Jazz and rock music

Last updated on September 28, 2013

On this page:

The drummers

The drums

The guitarists

Jazz musicians

Rock musicians

Record companies

"You want some more? Well, here's some more!"

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The drummers

After being inspired first by early rock and roll bands as a kid and later by the British Invasion, I started playing drums at the age of twelve in the Sixties. I took a few lessons and had a basic set of drums. Years later, after seeing what Ginger Baker was doing with Cream, I started using two bass drums in 1971.

There are a lot of drummers whose playing has influenced mine, including the original "killer" rock drummers, Ginger Baker with Cream and Keith Moon with The Who. Another outstanding drummer that had a big impact on my playing was perhaps the greatest funk drummer of all time, David Garibaldi, with Tower of Power. David's innovative and incredibly tasty drumming inspired a lot of us.

Billy Cobham's playing really changed my life. In 1972, when I first heard him play (with the Mahavishnu Orchestra), I thought what he was doing was impossible. But by 1975 I had studied his playing enough that I sounded a lot like him. In my view his best music was done in the Seventies. His first three solo albums remain my favorites: Spectrum, Crosswinds, and Total Eclipse. This is music that I consider to be an important part of the basic library of anyone studying jazz drumming, rock drumming, or the origins of jazz-rock fusion.

And then there's Buddy Rich. The absolute ultimate jazz drummer. A technical master.

Completely self-taught, he started playing before he was two years old. After practicing hard for over forty years, Buddy did such a good job of playing things that were virtually impossible (while making it look easy for him) that there were many drummers who went to see him play and just then decided to quit playing once they realized they could never even come close to his mastery and total domination of the drum set.

The better the drummer you are, the more you respect Buddy. There are thousands of good drummers out there. Buddy Rich is the only one who made other drummers cry.

In the sixties and seventies, I was able to see Count Basie, Bill Bruford and Alan Holdsworth, Chick Corea and Return to Forever, Larry Coryell, Jack Dejohnette, Al Di Meola, The Dregs, Duke Ellington, the Jefferson Airplane, Elvin Jones, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Thelonius Monk, Tower of Power, McCoy Tyner, Weather Report, Tony Williams, and Frank Zappa play live. I was also fortunate enough to be able to see Buddy Rich play with his big band on three occasions, and also saw Billy Cobham play in three different settings back in the early Seventies. It was a blast to be inspired by all of this talent. And it was sure great to be able to experience the birth of jazz-rock fusion.

Here are links to Web sites that are devoted to many of the great drummers.

Carmine Appice
http://www.carmineappice.net/

Ginger Baker
http://www.gingerbaker.com/

John Bonham
http://www.ledzeppelin.com/

Bill Bruford
http://www.billbruford.com/

Billy Cobham
http://www.billycobham.com/

Peter Erskine
http://www.petererskine.com/

Steve Gadd
http://www.drstevegadd.com/

David Garibaldi
towerofpower.com/bandmembers/garibaldi.html

Elvin Jones
http://www.elvinjones.com/

Keith Moon
http://www.thewho.net/

Rod Morgenstein
http://www.rodmorgenstein.com/

Carl Palmer
http://www.carlpalmer.com/

Buddy Rich
http://www.buddyrich.com/

Alex Van Halen
http://www.van-halen.com/
http://www.vhnd.com/

The drums

Ayotte Custom Drums
http://www.ayottedrums.com/

DW — Drum Workshop Drums
http://www.dwdrums.com/

Gretsch Drums
http://www.gretschdrums.com/

LP — Latin Percussion
http://www.lpmusic.com/

Ludwig Drums
http://www.ludwig-drums.com/

Pearl Drums
http://www.pearldrum.com/

Premier Drums
http://www.premier-percussion.com/

Rogers Drums
http://www.rogersdrumsusa.com/

Slingerland Drums
http://www.gibson.com/

Tama Drums
http://www.tama.com/

Paiste Cymbals
http://www.paiste.com/

Sabian Cymbals
http://www.sabian.com/

Zildjian Cymbals
http://www.zildjian.com/

Vic Firth Drumsticks
http://www.vicfirth.com/

Regal Tip Drumsticks
http://www.regaltip.com/

Promark Drumsticks
http://www.promark-stix.com/

Zildjian Drumsticks
http://www.zildjian.com/

A Drummer's Tradition — vintage drums
http://www.adrummerstradition.com/

The Drum Place
http://www.drumplace.com/

Drumatix — vintage drums
http://www.drumatix.com/

Modern Drummer Magazine
http://www.moderndrummer.com/

Percussive Arts Society
http://www.pas.org/

Vintage Logos
http://www.vintagelogos.com/

The guitarists

The amount of talent these people have shared with the world is staggering. Each of them has had a profound influence on countless other guitarists. If there is anyone mentioned here you that haven't heard yet, make a point of it as soon as you can. This is the real thing.

Greg Allman
http://www.allmanbrothersband.com/

Adrian Belew
http://www.adrianbelew.net/

Tommy Bolin
http://www.tbolin.com/

Collings Guitars
http://www.collingsguitars.com/

Larry Coryell
http://www.kiosek.com/coryell/

David Crosby
http://www.crosbycpr.com/

Al Di Meola
http://www.aldimeola.com/

Robert Fripp
http://www.elephant-talk.com/

Scott Henderson
http://www.scotthenderson.net/

Jimi Hendrix
http://www.jimi-hendrix.com/

Allan Holdsworth
http://www.therealallanholdsworth.com/

Chrissie Hynde
http://www.pretenders.org/

B.B. King
http://www.bbking.com/

Pat Metheny
http://www.patmethenygroup.com/

Kim Mitchell
http://www.kimmitchell.ca/

Steve Morse
http://www.stevemorse.com/

Carlos Santana
http://www.santana.com/

Joe Satriani
http://www.satriani.com/

John Scofield
http://www.johnscofield.com/

Brian Setzer
http://www.bsofanclub.com/

Pete Townshend
http://www.eelpie.com/

Robin Trower
http://www.trowerpower.com/

Eddie Van Halen
http://www.van-halen.com/
http://www.vhnd.com/

Stevie Ray Vaughan
http://www.stevierayi.com/

Johnny Winter
http://www.johnnywinter.net/

Neil Young
http://www.neilyoung.com/
http://www.hyperrust.org/

Frank Zappa
http://www.zappa.com/

Jazz musicians

Chick Corea and Return to Forever
http://www.chickcorea.com/

Bela Fleck & the Flecktones
http://www.flecktones.com/

Rob McConnell and the Boss Brass
http://www.concordjazz.com/bios/mcconnell.html

Flora Purim
http://www.florapurim.com/

Rad featuring Rose Ann Dimalanta
http://www.radmusic.com/

Diane Schuur
http://www.dianeschuur.com/

The Strokeland Superband
http://www.strokeland.com/

Tower of Power
http://www.towerofpower.com/

Tribal Tech
http://www.ejn.it/mus/tribal.htm

Rock musicians

AC/DC
http://www.ac-dc.net/

Alice In Chains
http://www.aliceinchains.com/

The Allman Brothers
http://www.allmanbrothersband.com/

Dave Alvin and The Blasters
http://www.davealvin.com/

Jack Bruce
http://www.jackbruce.com/

Kate Bush
http://www.gaffa.org/

The Cure
http://www.thecure.com/

Depeche Mode
http://www.depechemode.com/

The Dixie Dregs
http://www.stevemorse.com/

The Doors
http://www.thedoors.com/

Enigma
http://www.enigmamusic.com/

Everything But The Girl
http://www.ebtg.com/

Filter
http://www.officialfilter.com/

Foo Fighters
http://www.foofighters.com/

Front 242
http://www.front242.com/

Full Intention
http://www.fullintention.demon.co.uk/

Garbage
http://www.garbage.com/

Genesis
http://www.genesis-web.com/

Green Day
http://www.repriserec.com/greenday/
http://www.greenday.net/

Buddy Holly
http://www.buddyholly.com/

Incognito — A collective effort led by founder Jean-Paul 'Bluey' Maunick, Incognito combines jazz, gospel, and house music.
http://www.incognito.org.uk/

Karen Bernod — Incognito vocalist
http://www.nativelycreative.com/

Simon Cotsworth — Incognito sound engineer, programmer and producer
http://www.simon.cotsworth.mcmail.com/

Maysa — Incognito vocalist
http://www.maysa.com/

Jazzanova
http://www.sonarkollektiv.com/

INXS
http://www.inxs.com/

Chris Isaak
http://www.chrisisaak.com/

Jane's Addiction
http://www.janesaddiction.com/

Joe Jackson
http://www.joejackson.com/

KMFDM
http://www.kmfdm.net/

k.d. lang
http://www.kdlang.com/

Billie Ray Martin
http://www.billieraymartin.com/

Megadeth
http://www.megadeth.com/

Metallica
http://www.metclub.com/

Ministry
http://www.ministry.nu/

Peter Murphy
http://www.sweetestdrop.org/

Nine Inch Nails
http://www.nin.com/

Opeth
http://www.opeth.com/

Pearl Jam
http://www.pearljam.com/

Elvis Presley
http://www.elvispresleynews.com/

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
http://www.tompetty.com/

The Pretenders
http://www.pretenders.org/
http://www.pretendersarchives.com/

Portishead
http://www.portishead.co.uk/

Santana
http://www.santana.com/

The Brian Setzer Orchestra
http://www.bsofanclub.com/

Simple Minds
http://www.simpleminds.com/

Smashing Pumpkins
http://www.smashingpumpkins.com/

Stabbing Westward
http://www.stabbingwestward.com/

Staind
http://www.staind.com/

Steely Dan
http://www.steelydan.com/

Tool
http://www.toolband.com/

Jethro Tull
http://www.j-tull.com/

Underworld
http://www.underworldlive.com/

Van Halen
http://www.van-halen.com/
http://www.vhnd.com/

Joe T. Vannelli
http://www.joetvannelli.com/

White Zombie
http://www.robzombie.com/

The Who
http://www.thewho.net/

Weird Al Yankovic
http://www.weirdal.com/

Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention
http://www.zappa.com/

Record companies

The Artist Shop
http://www.artist-shop.com/

Barking Pumpkin Records
http://www.zappa.com/

BBE Music
http://www.bbemusic.com/

Blue Note Records
http://www.bluenote.com/

Cajual Records
http://www.cajual.com/

Chesky Records
http://www.chesky.com/

Concord Records
http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/

DGM Live — "...to connect music, musician and audience in a way that supports the power of music, the integrity of the musician and the needs of the audience"
http://www.dgmlive.com/

ECM Records
http://www.ecmrecords.com/

Fandango Records
http://www.fandangorecs.com/

Galaxy Records
http://www.galaxyrecords.com/

Hed Kandi
http://www.hedkandi.com/

John Marks Records
http://www.jmrcds.com/

Linn Records
http://www.linnrecords.com/

Masters at Work
http://www.mastersatwork.com/

MODU Productions
http://www.moduproductions.com/

Music Minus One
http://www.musicminusone.com/

Nervous Records NYC
http://www.nervousnyc.com/

Papa Bear Records
http://papabear.com/

Reference Recordings
http://www.referencerecordings.com/