I invariably use first names, nicknames, or aliases when I mention folks I have “lived with” (and I mean that literally, NOT figuratively) – because we tend to “live” with many more people than we “sleep with”; and, many folks I have “lived with” (shared life with) have high profile jobs that they don’t want compromised by any socially unacceptable behaviors they may have indulged in their youth (though I’d say anything goes these daze [and has for quite a long time {for anyone who read my ‘American Schizophrenia’ piece]). But when it comes to musician comrades over-the-years, I figure we each could use all the fame and/or notoriety we can get: since no musicians I personally know have ever hit The Big Time, and, I would never, ever disrespect someone who drummed with me. Some of these musicians (and this includes the drummers) occupy music’s 2nd tier (with steady work); but for the most part, musicians I have known generally occupy the 3rd tier with me: “Legends in their showers.”
Most rock musicologists know that the “essence” of any great band is its rhythm section: the drummer and the bassist. You can look at all the great bands that have stood the-test-of-time — there are simply too many to mention here – but LED ZEPPELIN’s Bonham and Jones certainly stand out (as do Moon/Entwhistle; Watts and whomever THE STONES used; Ward/Butler; Paice/Glover etc.)…not sure why I haven’t included any American bands in here…I did say, however – that have stood the test of time – so that leaves AEROSMITH (whom I admire) and KISS (whom I don’t) and CHEAP TRICK (whom I’ve never really analyzed) and ZZ TOP (whom I love but have become like a Vegas lounge act)…
So as I’ve been listening to the drum work of Hampton Flanagan III on the 25-year-old recording that piano tuner and producer, Gary, just finished for me, I was reminded that I’ve played with a number of pretty cool drummers (only the Watchman and former brother-in-law, Keith, really stood out on bass [er, let me amend that, because I did have the opportunity of playing with DEEP PURPLE’s road manager — and he — was VERY good!]) And now I’m remembering Billy Carter, bassist of the J.D. HALL BAND (that I had a brief stint with and where I met Hampton) – who was off-the-charts on bass!
But back to Hampton! Hampton’s tasty drumming to a click track (we were recording in Ron D’s apartment at the time) was quite-a-feat: then-and-now. And while EVERMORE/Mark I does not boast a great rhythm section (since Ron D played the bass section on his Gibson – after Hampton’s drums had already been recorded [we didn’t get that ‘in the pocket’ effect]), I can still get the sense of what might have been! My biggest music critic, Patti N., suggests that this effort of mine and Ron D’s and Chip’s and Hampton’s might be her favorite recording yet!
But Hampton wasn’t just a drummer: as a California boy – I think he probably turned me on to more surfing spots than any other human being – as he toured us with his classic VW van with sunroof and split windows around all of coastal So Cal. And, he took Ron and me to more rock-and-roll clubs than I ever knew existed. Thanks to Hampton, I got to see Steve Marriot before he died, and, while he still cooked — at a little dive called the FM Station.
But the beat that Hampton put into our lives went beyond that! We got to “meat” Julia Childs and smell (not taste) some of her cooking, and, learned all about OJ’s Brentwood. That’s why I think I’m going to like this particular series – because these guys are drumming me down memory lane…