STICKY SITUATIONS

In celebration of my 22nd year playing drums (and my continued passion for listmaking), here’s ten criminally underappreciated rock drummers:

1. Danny Seraphine (Chicago): The classic case of a lamp hidden under a bushel basket. While Seraphine is legendary among drummers, the rock world has never fully recognized his talent, because it was wasted on MOR garbage. Seraphine may have the best technique of any major rock drummer; he also had the good sense to hold back when necessary–and to bail out on Chicago when it was clear he’d never again play a song faster than 88 beats a minute. Check out his work on the first three Chicago albums, and ponder if there’s anything the guy couldn’t do behind a drum kit.
2. George Hurley (The Minutemen/fIREHOSE): Most of the early punk-rock drummers weren’t very good, on purpose. Hurley (like D. Boon and Mike Watt, his partners in The Minutemen) brought a sense of musicianship to the genre; their frenetic, free-jazzy jams opened new possibilities for underground music. D. Boon rightly gets most of the credit for The Minutemen’s greatness, but a lesser drummer than Hurley would have derailed the band.
3. Dennis Diken (The Smithereens): Diken may not be a drummer’s drummer, but he’s a songwriter’s drummer, and that’s what The Smithereens needed. His time was solid, his command of retro-drumming considerable. He did great work on all The Smithereens’ stuff, but my favorite track of his has always been “In A Lonely Place.” Phenomenally musical drumming. He is also one of the great rock & roll historians, much sought after to write liner notes.
4. Maurice White (Ramsey Lewis Trio; Earth, Wind, and Fire; studio work): Another monster player whose true talents are seldom recognized, probably because he’s better known as a singer/songwriter and the founder of Earth, Wind, and Fire. White’s drumming has the ferocity of Elvin Jones and the deft touch of Hal Blaine. Hear him blow up all over Billy Stewart’s “Summertime” and Ramsey Lewis’ “Sun Goddess,” or anything by Earth, Wind, and Fire.
5. Whoever played on “Which Way You Goin’ Billy” (The Poppy Family): This freakishly morose piece of country-fried bubblegum is propelled by great, rubbery, over-the-top 60s style drumming which is almost gravity-defying. I don’t know who it was playing on this track, but whoever it was, they crushed it.
6. Tyler Stewart (Barenaked Ladies): The Ladies have more musical talent than almost any other working band today, and that includes the guy who sits in the drum seat. It’s not easy to cover everything from Rush to Public Enemy to lounge jazz.
7. Jeff Porcaro (Toto, studio work) : Gone too soon, but the recipient of the ultimate tribute: having a beat named after him. The ultimate example of the “Porcaro Shuffle” is Toto’s “Rosanna.” Jeff did great work with Steely Dan and Boz Scaggs, among others.
8. Matt Cameron (Soundgarden, Pearl Jam): The heavy-music drummer of the 90s, a creative beatmaker who knows how to play hard and still keep it loose. His work on Soundgarden’s Superunknown album is definitive.
9. Jeremy Taggart (Our Lady Peace): Much in the Matt Cameron vein, Taggart is a drummer who brings a subtle aggression to his playing.
10. Steve Smith (Journey, Vital Information): To bring this list full-circle, Smith is another drummer whose talents were wasted where they could never be fully appreciated. Journey didn’t need a drummer of his caliber to propel its arena-rock; any merely competent stickslinger would’ve been fine. Eventually they cut him loose and he returned to his first love, jazz, where his band Vital Information has been adored for over twenty years. Among drummers, Smith is best noted for his acrobatic fills on Journey’s “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”, but his best work is anything with Vital Information or Steps Ahead.