December 2021 – Volume 45 • Number 12
On 10th Jan 2022
Articles in December 2021
Choosing The Correct Job
Some readers might look at this heading and think, “What? It’s hard enough to find any job!” But I’m quite serious about the ramifications—musical, emotional, and financial—of knowing where to put yourself. Of course, we all know there are monetary…
45 Years of a Vibrant Community
It’s just unbelievable how quickly 45 years can go by. It was 1977, when founder Ron Spagnardi launched what the world would come to know, love, and behold as Modern Drummer magazine. Modern Drummer is much more than a magazine.…
Toppermost of the Poppermost
Pop-Culture Triumphs, 1977-2021 Modern Drummer has reported on a colossal number of drummers in its 45-year history, but pop-culture doesn’t revolve solely around drums and drumming. (Drats!) Creativity does not exist in a vacuum. Other events tend to inspire, inform,…
Larry Mullen A candid interview with the drummer
Excerpted from the August 1985 issue Let me say first of all that I don’t do interviews, ever. I did them when the band started, and then 1 stopped because I didn’t enjoy them. I’ve seen issues of Modern Drummer.…
Peter Erskine Excerpted from the January 1983 issue
If Peter Erskine isn’t careful, he’s going to start giving jazz, musicians a good name. I mean, we all know about the reputation jazz players have with the general public, right? The stereotypical jazzer is perceived to be a sullen,…
Billy Cobham Excerpted from the August/September 1979 Issue
Billy Cobham is one of the strongest innovative forces on the drumming scene today. Both his technique, and drum set up are awesome. We met at Starr Recording Studios where Cobham was to record an instructional tape for the Tama…
John Bonham Elected to Hall of Fame in 1981
Excerpted from the John Bonham tribute issue, July 1984 John Bonham played, for the most part, a very simple drumkit, consisting of a 14x26 bass drum, a 12x15 small tom—at first mounted on a snare stand and later on the…
Roger Taylor Excerpted from the March 1985 issue
What prompted you to start playing drums? When I was at school, I used to listen to the radio and records a lot. When I was younger, it was sort of the start of the techno-rock thing. I was brought…
12 Iconic Punk-Rock Drummers Sound Off
We spun through the MD archives to collect some brash, aggro wisdom from punk-rock, punk-pop, or post-punk drummers who have shared their musical insights in these pages. Punk isn’t always about diving blindly into intensity with limited technique, and some…
Carl Palmer
Excerpted from the June/July 1980 issue How did you first meet Keith Emerson and Greg Lake? It just so happened at the time in London when Emerson and Lake were getting together I was kind of the only guy in…
Bill Bruford
Excepted from the January/February 1979 issue Bill Bruford has never attained the widespread fame of Carl Palmer or Billy Cobham. But whenever Bruford’s name is mentioned, it is almost invariably prefaced by the term ‘’drummer extraordinaire” or ‘’precise percussionist.” Bruford,…
Remembering Ron Spagnardi
Quotes from the Original Fearless Leader No plan. No staff. Just a grand passion, the personal savings of Ron Spagnardi and his wife Isabel, and the sweat entity of his dad and their daughter. There was little hope that a…
Neil Peart Elected to Hall of Fame in 1983
Excerpted from the April/May 1980 issue How did you become involved with Rush? The usual chain of circumstances and accidents. I came from a city that’s about 60 or 70 miles from Toronto. A few musicians from my area had…
By the Numbers MD Covers Reveal Drum-Culture Stats
Forty-five years provides a lot of perspective on the artists, styles, and techniques Modern Drummer has covered, as well as how those subjects informed the drum community from year to year. Any magazine editor will tell you that choosing cover…
Martin Chambers
Excerpted from the July 1982 issue The single biggest influence in Martin Chambers’ onstage attitude and playing considerations was Keith Moon. “He was a very good player and a very talented free player, much like Mitch Mitchell. But the thing…
Gene Krupa Elected to Hall of Fame in 1979
Excerpted from the October/November 1979 issue “I’m happy that I succeeded in doing two things: I made the drummer a highpriced guy, and I was able to draw more people to jazz.” The above quote of drum master Gene Krupa…
Max Roach Excerpted from the June 1982 issue
Max Roach is a vital link in the chain of drum history. He was recognized as the man who pioneered a modern drumming style for his work with bebop giants like Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. In the ‘50s and…
Phil Collins
Excerpted from the March/April 1979 issue Phil Collins’ muscular arms are flowing as his hands snap out the illusive 6/8 beat. The music swells around and through him while his piercing eyes look inward, directing his movements. Collins is an…
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…
