It’s been a difficult few weeks for drummers. Last month, we lost Tommy Ramone. This week, Ahmad Jamal’s go-to percussionist Idris Muhammad left us. And Woody Woodson, the man behind the kit for The Isley Brothers’ funky It’s Your Thing, says he can’t play until he gets a new leg. (Great drummer, Woody, but he’d never have made it in Def Leppard.)
Meanwhile, there was good and bad news for Slipknot’s new drummer. The good news: a new Slipknot song, the band’s first since parting ways with longtime timekeeper Joey Jordison, was unveiled. The bad news: the new drummer was not. According to Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor the band prefers to keep the identity of its newest member under wraps. “We want the music to speak for itself,” he says, free of the sort of distractions that come with knowing the name of that guy at the back of the stage.
And then there’s Finnish metal band Nightwish, whose drummer’s time with the band is evidently, uh, finished. He’s taking a much-needed break, it says here, to deal with chronic insomnia. Sure, rocking and rolling all night is desirable, but only provided one sleeps through part of every day.
This week also marked the 22nd anniversary of the passing of Jeff Porcaro in a bizarre gardening accident. A trusted session man, Porcaro was also a proud member of Toto; it’s safe to say had it not been for his dextrous drumming Rosanna would have sounded like just another lame ’80s hit. Continue reading →
Wig Bubbles 