Welcome to British Drum Icons, the latest feature to be added to our ever expanding website. This new sub-section of the site is dedicated to the celebration of British drummers who have been admired by many and been an influence to some of the biggest names in the industry.
In our constant search for new drumming heroes we often tend to forget those who blazed a path for others to follow. People like Clem Cattini, Brian Bennett and Bob Henrit were among a phalanx of drummers who came out of the melting pot of skiffle, when British rock music was at its infancy. They are the “without whom brigade” who laid the trail for Ringo, Moonie and Bonzo to follow. If you think you haven’t heard these guys play, think again. Put together, their work is a fantastic and rich slice of music from the early days of rock ‘n’ roll and they are all still going strong today. They were and remain true innovators who have played with rock and pop’s royalty.
We will start off with a few great drummers and will be adding more in time to make this a complete record of some of the greatest British drumming heroes. This first set of interviews were done by Mark Forster, who is regular contributor of feature interviews to mikedolbear.com, a news journalist of some 20 years and the inspiration behind the piece. So here they are, in no particular order.
Mark Brzezicki
Mark Brzezicki’s is one of those drummers whose playing is instantly recognisable. A busy musician reminiscent of Ginger Baker and Keith Moon, Brzezicki’s wealth of dynamic grooves propels songs but never detracts from them. And
Dave Mattacks
Dave at Cropredy 2007 I first became aware of Dave Mattacks when, as a teenage schoolboy, I clasped my grubby mitts on a copy of Camel’s ‘The Single Factor’. It was in the days
Bobby Elliot
Bobby Elliott in 1963 There's a subtle difference between an Oxo tin and a Cadbury's Roses box. Bobby Elliott certainly knows what it is. The Hollies' backbone used to play both in a percussive
Kevin Godley
“I’m not really a drummer,” asserts Kevin Godley laughing. “I’m a creative person who plays drums… occasionally.” But the innovative former 10cc sticksman’s enthusiasm at playing drums again after a lengthy lay-off is clearly evident.
Tony Meehan
Daniel Joseph Anthony 'Tony' Meehan Tony Meehan set the ball rolling as far as British Rock ‘n’ Roll drummers were concerned. It wasn’t so much that he was the first, although arguably he
Rob Townsend
Rob Townsend Rob Townsend is one of those drummers who have garnered less recognition than they should have done. In fact, he fits the idea behind Mike Dolbear’s Drumming Icons to a T
Keith Moon
Keith Moon Keith Moon would have been 62, and fast approaching his second bus pass, on August 23rd 2008. I first met him sometime in the summer of 1965. He was coming out
Nigel Glockler
Nigel Glockler Nigel Glockler earnt his first taste of success with singer Toyah Willcox in the early 80’s. However, he was soon to reach new heights standing in for one Pete Gill who
Bob Henrit
Bob Henritt It’s fascinating how some musical partnerships survive the years. Bob Henrit first hooked up with guitarist/songwriter Russ Ballard in the early 1960s as part of The Roulettes, perhaps best known as
Simon Kirke
Simon Kirke If anybody were to ask me what records I would have liked to have played on - right up at the top would be Free’s ‘Alright now’. Simon Kirke and I
Dolphin Taylor
After we interviewed Stiff Little Fingers drummer Steve Grantley a while back we asked him if there were any British Drum Icons that he felt had been overlooked. There were many including, Mickey Tucker from
