984 issue The first rays of dusk suffuse Art Blakey’s Greenwich Village apartment with shards of amber gray light, and as the shadows dance upon his brow, Blakey’s face takes on a totemic grace. The snow-white hair fades out of the foreground becoming the color of …


May 2021:
10 Pieces of Wisdom from the MD Archives
Harvey Mason

In its 45 years of publication, Modern Drummer has collected essential data from thousands of remarkable drummers, percussionists, and educators. Throughout our 45th anniversary in 2021, we will offer some features that celebrate the musicians, editors, writers, and photographers who have served the drumming community in these pages. So, sit …


September 2020:
MODERN DRUMMER SEPTEMBER 2020 COVER
What Was Your First Favorite Drum Record?
Reader Platform September 2020

Vivid by Living Colour. Will Calhoun plays masterfully and with tons of power. It was perfect: playable but loaded with nuance.Scott Sparks Manu Katché on Peter Gabriel’s Secret World Live. I was around five, and it just blew my mind. That’s when I realized drumming was what I wanted to …


September 2020:
MODERN DRUMMER SEPTEMBER 2020 COVER
The Charleston
Jazz Drummer Workshop

The Root Rhythm of Jazz and Beyond The Charleston was a popular dance rhythm during the 1920s that got its name from the popular composition of the same name by pianist/composer James P. Johnson. The syncopated Charleston rhythm is one of the most fundamental figures that makes up the DNA …


June 2020:
The Big Beat of Hard-Bop Great Art Blakey

In both deeds and words, Art Blakey was the definition of a dedicated jazz musician, mentor, and musical messenger. His driving, thunderous, and propulsive playing style synthesized the rhythmic approach of West African drumming coupled with American blues.


January 2020:
BJ Miller with Health

Since answering a drummer-wanted Craigslist ad that listed influences from Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath to Public Image Ltd. and Can, BJ Miller has proven the ideal rhythm generator for his band.


September 1984:
Art Blakey
Art Blakey

THE first rays of dusk suffuse Art Blakey’s Greenwich Village apartment with shards of amber gray light, and as the shadows dance upon his brow, Blakey’s face takes on a totemic grace.


July 1984:
Louis Hayes — Putting Things Together
Louis Hayes

When one thinks of the great jazz cities, the first names that come to mind are New Orleans, Chicago, Kansas City, and New York.


March 2012:
Art Blakey: The Mentor
Art Blakey

We all know those iconic black-and-white images: Blakey at the kit, sweat beads on his forehead, a flash in the eyes, and that mouth agape—sometimes with the tongue flat out—in pure elation.


March 2014:
The 50 Greatest Drummers of All Time
50 Greatest Drummers 1

Whose playing endures through the decades? Whose music do we reach for when we want new ideas? When we want to practice? When we want to laugh? Who inspires and delights us most?


December 1982:
John Densmore – Reflections

In the following interview with the Doors’ John Densmore, it is impossible to catch all of his sense of humor or see his very animated way of expressing himself.


December 2016:
Ralph Peterson – Forward Motion
Ralph Peterson

In addition to his own projects, Peterson performed and/or recorded with the greatest talent in jazz, including Branford Marsalis, Michael Brecker, Craig Harris, David Murray, Ron Carter, Terence Blanchard, Charles Lloyd, Stanley Turrentine, the Count Basie Orchestra, Steve Coleman, Stanley Cowell, and Betty Carter.


October 1977:
Terri Lyne Carrington: She's Only Just Begun
Terri Lyne Carrington

Why a feature story on a twelve year old little girl in a drummers magazine? Very simple. Terri Lyne Carrington of Medford, Massachusetts first off is not your average twelve-year-old girl; and she’s not just an average little drummer. She happens to be one of the most remarkable new jazz …


October 1977:
Beyond Forever: Lenny White
Lenny White Return To Forever

Lenny White was born in Queens, N. Y. and travelled to Forever. Excuse the forced pun, but it was with Chick Corea’s Return to Forever, that Lenny made the reputation that engendered his foray as a solo act.”I got a call from a different guitar player every day for about …


October 1977:
Terri Lyne Carrington: She’s Only Just Begun
Terri Lyne Carrington

Why a feature story on a twelve year old little girl in a drummers magazine? Very simple. Terri Lyne Carrington of Medford, Massachusetts first off is not your average twelve-year-old girl; and she’s not just an average little drummer. She happens to be one of the most remarkable new jazz …


October 1978:
Art Blakey – The Eternal Jazzman
ART BLAKEY 3

Two days before Art Blakey was to end a week-long engagement at Blues Alley in Washington, D.C., I had the opportunity to spend an afternoon with the legendary drummer. Blakey is a simple man of simple words who exudes love from every pore. He was in a talking mood that …


July 2013:
Influences – Billy Higgins
Billy Higgins

The year was 1959, and in New York City, Ornette Coleman’s quartet was creating a bona fide controversy with its six-week run at the Five Spot. The music was rhythmically loose and had at its core a melodic and harmonic approach that aggressively defied convention. Though important musical figures of …


August 2016:
CATCHING UP WITH…Carl Allen
Carl Allen

The jazz great has spent the year in constant motion, spearheading multiple ensembles, including one holding special interest for drummers.


April 2017:
Bebop Syncopation – Part 1: Max Roach and Art Blakey

Ted Reed’s Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer is considered a timeless book by many leading drummers and educators. One page alone can inspire a lifetime’s worth of practice material. In this series of articles we’ll explore new approaches to Exercise One (found on page 38 of the …


May 2008:
May 2008 – Volume 32 • Number 5

Tomas Haake, Stan Lynch, Max Roach, Art Blakey, Philly Joe Jones, Jeff Sipe, The Blue Man Group, Han Bennick, Homer Steinweiss, Jimmy Carl Black, Ben Gillies, Sean O’Shea, Jens Hannemann, Kenny Aronoff, Jojo Mayer, Johnny Rabb


December 2003:
December 2003 – Volume 27 • Number 12

Morgan Rose, Ed Toth, Sherrie Maricle, Charles Collins, Earl Young, Chad Sexton, Zach Danziger, John Stanier, Evan Stone, Steve Fidyk, John Bonham, Art Blakey, Josh Freese, Tony Royster Jr., Jeff Hamilton


December 2001:
December 2001 – Volume 25 • Number 12

Wuv, Joe Morello, Tim Alexander, Scott F. Crago, Steve Jocz, Cyrus Bolooki, Bun E. Carlos, Philip Peeples, Bobby Caldwell, Brain St. Clair, Rikki Rockett, Buddy Rich, Art Blakey, Papa Jo Jones, Pat Wilson, Bill Stewart, Danny Gottlieb, Mike Bordin


January 2001:
January 2001 – Volume 25 • Number 1

Tré Cool, Wuv, Nicko McBrain, Dave Krusen, Phil Ehart, Trey Gray, Steve Gadd, Joe Morello, Rod Morgenstein, Peter Erskine, Neil Peart, Mel Lewis, Roy Burns, Mark Parsons, Rick Van Horn, Tony Williams, Buddy Rich, John Bonham, Tito Puente, Alan Dawson, Gary Chester, Eric Carr, Larrie Londin, Art Blakey, Philly Joe …


November 1999:
November 1999 – Volume 23 • Number 11

Jeff “Tain” Watts, Rodney Holmes, Brooks Wackerman, Art Blakey, Steve Ferrone, Jonathan Joseph, Ed Toth, Steven Drozd, Brett Chassen, Vinnie Colaiuta, Byron McMackin, Steve Smith, Graham Lear, Vinnie Paul, Ian Paice


October 1999:
October 1999 – Volume 23 • Number 10

Max Weinberg, Bobby Previte, Matt Abts, Sam Woodyard, Tom Teasley, Nick D’Virgilio, Dennis Diken, Janet Weiss, Jim Bogios, Fran Breen, Tomas Haake, Dave Weckl, Art Blakey, David Silveria, John “JR” Robinson, Terry Bozzio


September 1984:
September 1984 – Volume 8 • Number 9

Art Blakey, Carmine Appice, Arthur Press, Jonathan Moffett, Joey Franco, Alex Van Halen, Steve Smith, Simon Phillips, Eric Carr, Neil Peart


February March 1981:
February March 1981 – Volume 5 • Number 1

Peter Criss, John Bonham, Rick Marotta, Mel Lewis, Art Blakey, Rod Morgenstein, Bill Bruford, Jack DeJohnette, Don Lamond, Peter Hoorelbeke


October 1978:
October 1978 – Volume 2 • Number 4

Steve Gadd, Art Blakey, Peter Erskine



Posted: February 7, 2023

Category: News
Terri Lyne Carrington Wins Best Jazz Instrumental Album

Modern Drummer congratulates Terri Lyne Carrington on her 2023 Grammy for Best Jazz Instrumental Record of the Year, for her recording Standards Vol. 1 featuring Kris Davis, Linda May Han Oh, Nicholas Payton, and Matthew Stevens.  This is actually the second time Ms. Carrington has won this prestigious award, making her the …


Posted: April 30, 2020

Category: News
Tony Allen Passes

Tony Allen. Photo by Bernard Benant. Tony Allen, the longtime drummer with African music legend Fela Kuti, has died in France. As the drummer with Fela’s groundbreaking band Africa ’70, Allen was responsible for creating many of the beats that defined Afrobeat music, the mix of jazz, funk, and the …


Posted: September 7, 2017

Steph Barker
Category: Drummers, On the Beat
On The Beat with Steph Barker of Coast Modern: Pursuing the Dream

Hey MD Readers! This is Steph Barker, drummer for the Los Angeles indie pop duo Coast Modern. I have been a huge fan of Modern Drummer since I started drumming back in sixth grade, so I am over the moon and absolutely honored to contribute to “On The Beat.”


Posted: September 29, 2016

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, On the Beat
On Tour: Tony Leone With the Chris Robinson Brotherhood

Longtime New York City drummer Tony Leone is currently on the road with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood.


Posted: August 1, 2016

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Featured, Web Exclusive
Evan Chapman of Square Peg Round Hole: Juniper Album, “Name Not One Man??? Video World Premiere

With Juniper, instrumental and percussion-heavy trio Square Peg Round Hole unleashes pondering melodies, brooding harmonic landscapes, and forward-thinking rhythms. Here, the group’s main drummer, Evan Chapman, discusses the concepts and influences behind the record’s broad sonic spectrum….


Posted: June 30, 2016

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Featured, Web Exclusive
Carl Allen: Learning From the Giants

Allen is a revered figure in the field of forward-reaching, swinging jazz rooted in the tradition. When he first made waves in the jazz world, joining Freddie Hubbard’s band in 1982 at the tender age of nineteen, elder giants took note.


Posted: May 11, 2015

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Lessons, MD Education Team
Modern Drummer Education Team Weighs In On: Learning Other Instruments

We asked the members of the Modern Drummer Education Team if they felt that it’s important for drummers to learn to play other instruments (piano, bass, guitar, etc.), or should they focus on honing their craft at the kit exclusively? Here’s what they had to say….


Posted: February 20, 2015

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Drummer Blog: The Bots’ Anaiah Lei on Incorporating Jazz and Other Musical Styles

Hi, guys and girls! My name is Anaiah Lei, and I drum for a band called the Bots, from Los Angeles, California. I was born and raised in Los Angeles, and I’ve been drumming for about eleven years. I joined the Bots not too long after it started and have …


Posted: February 4, 2015

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Lessons, MD Education Team
Modern Drummer Education Team Weighs In On: Learning Other Styles

We asked the members of the Modern Drummer Education Team if they felt that it’s important for all drummers to study Latin music and other musical genres, even if they don’t intend to ever perform those styles. Here’s what they had to say….


Posted: January 5, 2015

Drummer Blog: 2014 “Hit Like a Girl” Finalist Natalie DePergola Talks Gulf Blvd and Other Projects
Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Drummer Blog: 2014 “Hit Like a Girl" Finalist Natalie DePergola Talks Gulf Blvd and Other Projects

I am an independent drummer dabbling in everything I can. I just finished a string of gigs with a project we call Gulf Blvd, and we had a blast performing at last year’s Rib Festival in St. Pete, Florida. We are a unique group, equal in talent and age (all …


Posted: January 5, 2015

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Drummer Blog: 2014 “Hit Like a Girl” Finalist Natalie DePergola Talks Gulf Blvd and Other Projects

I am an independent drummer dabbling in everything I can. I just finished a string of gigs with a project we call Gulf Blvd, and we had a blast performing at last year’s Rib Festival in St. Pete, Florida. We are a unique group, equal in talent and age (all …


Posted: August 19, 2014

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Influences: Harvey Mason

Here, as a companion to our August 2014 Influences piece on Mason, we speak with the drummer about his new album, his early days, the drummers who inspired him, and more….


Posted: June 9, 2014

Category: News, News and Events, Past Contests
Win a Ginger Baker Prize Package

To celebrate the release of Ginger Baker’s new CD, Why?, Motéma Records has put together a prize package that all Ginger Baker fans will want to get their hands on….


Posted: January 8, 2014

Category: Drummers, News, News and Events, The Greats
Drum Instructor Sam Ulano Passes

Sam Ulano, a beloved yet controversial player and instructor who Modern Drummer readers will recognize from the many ads he ran in the magazine over the years, passed away last week, at the age of ninety-three. MD published an interview with Ulano in the September 2011 issue, which we’ve reprinted …


Posted: January 2, 2014

Category: Drummers, Jazz Drummers' Workshop, Lessons, Multimedia, Videos
VIDEO! Jazz Drummer’s Workshop: Approaching Standards, Part 3: Language and Vernacular (February 2014 Issue)

Click here to check out a video lesson to accompany the Jazz Drummer’s Workshop article on applying standard tunes to the drums from the February 2014 issue.


Posted: January 1, 2014

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Darien Williams of Carbon Tigers

I’m living in Chicago, IL and playing in a few projects that range from a four-piece rock outfit, Carbon Tigers, to an improvisational jazz duo that goes by faug….


Posted: November 27, 2013

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, News, News and Events
Chico Hamilton: 1921–2013

Jazz drummer Foreststorn “Chico??? Hamilton died this past Monday at the age of ninety-two. Hamilton was notable for his refined approach to the drumset, which leaned more heavily on creative orchestrations than on flash, an approach that in the 1950s inspired the movements of cool and chamber jazz. Notably, Hamilton …


Posted: August 29, 2013

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, In the Studio, Lessons, Multimedia, Videos
In the Studio: Seeing Sounds, Part 4: Classic Jazz (October 2013 Issue)

Click here to check out part 4 of our In the Studio series, “Seeing Sounds,” which covers classic jazz drum tones.


Posted: August 28, 2013

Category: Drummers, Issues, News, News and Events
October 2013 Issue of Modern Drummer Featuring Mike Portnoy

October 2013 Issue of Modern Drummer featuring Mike Portnoy Contents


Posted: July 29, 2013

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, News, News and Events
Famed Afro-Caribbean Drummer Steve Berrios Passes

Modern Drummer is sad to announce that Steve Berrios died this past week at the age of sixty-eight at his home in Manhattan. The drummer was among the most innovative musicians to fuse Afro-Caribbean and jazz. Berrios had an impressive career, featuring work with influential Afro-Cuban percussionist Mongo Santamaría, jazz …


Posted: May 16, 2013

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Web Exclusive!
Mark Guiliana’s Beat Music

Mark Guiliana may be best known for his work as a sideman with jazz musicians such as Avishai Cohen and Brad Mehldau, but the drummer has been increasingly involved with his own solo project, Beat Music….


Posted: March 22, 2013

Category: Feature Stories, Lessons, MD Education Team
MD Education Team Weighs In On: Ergonomics

Click here to check out what the MD Education Team members have to say about setting up your drumset for maximum results….


Posted: January 10, 2013

Category: Feature Stories, Lessons, MD Education Team
MD Education Team Weighs In On: Learning Jazz

We asked the members of the MD Education Team if they think it’s important for their students to study jazz. Here’s what they had to say….


Posted: September 21, 2012

Category: Drummers, Lessons, MD Education Team
MD Education Team Weighs In On: Traditional Grip

Is traditional grip a useful technique that drum students should learn? We asked the members of the MD Education Team if they think traditional grip is relevant in today’s teachings. Here’s what they had to say.


Posted: September 21, 2012

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Russell Simins of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

Hey, all, Russell Simins from the one and only Blues Explosion here. I play drums and write music with bandmates Jon Spencer and Judah Bauer, two of the greatest guitarists I know, and I know a lot of them.


Posted: July 30, 2012

Category: Drummers, Lessons, MD Education Team
MD Education Team Weighs In On: Reading Music

We asked the members of the MD Education Team if they think that reading skills are crucial. Here’s what they had to say….


Posted: May 8, 2012

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Paul Motian: 1931-2011

Photo by Robert Lewis. He showed us new ways to think about jazz drumming. There will never be another like him. by Michael Parillo On a dark night at the Village Vanguard, the audience snakes slowly down the long staircase and settles in at tiny tables, squeezed together nice and …


Posted: April 18, 2012

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Shai Hulud’s Matt Covey

Hey guys, this is Matt Covey of Shai Hulud, the Suicide Dolls, and the Flaming Tsunamis. And the Hempsteadys. And the Franklin Brothers…and Young Pandas. About three and a half years ago, I was shocked to find myself on the road playing drums for a truly pioneering band….


Posted: March 19, 2012

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Tim Walsh of the Stepkids

I’m Tim Walsh of the Stepkids, and I’m excited to be on here and hope to add to the wealth of knowledge that is MD’s awesome thirty-five-year history…


Posted: March 13, 2012

Category: Feature Stories, Lessons
12 Drumming Myths: Debunking Drum Gospel

Despite the prevalence of educational books, DVDs, and online lessons, most drumming information is still passed down the old-fashioned way: from one player to another, while shooting the breeze at the drum shop. A lot of what we hear, we take at face value, and we repeat these drumming “absolutes??? …


Posted: November 30, 2011

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Ben Riley: Power of the Lion, Patience of the Ages

Ben Riley commands respect from the moment he hits the bandstand. While he is best known (and beloved) for his years spent in Thelonious Monk’s quartet at the peak of that master’s powers, Riley has also recorded and performed with many other jazz greats.This article orginally ran in the February …


Posted: November 3, 2011

Category: Drummers, The Greats
Billy Higgins: The Shape of Jazz

Billy Higgins, who would come to play on more than five hundred albums, including three of the biggest jazz crossover hits of the 1960s (Herbie Hancock’s “Watermelon Man,??? Lee Morgan’s “The Sidewinder,??? and Eddie Harris’s “Freedom Jazz Dance???), was born in 1936 and grew up in Los Angeles. He began …


Posted: October 8, 2011

Category: Book Review, Drummers, Reviews
On the Beaten Path: Beginning Drumset Course, Levels 1, 2, and 3
by Rich Lackowski

Learn the drums by copping beats that are part of the everyday musical landscape.


Posted: September 6, 2011

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
LaMel Randolph of Lionize

My name is LaMel Randolph; I play drums in the band Lionize, based out of Silver Spring, Maryland. This year we released our latest album, Destruction Manuel, we played the Warped tour and Bonnaroo Festival, and we’re already writing and recording a new batch of songs.


Posted: July 25, 2011

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Chris St. Hilaire of London Souls

Hello! Ahh…drums! How else can you smash heads with a stick and not go to jail? I started playing at about fourteen years old, when my dad got me my first drumkit. It was a Groove Percussion kit, and I really beat the thing to a pulp…


Posted: July 21, 2011

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Carl Palmer – Not Slowing Down

MD recently spoke with the prog-drumming giant Carl Palmer while he was on tour with Asia. Palmer, whose career spans four decades, says he has no plans to slow down anytime soon.


Posted: July 1, 2011

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
MD Readers Poll 2011 Results

Welcome once again to the MD Readers Poll, where the greatest drummers on the planet are honored by the most educated drum fans around. Let’s get right to it: the envelope, please….


Posted: June 13, 2011

Category: Drummers, The Greats
Uriel Jones: Architect of the Motown Sound

June 14 would have been the seventy-seventh birthday of Motown great Uriel Jones, who died on March 24, 2009. MD spoke with Uriel shortly before his passing. We’re reprinting his interview here. (read more)


Posted: April 18, 2011

Category: Drummers, The Greats
Jimmy Cobb: Kind Of Blue And Beyond

Jimmy Cobb was one of the most popular drummers of the late 1950s. He began playing at an early age and found his influences among the bop pioneers. “Max Roach was the hippest music going,??? remembers Cobb. “I also listened to Kenny Clarke, Shadow Wilson, and Sid Catlett. Then a …


Posted: December 17, 2010

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Jimmy Bralower: Web Exclusive

Jimmy Bralower was born to make records. The drummer started playing at a very young age, and by the time he was in his early teens, his first band, the Young Ones, had signed a deal with a major label. In the ensuing years Bralower worked his way from clubs …


Posted: November 23, 2010

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Richie Hayward: The MD Interviews, Part 2

Interview by Robyn FlansRead the Little Feat drummer’s cover feature from October 1995. MD: You have a unique playing style with Little Feat. Can you describe that style and where it came from? Richie: My style has grown with the band. It started out heavily influenced by blues, rock ’n’ …


Posted: November 9, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Umar Fahim of The Binary Code

Photo by Aaron Pepelis I am Umar Fahim of the Binary Code, based out of New Jersey, USA. I wanted to share with you some of my thoughts on the right way and the wrong way to play the drums. First off, thank you to MD for giving me, for …


Posted: October 1, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Tosin Aribisala: Afrikan Rhapsody

Aye, MD faithful readers! My name is Tosin Aribisala. It is an honor for me to write a blog for this awesome drummers’ magazine. I have been an ardent reader and subscriber to Modern Drummer for over eleven of my twenty-three years playing the drumset….


Posted: September 29, 2010

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Narada Michael Walden: Web Exclusive

by Billy Amendola More—way more—with the fusion and pop maestro. In a continuation of our interview with Narada Michael Walden from the November 2010 issue of Modern Drummer, the fusion and pop drumming/producing maestro reflects on his early days, teaching, spirituality, playing in odd time signatures, and coming full circle …


Posted: May 11, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Darren King of MUTEMATH: YouTube Favorites

I don’t care so much about difficulty or technicality. I like style, passion, creativity, and all that kind of stuff. Here are some videos that always challenge and inspire me no matter how many times I watch them….


Posted: May 6, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Jim Archer of The Art Of Shooting

Greetings, Modern Drummers! My New York City band the Art Of Shooting has recently released our first full-length album, Traveling Show, and we’re excited about hitting the road to play for a bunch of new faces. I’d like to tell you a little about myself, our album, and a few …


Posted: April 6, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Tobias Gebb – Free At Last

I have played with a wide range of musicians from Lenny Kravitz to Cab Calloway and I have worked in many different genres…


Posted: March 22, 2010

Category: Drummers, The Greats
Sidney “Big Sid” Catlett: Busting Open Doors To The Modern Drumming Age

Though Big Sid Catlett came out of the swing era, he is best remembered for a drumming style that had a marked influence on the bop drummers of the ’40s.


Posted: December 31, 2009

Category: Drummers, The Greats
Chick Webb: The First True Drumming Idol

Chick Webb simultaneously defined drumming during the swing era, while also paving the way for the “modern??? jazz movement of the 1940s…


Posted: December 22, 2009

Category: Drummers, The Greats
The Greats: Art Blakey

It’s safe to say that nobody swung harder than Art Blakey. Just check out any recording with the hard-bop pioneer at the throne, and you’re bound to find the drummer’s primal groove at work…


Posted: December 3, 2009

Category: Drummers, The Greats
Philly Joe Jones: One Of The Greatest Hard Boppers

Philly Joe Jones is one of the greatest of the hard boppers. His contributions to the art of jazz drumming are immeasurable. He was a virtuoso with a pair of brushes, and a genius at turning the rudiments into fluent musical ideas. More than any of his peers, it was …


Posted: October 20, 2009

Category: Feature Stories
Drumming On TV

In celebration of the great, sometimes groundbreaking drumming performances of TV’s golden age, we present to you highlights along the illustrious Drumming On TV timeline…


Posted: October 8, 2009

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Dave Watts of the Kyle Hollingsworth Band

My name is Dave Watts and I’m writing to you from the road with my current project, the Kyle Hollingsworth Band.


Posted: July 17, 2009

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Dave Lombardo: Metal And The Unconscious State

When it comes to recording, sometimes less is more. And sometimes, less results in an out-of-body experience…


Posted: June 10, 2009

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Rob Bujak of Nova

I am currently drumming for the band Nova, out of San Francisco. I'm gonna have to admit that I have an obsession with drums; all I do is think about drumming.


Posted: May 18, 2009

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Brian Chase: An Appetite For Adventure

As a Web-only bonus, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs drummer pontificates on listening, sounding how you want to sound, and working with a click….


Posted: April 23, 2009

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Steve Smith: Head, Hands, Feet, And “Shoulders???

Hudson Music has recently released Steve Smith’s DVD Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants, which Smith describes as “a detailed look at the drumming of some of the jazz giants who have helped create the vocabulary and concepts of drumming in general.???


Posted: December 18, 2008

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Derico Watson: Pocket, Chops, and Soul

For the past five years, Michigan native Derico Watson has held one of the most coveted chairs a drummer could imagine, touring regularly with pioneering bassist Victor Wooten.


Posted: October 25, 2008

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
On the Beat With Denny Seiwell Drummer

Hello, MD readers, this is Denny Seiwell letting you in on some info about me that is not too widely known….


Posted: April 25, 2008

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Marcus Baylor of The Yellowjackets

Hello, MD family! 2008 has been a blessed and busy year, with more great things to come! My name is Marcus Baylor, and I am the drummer with The Yellowjackets.


Posted: April 18, 2008

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Cindy Blackman: The Lady Comes To Play

Last year, drumming dynamo Cindy Blackman left behind her big-ticket rock gig with Lenny Kravitz to unleash the jazz devil inside…


Posted: December 15, 2007

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Allison Miller: Freedom Jazz-Folk-Pop-Rock Dance

Since moving to New York in 1996, Allison Miller has thrived by refusing to acknowledge musical borders. Alli, as she likes to be called, has allowed her sincere love of pop and rock music to ground her jazz playing–and her passion for jazz to elevate her pop prowess….


Posted: November 1, 2007

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Robert Wyatt: 2007 Web Exclusive Interview

Since leaving the groundbreaking British psychedelic band Soft Machine in 1971, Robert Wyatt has released a succession of remarkable solo albums filled with artfulness and surprise….


Posted: September 19, 2007

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Carl Allen: Embracing the Journey

Soon after moving to the New York area in the early ’80s, Carl Allen landed a dream gig with post bop trumpeter Freddie Hubbard. That gig established the then nineteen-year-old drummer as a leading light among a select group of eager young musicians who were looking to breath new life …


Posted: September 19, 2007

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Tony Allen: Afrobeat Legend

As the most important drummer in African music, Tony Allen provided the Afrobeat pulse for Fela Kuti’s Africa ’70s band and recorded a clutch of solo albums. Currently Allen works for UK supergroup The Good, The Bad, And The Queen, which features Blur’s Damon Albarn and The Clash’s Paul Simonen….


Posted: July 15, 2006

Category: Drummers
Ignacio Berroa – Havana Hot Head

Imagine growing up in a country where playing music is illegal, where practicing religion can get you yanked out of your home in the middle of the night, and where the only available drum instructor is some moldy Russian guy with enough ear hair to start a small forest….


Posted: July 19, 2005

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Steve Jordan Interview

Steve Jordan has accomplished more in his drumming career than he ever could have imagined. Of the big names he played with, a short list would include Ashford & Simpson, Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, Sheryl Crow, Stevie Nicks, The Pretenders, James Taylor, Bob Dylan, B.B. King, David Sanborn, Tom Scott, …


Posted: July 1, 2005

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Steve Gadd: Opens Up

The drumming legend gives his most revealing interview.


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Eric Harland

When twenty-five-year-old Eric Harland was a teenager, he weighed an astonishing 380 pounds, making him a target of cruel children, mean-spirited teachers, and sometimes, his own family. “I would walk into a clothing store and the employees would just laugh,” recalls the Texas native. “Man,” they would say, “we don’t …


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Winard Harper

The Savant label has recently released Winard Harper’s Come Into The Light. The CD was recorded live at Cecil’s, a jazz nightclub owned by drummer/producer Cecil Brooks III in New Jersey….


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Prince’s John Blackwell: An Interview

John Blackwell always listened to his dad’s advice, and it’s paid off, big time. “Growing up, my dad used to tell me, ‘If you want to make any money in this business, play in the pocket.'”…


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Chico Hamilton

Chico has released nearly fifty albums as a leader, including his newest release, Foreststorn, on the Koch Jazz label. The title of the album is Chico’s own given first name, as well as that of his son, who died shortly before the album was completed.


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Mark Johnson

Do those canary-yellow drums look familiar? That’s because they belonged to the late Tony Williams, who gave them to trumpeter Wallace Roney….


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
The Artistry of Joe La Barbera

You have to be careful who you show off in front of, as Joe La Barbera learned early in his career. “I was working with a singer named Frankie Randall,” Joe recalls. “He had an offer to open for Buddy Rich in Las Vegas for a month. So I was …


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Ben Perowsky: Beyond Labels

The scene: a cold night in Williamsburg, Brooklyn at North On Sixth, a multi-level hole in the wall jook joint where the bathroom graffiti is more political than obscene. Attracting a crowd of Manhattan intellectuals and Brooklyn deadheads, North On Sixth is tonight showcasing Ben Perowsky’s Moodswing Orchestra. A collection …



Posted: July 1, 2021

Category: The Modern Drummer Podcast
The Modern Drummer Podcast Episode 40: Narada Michael Walden & Cindy Blackman Santana

In this episode, Narada Michael Walden interviews Cindy Blackman Santana. Cindy talks about the first records that influenced her, her technique, Art Blakey, Lenny Kravitz and other artists she has worked with. She also tells us what’s next in her musical future and much more. Audio Video