Ok, someone on some other forum that will not be named is trying to put forth the argument that Tommy Lee is a better drummer than Bill Bruford because he can play on his head. I said "the objective to drum is not to be able to play on one's head. That is part of the concert experience which is not mutually exclusive to drumming. Tommy Lee sucks as a drummer on his head just as much as he does right side up". Then went on about Bill Bruford (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Bruford) who, admittedly, I am a HUGE fan of his drumming. My point being.. which do you think is the better overall drummer? If you're a Yes fan think anything up to and including "Close to the Edge". If you're a Crimson fan think "Larks' Tongue In Aspic" to "Thrak" and everything in between. I can't give you examples of Lee's work besides "Dr. Feel Good"... I guess you could make the overall argument that Lee may be the better straight ahead rock guy but this was on a list of "greatest percussionists of all time" and Tommy Lee made the list before Bruford did. It rightly pissed me off... To me bruford is one of the greatest of all times and Lee shouldn't even make the list and the question is pretty much rhetorical.
You're kidding me, right? What's that guy want to know next, who's a better guitarist...Al Dimeola or C.C. Deville?
Tommy Lee did a great job banging on Pamela Anderson, that's gotta hold some weight. Otherwise he (and the rest of the Crue) were a wild, fun band, but none of the members should be accused of being 'great' anythings.
it's on another website i go to yeah no joke.. haha neil peart was (and deserves to be) on the list and opie, you are right i think i even posted that there.
Tommy Lee is not a good drummer, anyone arguing that he is as good as Bruford is doing so from lack of musical knowledge and/or pure love of Motley Crue. I personally know about a half dozen drummers that are light years better than Tommy Lee and not a single one of them would say they compare to Bruford. Bruford, like many of his compatriots in the "high end drummer" category; Carey, Peart, Bozzio, Portnoy, Bonham among others are/were PROFESSIONAL musicians. Tommy Lee was a party animal/entertainer who happened to be able to keep time and got lucky by being in the right place at the right time. Tell your friend to start listening to more music because there are hundreds of drummers out there who blow Tommy Lee out of the water. He's not even in the top 1,000 drummers, let alone better then one of the forerunners of the progressive rock genre.
Just like I think Max Weinberg is a great drummer. Nothing flashy but he holds the E-Street band together in a big way
There's nothing wrong with in the pocket drummers at all. Ringo Starr is the perfect example of a drummer who does little to no flashy things (though he is severely under-rated and some of his rolls are incredibly complex) but holds the band together. They are doing their job in helping the music speak. But to compare a decent many of the drummers to Bruford and those guys Unified mentioned is abso-****ing-lutely ridiculous.
Yes & Motley Crue....two bands that shouldn't even be in the same state at the same time. Tommy Lee was an entertaining drummer and played more than good enough for his kind of music, but he's hardly an influence the way Bill Bruford is.
Hah. Why is this even a conversation This is like racing a Chevy 4x4 against a corvette in the paved quarter mile. Both are made by Chevy, but the truck obviously has no business in the pavement /end rant