Ginger Baker

Credit: AlamyJack Whatley·February 5, 2021 5 isolated drum tracks to prove The Beatles’ Ringo Starr was a genius   Too often has The Beatles drummer, Ringo Starr been the butt of some unkind jokes. Reportedly purported by his bandmate John Lennon, the adage goes that when asked about whether Ringo …

Modern Drummer is rebooting its world-famous Drum Festival on September 12 at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time with a live-streaming event honoring the late, great Rush drummer Neil Peart. Proceeds of ticket sales will benefit brain tumor research at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. The event, which will be produced and distributed …

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 …

A tribute to a drummer by a lead guitarist? Whoever heard of such a thing? But this was no ordinary lead guitarist and no ordinary drummer either—they were legends Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker.

Comedian/Actor/Drummer Andrew Dice Clay’s son Max talks about his influences, gear, and playing with his brother Dillon.

Eric Clapton recently announced a one-time only concert to celebrate the musical life of Ginger Baker.

Cathy Rich and I brought Buddy’s band back as a touring, living, breathing sixteen-piece big band. The group features alumni who played with the BR Band at some time in their careers and who now travel the world to bring Buddy’s music back to the masses.

The first three Rock and Roll Fantasy Camps of 2019 are ready to make some noise. Leading the riffs and grooves will be an incredible array of legends, platinum-selling artists, and certified rock stars.

Hello fellow MD drummers, Kofi Baker here. As some of you may know, I am the son of a very famous drummer known as Ginger.

At Journey’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year, drummer Steve Smith took the opportunity to, as we say, give the drummers some.

Hi there MD readers, it’s Corky here again! I wanted to update you on what’s happening. In my previous OTB, I was on my way to London to participate in the Jack Bruce tribute. It was a joy to share the stage and drumkit with Gary Husband, Dennis Chambers, and …

Hey, MD! 

I’m Jared Evan and I’m a singer, songwriter, rapper, producer, and drummer. I’m twenty-six years old and have been playing the drums since I was six.

Hi there MD readers, Corky here. As some of you may know, I have been a professional drummer for half a century. You might remember me from such bands as Mountain and West, Bruce and Laing.

We recently sat down with Clutch’s powerhouse drummer, Jean-Paul Gaster, to dig a bit into the making of Psychic Warfare, including which song gave him the most trouble, and we got some insight on some of his favorite drummers and recordings….

With a résumé that includes Blue Öyster Cult, Rainbow, Quiet Riot, Black Sabbath, and more recently, Mountain guitarist Leslie West and the Axel Rudi Pell Band, Bobby Rondinelli remains a mega-force in heavy-rock drumming….

On November 6, Modern Drummer’s Billy Amendola hosted an afternoon Q&A at David Fishof’s Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp with legendary drummer Ginger Baker. Later that evening, Amendola threw his annual “drum hang??? with special guests Erik Eldenius, Matt Star, Denny Seiwell, percussionist Pamela Seraphine, bassist Rudy Sarzo, Frankie Banali, …

In commemoration of legendary Cream drummer Ginger Baker’s first appearance at the Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp, drummers can submit a video of themselves playing “White Room??? by Cream to win a spot at the camp in Los Angeles….

Though I’ve drummed my way across the spectrum, with acts as disparate as comedian Jerry Van Dyke, icon Joan Baez, and Dead Kennedys, my one true musical love has always been the band I started with Steve Barton, the ’80s cult fave Translator….

Click here to check out part 1 of a two-part series devoted to ways to practice and perfect three- and four-stroke ruffs….

See what’s in the pages of the December 2014 issue of Modern Drummer magazine featuring Gregg Bissonette!

Hey there, modern drummers! My name is Jimmy Chalfant, and I play drums for the Baltimore hard-rock band Kix. We released our latest studio CD, Rock Your Face Off, after almost twenty years since our last studio release….

These exercises are inspired by the master jazz drummer Elvin Jones. In Elvin’s world, everything was a triplet.

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….

Ginger Baker to Release A Drummer’s Tale and Photo AlbumTo mark his seventy-fifth birthday, Ginger Baker and his family have joined forces with PledgeMusic to create and release a career-spanning anthology on CD and vinyl, entitled A Drummer’s Tale, and a very personal, limited-edition family album picture book….

Sons of Cream drummer Kofi Baker’s first live performance was at six years of age with his father, Ginger Baker, on the UK television show, The Old Grey Whistle Test. In the early 1980s, Kofi and his father played drum duets throughout Europe. Kofi has toured with John Ethridge (Soft …

I’m co-writer in my band, the Fleeting Ends, and I have a great love for singing and melody, so it’s difficult to describe myself as just a drummer….

Iconic British drummer Ginger Baker will be performing at the Iridium in New York City this coming October 9 – 13.

My earliest memory of wanting to play drums dates comes from when I was ten years old and riding in the back of my dad’s car.

One day I had an epiphany: Why be Ginger Baker? Because Ginger Baker has already been done, and done quite well….

We’re quite spoiled as music lovers in Austin, Texas. Touring bands don’t really skip our city, and we’re treated to several major festivals a year. While I enjoy all of them, Fun Fun Fun Fest has become one of my favorites.

We’re quite spoiled as music lovers in Austin, Texas. Touring bands don’t really skip our city, and we’re treated to several major festivals a year. While I enjoy all of them, Fun Fun Fun Fest has become one of my favorites.

Hello, Modern Drummer readers. I last spoke to you in January. At that time, I was just beginning this Buddy Rich odyssey. We’re now getting ready to do our first extended tour, starting in mid-August.

As Jane’s Addiction continues its successful Theatre of the Escapists tour, a new generation of fans is being hipped to the ecstatic tribal glam event that is a Jane’s show—and to the uniquely galloping drumming approach of Stephen Perkins. In the latest installment of Modern Drummer magazine’s Influences series, we …

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…

Check out the trailer for Jay Bulger’s documentary on Ginger Baker, the drummer/leader who’s famed for his work with Cream, Blind Faith, the Baker Gurvitz Army, the Graham Bond Organisation, Bill Laswell, Fela Kuti, and Public Imagine Ltd., among others. The film will be premiering at this year’s SXSW festival …

The Buddy Rich 25th Anniversary Memorial Concert takes place for the first time in the UK at the London Palladium on 2nd April 2012. The  lineup is confirmed as Dave Weckl,  John Blackwell and Gregg Potter from the USA and Ian Paice, Ginger Baker, Gavin Harrison and Elliott Henshaw from the UK. Singing supremo Tony Christie will also appear. One of Buddy Rich’s …

Vinnie Colaiuta, Jeff Hamilton, and Karriem Riggins are on Paul McCartney’s latest, Kisses on the Bottom. Riggins performed with the former Beatle at the Grammys, as did McCartney regular Abe Laboriel. For more, visit www.paulmccartney.com. Speaking of the Grammys, Low Millions drummer/producer Erik Eldenius was in the house band again …

SubtitledA Guide to Developing Foot Independence and Hi-Hat/Bass Coordination, The Forgotten Foot shines a light on the hi-hat’s overlooked potential.

After changing its name from Mammoth, Van Halen strutted a glam-punk attitude when it burst onto the national scene in 1978 with its self-titled debut album. Featuring the template-smashing talent of the whammy-bar-happy, two-hand-tapping guitarist Eddie Van Halen and his percussive-dynamo brother, Alex, Van Halen the band, to many, became …

Marky Ramone held the drum chair with legendary punk pioneers the Ramones longer than anyone else. But there’s much more to his story…

Tony Allen, who along with vocalist/activist Fela Kuti created one of groove music’s most glorious subgenres, Afrobeat, deserves a place on the list of the greatest funk drummers of all time. For more than forty years he has been honing a distinctive style that crackles with vitality, pulsates with rhythmic …

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….

I’m Jason Ganberg of the British rock band Purple Melon. Just dropping you guys a few lines about what I’ve been up to out in L.A. and how everything has developed for me since I started drumming back in England fifteen years ago!…

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 …

Photo by Marc Rouve You can probably guess I dabble a bit on the old drumkit myself, and it is always difficult trying to explain to someone what it looks like sitting on that throne—the best seat in the house. With my images in the book I try to give …

Photo by Marc Rouve You can probably guess I dabble a bit on the old drumkit myself, and it is always difficult trying to explain to someone what it looks like sitting on that throne—the best seat in the house. With my images in the book I try to give …

An educated, entertaining, essential addition to every drummer’s library—and to the history of modern drumming—The Drummer: Classic Rock Collector’s Edition magazine builds on content from Modern Drummer’s Top-selling The Drummer book with expanded coverage of drumming royalty from the golden age of rock ‘n’ roll.

Famed bassist/producer/remix engineer Bill Laswell on Ginger, Tony, Elvin, Zigaboo, and more…

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 …

For eighteen years, Kiss’s drummer has helped his world-famous band stay in our hearts and on the radio by doing what he does best—being himself. In this special online extra from his May 2010 MD cover story, we begin by asking Eric about…The Band’s Younger Fans. In 2004 we did …

Ginger gained fame as a member of Cream, featuring Jack Bruce on bass and Eric Clapton on guitar.

Decades after helping Fleetwood Mac become the biggest pop phenomenon of the ’70s, Mick is still keeping time like only he can.

Mitch Mitchell was not alone in blending jazz and rock drumming styles, but he may have pushed the combo further than anyone who came before him. Here a number of noted drummers provide further insight into Mitch’s influence….

The March issue of MD (out now) features Billy Ward’s fascinating conversation with Simon Phillips, Doane Perry, Marco Minnemann, Thomas Lang, and Jerry Marotta about the grooves that inspired them to play drums early on, and that continue to today. It seemed to make perfect sense for MD’s editors to …

The resurgence of progressive rock has opened the door for younger drummers to rediscover the more technically challenging aspects of this classic art rock culture….

Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith takes a much-needed rest—for a minute—and fills MD in on the many cool side projects he’s involved in…

Practically joined at the hip to his brother Eddie, nephew Wolfgang, and David Lee Roth, Alex Van Halen has finally returned to the road with the band that bears his name….

Simply put, Max Roach brought jazz drumming into the modern age. Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell revolutionized jazz with new melodies and concepts; Max matched these musical geniuses with startling rhythms and reactive, action-packed drumming that still influences drummers on a profound level today….

In the February 2007 issue of Modern Drummer, we ran a feature called “Double Drumming’s 25 Greatest Hits.??? At the time we asked MD readers to submit their own favorite double-drum performances, which we’d post online at a later date. Well, the time has arrived, double-drum fans—the floor is yours!

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….

Not many drummers dictated the sound of the 80’s like Tony Thompson. That big, huge drum sound was everywhere: on classic recordings like Power Station’s “Some Like It Hot,” David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance,” Madonna’s “Like A Virgin,” Robert Palmer’s “Addicted To Love,” the list goes on.

In Part 2 of our interview with the drummers of The Velvet Underground, we talk to Maureen Tucker, the player most often associated with the group….