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Rank of Rock Drummers


Zep 4 Life

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Ginger Baker

Noted. What a fantastic drummer.

I'm not sure if I would put him ahead of Moon or Peart. I list him on my "second tier" group which falls slightly below those 3. That group includes Mitch MItchell, Mike Shrieve, Ginger Baker, Ian Paice and Carl Palmer.

That's what I like about these discussions. I like to hear other people's opinions.

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Bonzo / Keith Moon / Ian Paice / Alex Van Halen / Neil Peart / Bill Ward / Ginger Baker / Dave Grohl / Mitch Mitchell / Tommy Aldridge

with special mention to: Cozy Powell / Stewart Copeland / Kenny Aarronoff / Charlie Watts / Bun E. Carlos / Ringo Starr / John Densmore / Jeff Porcaro

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Since there haven't been an overwhelming number of responses to the number 2 rank I was thinking of having everyone list 2-5. I will give points accordingly. Right now it seems as though there is a heavy following for Keith Moon, Ian Paice, and Ginger Baker.

My picks 2-5 are as follows.

2 Keith Moon (The Who)

3 Neil Peart (Rush)

4 Ginger Baker (Cream)

5 Mitch Mitchell (Jimi Hendrix)

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My picks 2-5 are as follows.

2 Keith Moon (The Who)

3 Neil Peart (Rush)

4 Ginger Baker (Cream)

5 Mitch Mitchell (Jimi Hendrix)

I've got no problem with that, but #6 has to be Bill Ward.

And maybe Cozy Powell at #7 IMO.

Oh, and what about Brian Downey?

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Well I'll list my five since you requested it.

1. John Bonham - Already in the list.

2. Keith Moon - In terms of classic rock, Moon is one of few who I consider to be close to Bonham.

3. Ginger Baker - On about the same level as Moon.

4. Ian Paice - Not with the top three, but a good drummer.

5. Neil Peart - I don't listen to that much Rush.

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Even though he's not a rock drummer, the godfather of all modern drummers was Buddy Rich. They all seemed to idolize him. Bonham was honered to pay Carnegie Hall because Rich played there.

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Xtazy you can rank your own top 5. But if you agree with that order I can mark it down.

Selfdevouringsnake if you need to listen to some rush check out 2112 overture, and Tom Sawyer. Lemme know if you've already heard those, cause Neil has some amazing tracks.

Wolfman I completely agree about Buddy Rich. His stuff is amazing, but I chose to make this a pure rock list because other than Buddy Rich I wasn't too familiar with many jazz/old school drummers. If there is a big push to change the type of list I will consider it.

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Selfdevouringsnake if you need to listen to some rush check out 2112 overture, and Tom Sawyer. Lemme know if you've already heard those, cause Neil has some amazing tracks.

Thanks for the recommendations. I will check them out. Actually this morning I read that Rush's first album was highly influenced in style by Led Zeppelin and Cream, which raises the band's intrigue for me. I also need to check out Rush for Lifeson - I'm running a greatest guitarists thread, and I don't know shit about the man. Of course it's best to just listen for the music, and that's what I'm going to do. Just considering what I've heard from Rush, and what I've heard from Rush fans, I know that Peart is an incredibly skilled drummer with an incredibly wide range. But what I've heard of him (what little I've heard of him) isn't the hammer of the gods the way John Bonham's drums are to me. And I'd dare say it applies to the bands themselves as well: Rush has the wider range, but Led Zeppelin is simply the essence of rock for me. It's cool to see that there are others who agree that John Bonham is the greatest rock drummer of all time (and as far as I'm concerned that makes him the supreme drummer in general), but obviously this is a Led Zeppelin forum. The number of famous drummers who say Bonham was the greatest gives me hope as well: Roger Taylor, Dave Grohl, and Peter Criss. And perhaps best of all, Neil Peart recognizes Bonham as a large influence and an excellent drummer.

Here's a list of interest: http://www.stylusmagazine.com/articles/weekly_article/stylus-magazines-50-greatest-rock-drummers.htm.

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but I chose to make this a pure rock list because other than Buddy Rich I wasn't too familiar with many jazz/old school drummers. If there is a big push to change the type of list I will consider it.

I would be all for that Zep4life. :yesnod:

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You're all for making it an overall best drummer list and nt a pure rock list?

Yes, my list (not official) would look something like this:

Buddy Rich

John Bonham

Steve Gadd

Max Roach

Billy Cobham

Ginger Baker

Vinnie Colaiuta

Butch Miles

Bernard Purdie

Steve Smith (Vital Information)

But I want to be clear, it's your thread and your call, I'll respect whatever you decide. B)

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I guess you've said them all, my list in no particular order;

John Bonham

Keith Moon

Bill Bruford

Carl Palmer

Neil Perth

Ian Paice

Bill Ward

Barrie Barlow

All inventive and colorful, drummers, all considered DUI ( Drumming Under the Influence ... of good music!)

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I think that Lars Ulrich is a fantastic drummer! He should be in the top ten, in my opinion.

This video is kind of funny!

Here is a better video of him in action:

I had the honor of seeing Lars play this song in Cinci! It was great!

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Ulrich is terrible now, he can't even play the double bass parts in One properly from the boots I've heard. He was getting pretty good by Justice and then he just fell back onto the very simple rhythms and beats he was used to playing on the Black Album. He got lazy then imo.

Anyway, what about Buddy Miles? His playing on the Hendrix album 'Band of Gypsys' album is very tight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvrkSOQ39ug

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Ulrich is terrible now, he can't even play the double bass parts in One properly from the boots I've heard. He was getting pretty good by Justice and then he just fell back onto the very simple rhythms and beats he was used to playing on the Black Album. He got lazy then imo.

Anyway, what about Buddy Miles? His playing on the Hendrix album 'Band of Gypsys' album is very tight.

I didn't even think about Buddy Miles. Whenever I think of Hendrix I think of Mitch Mitchell. But I give tons of credit to any drummer that ever played with Hendrix. Not only was it a tough task to keep the beat for such an amazing, and unpredictable guitarist; Hendrix always had his pick of drummers. I'm pretty sure he turned down Mike Shrieve for Mitch Mitchell. Both of whom I feel are top 15 drummers of all time.

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Noted. What a fantastic drummer.

I'm not sure if I would put him ahead of Moon or Peart. I list him on my "second tier" group which falls slightly below those 3. That group includes Mitch MItchell, Mike Shrieve, Ginger Baker, Ian Paice and Carl Palmer.

That's what I like about these discussions. I like to hear other people's opinions.

What ? Moon above Baker nooooooo.............Moonie was great in the Who, but he was such an unconventional player i don't think he could have got a job anywhere else... he was so unique he was in a class of his own. Baker though he most definitely should be somewhere in the ten.....Ten from me in no particular order

Terry Bozzio

Mitch Mitchell

Charlie Watts

Ian Paice

John Bonham

Steve Gorman

Ginger Baker

Stewart Copeland

Dave Grohl

Ed Cassidy

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Listing GInger Baker right below Moon doesn't mean I don't love his work. In fact I like a lot of the stuff he did with Cream more than the stuff Keith did with The Who. However I feel that Moon stands just barely above Baker and the rest that I mentioned. It doesn't mean that I am right.

Side story: I was talking with a few of my uncles over 4th of July (who are all around their early 50's) and we were talking about classic rock. One of them was a big fan of The Who, and the other was a big Led Head. When I mentioned that Bonzo was the greatest drummer ever IMO, they both looked at me like I was crazy, and insisted that he wasn't as good as Keith Moon.

Anyone from that 'older' generation share the same opinion of Moon?

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