Greatest Rock Drummers

Great suggestions from all. Interesting to compare styles.

Mitch and Jimi are really just jamming. Using typical call and response type comping.

Bonham and Jimmy often worked together very carefully to make something really artistic and complementary. (Of course they often did Call and Response too with Plant leading as this is a key aspect of Blues - Black Dog being a great example)

Both are amazing drummers.

I do think the greatest Rock Drummers work carefully with the other musicians to make the song greater than just a sum of individual talent. Creating a tightly knit piece that locks together.

I don’t really enjoy a lot of modern jazz because of the individual jamming (comping). However I do enjoy traditional big band stuff. I believe it is actually harder to carefully craft a simple piece like Queen often did - where everything fits tightly together.

Jamming is often a display of great individual talent but it is not planned and carefully constructed where the whole combination is greater than the individual talent...

Neil Peart.

Being a drummer, I see the merit in all of the talent mentioned, except Ringo maybe ;^), but Neil Peart amazes me. If you look at the recorded (or live) body of work he has produced, it doesn’t hinge on an overly specific and narrow stylistic preference or particular skill. Across all of his work and over more than 4 decades, he has consistently been THE greatest rock drummer in my mind.

Our family of 5 have gone to many, many Rush concerts, and nobody inspires "air drumming" like Neil.

That being said, I’d also like to drop an honorable mention for Terry Bozzio. Love the drums in US Drag.

Rock drummers: I’ve always liked Michael Shrieve of the band Santana. He could play rock, jazz, blues, anything. Heck but I thought if you were a true musician you can play anything. At least that’s what Grover Washington Jr. said.

Here’s a link for Michael Shrieve on youtube. The album is Santana - Cravanserai. Please see link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InlDs3C5Twk

And as far my favorite drummer and I think he was the best that ever sat in a trap set is Chick Webb. In 1937 Chick Webb’s band had a battle of the swing bands with Benny Goodman’s band. The drummer for Benny Goodman’s band was Gene Krupa. Chick Webb on the drums, ’cut’ Gene Krupa up so bad that Gene Krupa had to stop and give Chick Webb his props. Please see link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbamDNDoJu0

Sorry about getting here late. I come from the Gary Chester philosophy about drumming, which is to play musically foremost and then if you’re given a drum solo... Lately I’ve been listening to Dallas Taylor on the first CS&N recording and it sounds very supportive in a musical sense. I’ve always admired drummers who are also musicians i.e. Paul Motion and why he preferred not to solo. I did catch the Buddy Rich Big Band in the very early 1980’s (also the Mel Lewis) and it was fantastic however when I saw Paul Motion with Paul Bley and Steve Swallow, it was something that was very different from what I was previously familiar with. So if I were to make a list, I’d have to consider the complete band and other musical aspects as a whole, which would then, I believe, present a different set of problems altogether.

Sorry to join the discussion late, and glad to see Richie Hayward, my all time favorite, receive some mention, along with Steve Gadd, and Jeff Porcaro.  Surprised to see zero mention of Rod Morgenstein (Dregs, etc.). Since there's also been discussion of Jazz players, I will also offer Joe Morello (Dave Brubeck, the Take Five solo), Alex Acuna (Weather Report, etc.), also Peter Erskine (also Wearher Report and many others).