Hey guess what its Drumbos birthday ! Lets devote this feature to one of the most unique idiosyncratic drummers of rock ! John “Drumbo” French French grew up in Lancaster, hometown of Van Vliet and Zappa, but didn’t cross paths with Van Vliet until 1965. In ’66, he was invited to join the group to replace retiring drummer “PG” Blakely. . The Magic Band member with the longest tenure – eight years over a period of fourteen — broken up with several periods of pursuing theatre, dance, and composing and art French’s drumming has been recognized as unique and original, and his hard-hitting polyrhythmic style was a perfect fit for Beefheart’s angular compositions. He has been recognized in Music Connection magazine in “A lexicon Of Undervalued Drummers,” and was recently featured in a “Modern Drummer” article French was the spearhead of The Magic Band reunion idea. “Drumbo” has appeared on many of Beefheart’s landmark albums including “Safe as Milk,” “Strictly Personal,” “Mirror Man,” “Trout Mask Replica,” “Lick My Decals Off, Baby,” “Bat Chain Puller” (unreleased), and finally “Doc at the Radar Station,” on which he played primarily guitar, along with bass, drums, and marimba. He was also the unofficial transcriber/arranger of Trout Mask Replica” and “Bat Chain Puller.” Contacting former members, he finally hit upon a combination with Denny Walley(Gtr.), Mark Boston ( Bass), Gary Lucas (Gtr.) , and Robert Williams – who was eventually replaced by drummer Michael Traylor. From 2003 – 2006, The Magic Band toured annually reviving the repertoire for new audiences including Glastonbury Festival 2004. His recent CD, “City of Refuge” – an album written in The Magic Band style – was recently given great reviews by “Uncut,” “Mojo,” and “Record Collector,” among others. His emulation of Beefheart’s vocals and harmonica playing have received favorable response. His book, “Beefheart: Through the Eyes of Magic” (planned for release January 2010) describes the tumultuous experience of bringing Van Vliet’s concepts to fruition. He’s left the drum throne to sing, and play harmonica and sax. “I felt like Van Vliet’s music was important, and participating in this reunion is my part in bringing it into focus once again.” French says.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 06:41:11 +0000
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