shadorne, I LOVE Phil Rudd! Love him to death. Nobody plays Chuck Berry-style Rock 'n' Roll better than Phil, and his snare drum sounds just the way they are suppose to. Steve Gadd is an absolute marvel, absolutely one of the very best drummers in the world. Expensive, but worth it. Speaking of worth, can you believe Paul McCartney was paying Wings drummer Denny Seiwell a whopping $150/wk?! What a d*ck.
A drummer who was great as a session player, and continued to play great even as the member of a lame band, was Jeff Porcaro. Imagine playing on Boz Scaggs "Lido Shuffle" (great drumming), and then having to play Toto's horrid songs?
I neglected to mention L.A. studio drummer Russ Kunkel. The last time I saw him live was as a member of Lyle Lovett's Big Band (what a band!), but in the 70's and beyond he recorded with just about all the best songwriters and singers. The Everly Brothers, Dylan, Ronstadt, Neil Young, Carole King, James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Joe Walsh, J.J. Cale, Tracy Chapman, Rita Coolidge, Crosby, Stills, & Nash (group and solo), Rodney Crowell, Richie Furay, Andrew Gold, Emmylou Harris, B.B. King, Roger McGuinn, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Aaron Neville, Bonnie Raitt, Neil Sedaka, Bob Segar, Carly Simon, John Stewart, Steve Winwood, Bill Withers, and Warren Zevon engaged his services because of his superb musicality, not his abilities as a soloist. I like songs, not solos (though Steve Gadd does a great one!). But this isn't my thread, so enough outta me. Back to your favorite drum solos, boys!
