The Best Blues Rock Drummers Of All Time Ranked
Blues rock began with American and British blues musicians performing American blues songs with rock & roll elements. They typically recreated electric Chicago blues songs, such as those by Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, Howlin’ Wolf, and Albert King, at faster tempos and with a more aggressive sound. The roots of the genre can be traced back to Chicago blues musicians such as Elmore James, Albert King and Freddie King experimenting with blues-rock fusion, including heavier guitar sounds and faster tempo, during the late 1950s to early 1960s. It later emerged as a distinct movement in the mid-1960s, in England and the United States, with acts such as The Rolling Stones, Cream and Jimi Hendrix experimenting with music from earlier bluesmen like Elmore James, Robert Johnson, Howlin’ Wolf and Bo Diddley. Here are all of The Best Blues Rock Drummers Of All Time Ranked
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10. Tony Coleman
“Tony Coleman has toured around the planet performing with some of the best R&B and blues musicians ever. Tony can attest to playing drums with B.B. King, Otis Clay, Bobby Blue Bland, Johnnie Taylor, Albert King, Albert Collins, Etta James, James Cotton, Katie Webster, Z.Z. Hill, O.V. Wright, Buddy Guy,
and the list goes on and on.”
9. Buddy Miles
“George Allen “Buddy” Miles Jr. was an American composer, drummer, guitarist, vocalist and producer. He was a founding member of the Electric Flag, a member of Jimi Hendrix’s Band of Gypsys, founder and leader of the Buddy Miles Express and later, the Buddy Miles Band.”
8. Fred Below
“Frederick Below, Jr. was an American blues drummer, best known for his work with Little Walter and Chess Records in the 1950s. According to Tony Russell, Below was a creator of much of the rhythmic structure of Chicago blues, especially its backbeat. He was the drummer on Chuck Berry’s song “Johnny B. Goode”.
7. John Bonham
“John Bonham of Led Zeppelin was one of the most iconic rock drummers, who still influences young amateurs to professional top artists. Bonham’s drumming contributes a vital element to the unique Led Zeppelin sound. Many critics refer to him as the best drummer in rock.”
6. Willie “Big Eyes” Smith
“Willie Lee “Big Eyes” Smith was an American electric blues vocalist, harmonica player, and drummer. He was best known for several stints with the Muddy Waters band beginning in the early 1960s. Originally a harmonica-turned-harp player under the name “Little Willie”, Smith switched to drums in the late 1950s, as they were more in demand than harp players.”
5. Sam Carr
“Mr. Carr had a reputation as one of the best blues drummers in the country, but he made his living in the Mississippi Delta where he was raised. At various times, he had backed major performers like Sonny Boy Williamson II and Buddy Guy.”
4. Al Jackson Jr.
“He was a founding member of Booker T. & the M.G.’s, a group of session musicians who worked for Stax Records and produced their own instrumentals. Jackson was affectionately dubbed “The Human Timekeeper” for his drumming ability. He was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2015. Jackson’s father, Al Jackson Sr., led a jazz/swing dance band in Memphis, Tennessee. The young Jackson started drumming at an early age and began playing on stage with his father’s band in 1940, at the age of five. He later played in producer and trumpeter Willie Mitchell’s band and at the same time was holding down a chair in the popular Ben Branch Band.”
3. Ginger Baker
“Peter Edward “Ginger” Baker was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of “rock’s first superstar drummer”, for a style that melded jazz and African rhythms and pioneered both jazz fusion and world music.”
2. Odie Payne
“Blues drummer, Odie Payne, Jr., was interested in music from an early age, and did not restrict himself to a narrow musical genre. Noted for his usage of the cowbell, bass drum pedal, and extended cymbal and drum rolls, Payne’s double shuffle drumming technique was much copied.”
1. Sam Lay
“Samuel Julian Lay was an American drummer and vocalist who performed from the late 1950s as a blues and R&B musician alongside Little Walter, Howlin’ Wolf, Paul Butterfield, and many others. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015.”
