I always liked Clem Burke (Blondie in the 70’s, Eurythmics in the 80’s, and Blondie again in the 90’s).
The thing about Peart is that he plays his drums very ‘tonally’. He plays appropriate notes throughout the song by hitting the right piece of his kit right. He plays bells, all kinds of stuff. Very difficult to do well while still doing all the other drummerly things.
I’d rate him as the best drummer around today. Whether he was the best in the 70’s is another question. He was a lot younger, had not matured fully into the drummer he became by the time ‘moving pictures’ came out, and there was a lot of competition from the other great drummers mentioned in this thread.
Terry Bozzo. He played drums in Zappa’s band from 1975 to 1978. He coilf sing and play drums at the same time, not many drummers can do that.
It’s funny how often in threads like this - “Who’s the best …” you can join in late and find the most glaring omissions.
Steve Smith of Journey, a band I never particularly liked, was and still is a fantastic drummer. Modern Drummer Magazine voted him #1 All Round Drummer 5 years in a row.
Tommy Aldridge(SP?) and Peart hit my list. Aldridge is way under rated. Terry Bozzo(I thought it was Bozzio) is another great drummer. Phil Collins should also be there though I hate what he did in later years.
Slee
- Jerry “I can play the SHIT outta that song!” Nolan, RIP.
- Scotty Asheton, in Sonic’s Rendezvous Band, not so much the stooges.
- Buddy Miles.
Bonzo … you just cant beat Moby Dick!
In no particular order:
Phil Collins
Phil Ehart
Bill Kreutzmann
Mickey Hart
Steve Gadd
Richie Hayward
Terry Bozzio
Vinnie Colaiuta
Chester Thompson
Bill Bruford
Keith Moon
Bernard Purdie
Niel Peart
John Bonham
Danny Seraphine
John Guerin
Narada Michael Walden
Ian Paice
Alan White
Carl Palmer
Chuck Burgi
Cozy Powell
Graham Lear
Clive Bunker
Barriemore Barlow
Billy Cobham
Ainsley Dunbar
Carmine Appice
Ralph Humphrey
Lenny White
Peter Erskine
Alphonse Mouzon
Omar Hakim
James Bradley, Jr.
Stewart Copeland
Tony Williams
Jack De Johnette
Zakir Hussein…
…to name a few.
Definitely a golden age of drumming!!
I love that there was (is?) a journal called “Modern Drummer”. Good to see that niche stuff was available well before the Internet.
I have to vote for Bonham, and give Peart the best of the 80s. Without Bonham, Zep would not have been nearly as good–somebody had to bring some masculinity to the music and the image.
Who said Keith Moon didn’t contribute to the songwriting?
Put on “The Real Me” and tell me Keith didn’t add something. There is NO other drummer in the world who could do what he brought to the table. None.
Same for “Won’t Get Fooled Again”. Outstanding Moon performance. His antics COMPLETELY overshadowed his talent.
Maureen Tucker, from the Velvet Underground.
Oh, and anyone who drummed for Spinal Tap: “It was one of those things the police said was, y`know, best left unsolved.” My favourite line from that movie.
“Modern Drummer” is very much alive and well. An outstanding publication.
My vote would be for Bonham as well. Such a strong groove and a right foot to die for 
Steve Smith is an incredible player, although his forte really is Jazz. Calling him one of the greatest rock drummers might be a bit of a stretch.
Personally, Palmer an Peart never did a damn thing for me. Yeah, they both have great chops, but I just don’t ever feel a gread deal from what they play. Too mechanical for my tastes.
Yeah it is Bozzio. I should read it before I hit Submit.
Bill Ward! Listen to anything from the album “Paranoid.” He was wildly inventive with his fills and never used the same one twice. Very underrated drummer. And he played a tiny kit in those days (kick, snare, one rack, one floor, crash, ride and hi-hat) and made it sound HUGE.
I always liked Roger Taylor from Queen. Decent drummer, wrote some good songs, had a helluva voice.
Oh, and for name quality alone, Bun E. Carlos from Cheap Trick deserves a nod.
To Already in Use:
I’ll have to do some searching to find a cite, but I’m quite certain that several members of “the Wrecking Crew” (a team of veteran session musicians, usually including drummer Hal Blaine and guitairist/bassist Carol Kaye) played on Frank Zappa’s “Freak Out” album.
In fact, Carol Kaye (who played with Blaine on hundreds, maybe thousands of records in the 1960s) tells some hilarious stories about the “Freak Out” sessions. She actually had to beg off playing on a few tracks, because she was scandalized by the lyrics, and didn’t want her children to think she’d played on dirty songs (she says Zappa was suprisingly amiable and understanding of her qualms).
Thanks, astorian. Anything to feed my current obsession with Zappa. The name Carol Kaye actually sounds familiar, and now that I think of it, there is a list in the liner notes of Freak Out! that mentions people who also played on it; some of the Wrecking Crew might be in it (although session musicians are traditionally uncredited). There is also a horn section on that album, and his band had no horns at the time, so that was all session musicians.
Anyway, as for my favorite rock drummers, I don’t really listen to the drumming as much as the melody generally, but I think my favorite drummers are probably Ringo Starr, Mitch Mitchell (although he was more '60s), and anyone who played with Frank Zappa.
Bonham and Moon, pretty obvious, but still 1 and 1a in my book.
Also, Stewart Copeland, probably my favorite living drummer.
And another vote for Bill Ward, glad to see him mentioned. Ward and Butler made up one of the greatest rhythm sections ever if you ask me.