<$BlogRSDUrl$>

Thursday, November 13, 2008

RIP Mitch Mitchell 
The best rock drummer in history, in my view, is dead at the age of 61.

I used to listen to Hendrix for hours as a teenager...on vinyl, through headphones. And Mitch's drumming was a huge part of that band. He was the first rock drummer who played DRUMS, as a coequal musical partner. I remember an interview with Alan Holdsworth, where he said "A lot of drummers are just into a groove. I hate that."

Mitch would have been great with Holdsworth. Great with anyone.

Think of it. Without Mitch, "Fire" would have been a throwaway track. Mitch made it into a rawking classic. On the nearly unknown Hendrix track "Waterfall," he became a waterfall. He took a rock waltz. A freaking WALTZ! And made Manic Depression a thrill to listen to. His clever jazzy ride cymbal MADE "Third Stone From The Sun." Mitch helped transcend 3SFtS from a surf music parody to a trippy, rollicking journey in its own right.

A great, great musician.




Splash, out

Jason

Labels: , , , ,


Comments:
I agree. Hendrix had an excellent rhythm section, which he used to full advantage.

Chris
 
Post a Comment

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?

Site Meter

Prev | List | Random | Next
Powered by RingSurf!

Prev | List | Random | Next
Powered by RingSurf!