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December 2021 – Volume 45 • Number 12

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 Drum Company. It took the crew the entire morning to set up his mammoth array of drums. While the studio technicians expertly placed the microphones around the set, Billy and I talked about the triple-bass-drum idea, which was originally Louie Bellson’s. Louie told Billy he could have it. What started your interest in drums? I’ve been playing since I can remember. That’s all I know. I don’t know what started it. You mentioned that members of your family played drums. Yes. My family builds drums for religious purposes. They build congas and steel drums, and they sell them throughout the Caribbean. The area I came from is called the “bush,” […]
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Articles in December 2021

Jon Farriss Excerpted from the October 1988 issue

Innocently and completely unexpectedly, Jon Farriss poses the question, “Are you really sure that drummers want to read about me?” It was a definite “first” within my realm of experience as a music journalist. Yet, as strange as the question…

Story by Teri Saccone
Jan 10, 2022

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.…

Modern Drummer
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Karen Larcombe
Jan 10, 2022

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,…

Story by Michael Shore
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Scott K. Fish
Jan 10, 2022
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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…

Story by Robyn Flans
Jan 10, 2022

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,…

By Michael Molenda
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Susan Alexander
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Robyn Flans
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Rick Mattingly
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Chip Stern
Jan 10, 2022
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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.…

Story by Connie Fisher
Jan 10, 2022

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…

By Michael Molenda
Jan 10, 2022

Nick Mason

Excerpted from the November 2011 issue How do you feel about your drumming on the many classic Pink Floyd cuts? I’ve always been a bit disparaging of my own playing. I tend to listen to things and wish I’d done…

Story by Adam Budofsky
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Susan Alexander
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Jim Warchol
Jan 10, 2022

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…

By Michael Blair, Head Talk, January 1992
Jan 10, 2022

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…

Story by Cheech Iero
Jan 10, 2022
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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,…

Story by Rick Mattingly
Jan 10, 2022

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