December 2021 – Volume 45 • Number 12
On 10th Jan 2022
Articles in December 2021
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,…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
Buddy Rich Elected to Hall of Fame in 1980
Excerpted from the January 1977 issue When it comes to interviewing Buddy, one must learn to expect the unexpected. You can end up with a first rate story, or no story at all. He’s a very intense human being, with…
Alan White
Excerpted from the February/March 1980 issue Yes is one of the few bands who combine exploration of musical art forms with the vitality of rock music. Their arrangements are impeccable and their playing skills, superb. What’s more, those guys can…
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…
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.…
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…
Keith Moon Elected to Hall of Fame in 1982
Excerpted from the September 2003 issue In his last interview, published posthumously in October 1978, Keith told International Musician and Recording World, “You can’t work out things too much. We do certain build-ups and things, but you can run into…
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…
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…
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…
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…
Jack DeJohnette Excerpted From The October 1989 Issue
“I’m having more fun with music,” says Jack DeJohnette. “Now that I’m in my mid-40s, I don’t take everything so seriously. As I let go of a lot of past fears and false illusions about what music is supposed to…
Stewart Copeland
Excerpted from the October 1982 issue How did the Police come about? I was on tour with Curved Air. We had a night off and a local journalist took me around to see his favorite local group, which was a…
