[NeilPeart]

I know I already replied to this thread but I wanted to list the drummers who have heavily influenced my own style (this means I will leave some notables out but I am by no means diminishing their talent and impact on the percussion community/the music world):

Rock:
Carter Beauford of the Dave Matthews Band (one of the best drummers ever; his polyrhythmic playing is stunning)
Ginger Baker of Cream (just listen to Cream...)
John Bonham of Led Zeppelin (Led Zeppelin...'nuff said)
Matt Cameron of Pearl Jam & Soundgarden (solid and inventive)

Metal:
Martin Lopez of Opeth (probably the best metal drummer at the moment)
Danny Carey of Tool (just listen to Tool...)
Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater (crazy fills and odd-tempo beats)
Raymond Herrera of Fear Factory (double-bass master but also melodic)

Jazz:
Dave Weckl, solo and Chick Correa's drummer (impossible rhythms)
Steve Gadd, session player and Steely Dan drummer (amazing snare and hi-hat work)
Dennis Chambers, session drummer (all-around bad-ass)
Elvin Jones of John Coltrane Quartet (the jazz drummer, IMO)

Punk:
Jordan Burns of Strung Out (the best drummer in punk and a damn fine drummer period - he's way better than me

)
Alex of Saosin (listen to this band!!!)
Byron McMackin of Pennywise (great snare work)
Adam Carson of AFI (good stuff)

Of course there are the classics like Buddy Rich, Steve Smith and Gene Krupa but those are mandatory.

Believe it or not all of those drummers influenced me and there's tons more I forgot or only heard once and thought, "Wow." I just like all kinds of music so anything with funky rhythms gets me.

P.S. Wow this list is so incomplete...how could I forget Stewart Copeland!?! I know I'll remember several more skin-smiths tomorrow!

 

[eyeteeth]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilPeart I know I'll remember several more skin-smiths tomorrow.

nice list

 

[kramer5150]

Most of these are repeats, but here are my favs:

Scott Rockenfield (Queensryche)
Mike Portnoy (DT / LTE)
Alex van halen
Ginger baker
john bonham
Omar Hakim
Greg Bissonette (set the stage for david lee roth, steve vai and billy sheehan in the 80s)
Neil Peart
Stewart Copeland
Kenny Arnoff (John Fogerty / Michelle Branch)

 

[NeilPeart]

Mike Mangini: though he usually plays the rocker with Steve Vai and others, his solo work and jazz stuff is unbelievable (completely ambidextrous with every limb independent). He's also a producer (he produced Joss Stone's debut album).

 

[robert]

if you're adventerous, check out Susie Ibarra. she records under her name and Mephista. a young-un. easy to find.

Han Bennink. not a young-un. hard to find; mostly Olde Europe labels.

Andrew Cyrille. not much on his own. "Dark Tree" by Horace Tapscott might be available again. powerful jazz.

 

[HappyEars]

Richie Hayward - Little Feat
Jim Keltner - Studio Drummer
Alex Acuna - Studio Drummer
Manu Katche

All highly original drummers.

 

[VicAjax]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilPeart Punk: Jordan Burns of Strung Out (the best drummer in punk and a damn fine drummer period - he's way better than me ) Alex of Saosin (listen to this band!!!) Byron McMackin of Pennywise (great snare work) Adam Carson of AFI (good stuff)

george hurley (minutemen, fIREHOSE) should be on any list of punk drummers!

 

[romesaz]

DAMNIT!
I dont even get a say cause all of my nominations were already mentioned.
Damn you guys ;P
Hm... I'll throw another one towards Terry Bozzio since he wasnt mentioned as much as he should have been.

Great choices otherwise

 

[Piccolo Daimaou]

To me, Keith Moon and John Bonham were always the best. Dave Lombardo (Slayer) is an absolute beast. And he can really play. He's not just all speed (though he does pull that off very well).

Also, since I don't believe he was mentioned, I'll say Gar Samuelson (Megadeth's original drummer). Now that guy was amazing, or at least I think so. And to think that the guy was all high on heroin most of the time.

 

[catscratch]

What's the point of this argument? It's like saying, "what's the best car in the world?" Well, the answer is... for what? For going fast? Commuting? Off road?

So what genre are we talking about? Best in terms of technique? Musicality? Best looks or craziest attitude?

"Favorite" Drummers is definitely more like it.

I don't mean to rag. Bad day at work

now NJ wants to take away my license since they forgot to send me a court notice. I hate court battles, but gotta make the bastards back down. Anyway... Back to drummers.

In terms of technique, I've never heard anyone quite like Tony Laureano. I mean, Hellhammer, Flo Mounier, Proscriptor, they're all very, very good extreme metal drummers (metal is where the really insane technique is at, imo), but Tony takes tops. He can be ultra-fast without being repetitive, technical but artistic... I'm not a drummer so I lack the proper vocabulary to describe what he in my mind does better than everyone else in the death metal realm, but whatever it is, he does it better

 

[utep10]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gundam Steve Gadd Billy Cobham Jack DeJohnette Omar Hakim John Bonham Living Legends the lot of em!

I love this list. Especially Jack DeJohnette. Like someone mentioned above, these jazz drummers are at another level when it comes to timing. Where the hell is that down beat!!

 

[romesaz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by catscratch What's the point of this argument?.... "Favorite" Drummers is definitely more like it..... .... In terms of technique, I've never heard anyone quite like Tony Laureano. I mean, Hellhammer, Flo Mounier, Proscriptor, they're all very, very good extreme metal drummers (metal is where the really insane technique is at, imo), but Tony takes tops. He can be ultra-fast without being repetitive, technical but artistic... I'm not a drummer so I lack the proper vocabulary to describe what he in my mind does better than everyone else in the death metal realm, but whatever it is, he does it better

I'd have to disagree with technicality being the highest in Metal. I havent heard of the drummers you mentioned, just purely because metal isnt my main music type of choice, not to say they're not great drummers. What i find is that a lot of technique is lost in the speed, unless its somebody like Portnoy, at least inho.
I personally think that most of the technique is found in jazz.
Also, if you really want a good listen to technique, try out some good cuban jazz. Incredible as to the syncopations that are kept between drummer and the rest of the band. and the technique required, imo, is huge.

I'd have to agree though, this isnt purely a "best drummer" thread. Seeing as how everyone's going to have differnt opinions. though I'd have to say that this is a hybrid between favourite/best, purely because a lot of what ppl seem to consider favourites, seem to be the same across the board. I guess it's just a REALLY long list of drummers to be praised.

 

[catscratch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by romesaz I'd have to disagree with technicality being the highest in Metal. I havent heard of the drummers you mentioned, just purely because metal isnt my main music type of choice, not to say they're not great drummers. What i find is that a lot of technique is lost in the speed, unless its somebody like Portnoy, at least inho. I personally think that most of the technique is found in jazz. Also, if you really want a good listen to technique, try out some good cuban jazz. Incredible as to the syncopations that are kept between drummer and the rest of the band. and the technique required, imo, is huge.

Yep, you're right on the money, which is why the drummers I mentioned are, to my mind, exceptional. It is to easy to get lost in the speed and forget that you're more than just accompaniment, but these guys are phenomenally musical as well as technical. Best of both worlds. Of course, if you're not into death/black metal, which is where these guys come from, then you'd have to sit through the song in order to enjoy the drumming, and for non-fans, that can take some courage

Just about everything that Portnoy does well, Hellhammer does better. And Laureano even better than that.

Of course, all this is IMO (nothing humble about it

)

 

[Ingo]

My vote goes to Animal. He was mentioned first on page 2.

 

[Imyourzero]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilPeart While David Grohl is a solid drummer (he rarely overplays and sits well in the pocket), he simply is not at the level of the aforementioned drummers, IMO. The guys above are masters of the craft while Dave is simply a good rock drummer. KyPeN, give Led Zeppelin, Rush and Cream a listen if you wanna hear good classic rock drumming. If heavier stuff is your style than Opeth and Tool have amazing drummers too. If punk is your style Pennywise and Strung Out have some great skin-bangers in their pocket. Yes, Dave Grohl was the drummer for Nirvana, and on the first Foo Fighters album he played every instrument. Now he usually sticks to songwriting/guitar playing, but he'll hop on the kit every now and then.

I don't have time to read the entire thread right now, but I just wanted to mention another (IMO) VERY talented drummer. I know Blink-182 is far from being the favorite band of many here, and they're not my favorite either, but Travis Barker can really tear it up.

Also I should mention that there are many different types of skill. You could be considered skilled if you were a "musical" drummer, or if you had an uncanny sense of rhythm and time, or if you took full advantage of every instrument in the set at every opportunity, or if you can accurately play fast as ****. Travis can definitely do the latter. His drum sets typically aren't huge, but he can definitely work the sticks on what he's got in front of him.

Also, has Jimmy Chamberlin from The Smashing Pumpkins been mentioned? I won't nominate him as "Best Drummer of All Time," but he's definitely talented and somewhat underrated (as is Travis based purely on the fact that many people dislike Blink-182 in their current form).