Gibson Guitars Name Neil Peart Second-Best Drummer of All Time

Gibson Guitar posted their list of the Top 10 Rock Drummers of All Time where, coming in behind Led Zeppelin's John Bonham, Neil Peart was ranked #2.

From the list:
What good is jamming on guitar if your rhythm section isn't tight, in the pocket, and simply a hearty backdrop on which you can slap melodies and riffs? The drums are the essential backbone of a band. A bad drummer loses the listener. A good drummer keeps the audience engaged and bobbing their heads along to the beat. Gibson.com is pleased to pay homage to such drums stars with our Top 10 Rock Drummers of All Time.

2. Neal Peart (Rush)
Drummer and lyricist for Rush, Neal [sic] Peart is hailed in many circles as the quintessential rock drummer. He’s known for his ingenious drum parts and intense solos with lead passages that rock hard and prove the drums, indeed, can be a lead instrument. No Rush concert is complete without Peart’s sparking, obligatory drum solo, and his syncopated drumming style certainly has its own distinct sound and aura. You can always tell when it’s Peart playing.


It's great to see the powers-that-be at Gibson select Neil for this list. Too bad they don't know how to spell - his FIRST name. It's Neil, guys...not Neal.

Check out the entire, somewhat controversial list via this LINK.

Thanks to George F. and RushisABand for the news.

Comments

  1. Was Bonham REALLY that good, or was he just more inventive than most for the time? I never cared for Zeppelin, so I've never paid close attention to anything he did when he was alive, but the songs I do recall, while very different for the time, never struck me as especially taxing for the drummer. Okay, let the flame wars begin!

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    1. Bonham was good but, like you, I'm not so sure he was the end-all, be-all of drumming. Without question, the sound he was able to produce on a relatively small/simple kit was impressive...and he had a good grove about it...but was he head and shoulders above all other drummers, Neil not withstanding? I don't think so.

      What gets me about this - and similar - lists is Ringo Starr. Seriously? What AM I missing there?

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  2. Hmm. Starting to smell another R&RHoF bias scandal brewing here! LOL

    Heck, I can admit when a band I can't stand has highly talented members, but aside from maybe an occasional breakout solo during a concert, you'd simply never know it.

    Nicko from Iron Maiden (which I have a long-standing love for), has always been a very competent drummer, but I never really suspected just how good he was until out of nowhere during the "Somewhere In Time" tour he suddenly busted into a jaw-dropping solo---something he had never done before in the decade of Maiden shows I'd been attending.

    Is Alex Lifeson as good guitarist as Dave Mustaine? Is Chris Botti as good a trumpeter as Al Hirt? Probably we'll never know either because we never get to hear them play the same type of music at the same levels of intensity, or one of them is dead. Wait. Is Al Hirt dead? I can't remember. And hearing Alex and Dave play together would be extremely trippy.

    Anyway, my point is that "best" is meaningless in these cases because none of the artists have been asked to sit down across from one another and beat the living crap out of their instruments in a no-holds-barred, balls-to-the-wall, life-on-the-line sort of competition.

    It's just another popularity contest. Is all.

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  3. Why is a guitar company voting on a drummer?

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    1. LMAO Never even picked up on that!

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  4. Being a great drummer is about having soul, but also having technique, knowing your rudiments and how to apply them to a kit. So, hands down Bubba is the best. How many of these guys actually have any formal teaching? He's also the lyracist and creative force behind this best selling band. Where's Nikko from Maiden? Bozzio? What an innovator! Lars? His own bandmates make fun of him and he can't play anything on the snare other than a single stroke roll. If something's not in 4/4 he looks like white guy on a dance floor. Dave Grohl? Seriously. He doesn't even belong on the list and probably can't even play a paradiddle. Bohnam. Not the best, but he had a great groove and shuffle. I say give all of them a 4 or 5 piece kit and see what they can do. Pratt knocked 'em all dead at the Burning for Buddy tribute show and he'd make all of these guys look like clowns.

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