Top 10 Best Jazz Drummers
Jazz drumming is more than just keeping time - it's about pushing boundaries, expressing emotion, and driving the creative energy of a band. The drummers on this list have done all that and more, inspiring countless musicians and listeners with their talent, innovation, and passion for the art form.As you explore this collection, you'll find a range of styles and approaches, from explosive solos to subtle, groove-filled rhythms that shape the sound of jazz itself. Some of these drummers were pioneers who helped define the genre, while others took those foundations and pushed them in thrilling new directions. Together, they represent the incredible variety and depth of jazz drumming.
Bernard "Buddy" Rich was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. Widely considered one of the most influential drummers of all time and known for his virtuoso technique, power, and speed, Rich was billed as "the world's greatest drummer" during his career. There are not enough words to express the greatness and superior drumming of Buddy Rich. Whether he was playing in a small nightclub, a huge arena, or a jazz festival, he always gave more than one hundred percent. Many drummers claim to play like Buddy Rich, but there was only one Buddy Rich. As Gene Krupa said many times, Buddy Rich is the greatest drummer to ever draw breath. That statement by Gene Krupa still holds true today.
Nobody touched this guy. Buddy Rich was the greatest of them all. His hands were like machines. There will never be another like him again.
Elvin Ray Jones was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. He showed an interest in drums at a young age, watching the circus bands march by his family's home in Pontiac, Michigan. You have Tony Williams' photo for Elvin... come on. Elvin was a truly profound player who freed the drum concept from linearity. He had great depth of ideas and a powerful swing.
Elvin Jones was the most creative drummer ever. His syncopated snare work was extremely unique.
Eugene Bertram "Gene" Krupa was an American jazz and big band drummer, band leader, actor, and composer. Gene Krupa is often cited as the jazz drummer who brought the drum kit to the forefront as a solo instrument. Without his innovations and leadership, there would be no other star drummers - no Buddy Rich, Louis Bellson, Max Roach, Frankie Dunlop, Chico Hamilton, Mel Lewis, Elvin Jones, Billy Cobham, Tony Williams, etc. Buddy Rich, a close friend, called Gene the "beginning and end of all jazz drummers." Gene was either at the top or close to the top of the public's list of favorite jazz drummers for several decades, especially during his first decade of stardom (1935-1945). He was a beloved figure among other jazz drummers - and in fact, among all jazz musicians - throughout his entire professional life. He influenced all who came after him.
Although some other drummers are cited as having the best "chops," Gene's chops were dazzling. It seemed that whatever he wanted to do on the drums, he could do. If for some reason he couldn't, he studied further and got up to speed. Gene was a student of drumming for his entire life, studying classical percussion as well as the drumming of certain African tribes and Latin American cultures.
Gene was also a very exciting performer, combining technique, feel, emotion, and ingenuity both in the studio and on stage. Anyone who doubts this should listen to his drumming with Benny Goodman during the January 1938 Carnegie Hall jazz concert, paying special attention to "Sing, Sing, Sing," which only he could have pulled off the way he did.
Some might wonder why, if Gene was so great, his name has not been on everyone's lips in recent years. The reason is chiefly that he died prematurely at age 64 in 1973, and for the preceding 13 years had been in declining health, battling a bad heart, COPD, a serious back injury, and leukemia. Even during this time, his performances were generally brilliant, although he lacked the power and stamina of his younger, healthier years. Anyway, go check this guy out. You won't be... more
William Emanuel "Billy" Cobham is a Panamanian American jazz drummer, composer and bandleader, who permanently relocated to Switzerland during the late 1970s.
Antonio Sánchez is a Mexican jazz drummer. In 2014 his popularity increased significantly when Sánchez composed original music for Birdman.
Luigi Paulino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni, known by the stage name Louie Bellson, was an American jazz drummer. For my money, Louie Bellson was more musical and entertaining than Buddy Rich by far. Buddy Rich had technique, but Louie Bellson had music (and great technique).
Jack DeJohnette is a really great drummer. I saw him in the concert hall of the Sydney Opera House.
Anthony Tillmon "Tony" Williams was an American jazz drummer. Williams first gained fame in the band of trumpeter Miles Davis and was a pioneer of jazz fusion. He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 1986. Y'all are crazy - Tony is in the top 3. Most of the drummers voted here would easily admit Tony is one of, if not the best. He reinvented himself three times in his career. Wow!
Art Blakey was the most prolific. Everyone played with him.
The Newcomers
Maxwell Lemuel "Max" Roach was an American jazz drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered alongside the most important drummers in history.
Dave Weckl has amazing fluidity, moving through different time signatures so smoothly. He has power, mind-blowing technique, and an incredible awareness of how he affects the music. He is my favorite by far, but without the great predecessors like Rich, Jones, Bellson, Krupa, Blakey, Roach, and contemporaries like Cobham and Gadd, there wouldn't be a Weckl.
Dave Weckl is the most musical and technical drummer. They invented the word "finesse" just for him.
Dave Weckl's speed is great, and he has chops right off the charts.
Steve Gadd should be way up in the list. He is very creative, can play with ease in different styles, and still plays with "bomba" (lots of soul).
Are you kidding me? Steve Gadd is perhaps the most recorded and influential drummer of our age.
I agree - Steve Gadd should be higher on the list.
Considering his major health issues, Chick Webb was one of the most talented percussionists who ever lived!
Milton "Dennis" Chambers, is an American drummer. He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2001.I can't believe that no one added Vinnie. I can't believe he's not in the top 3... possibly 1. I guess only drummers know about him?
He's absolutely brilliant. Vinnie should be at the TOP!
Nobody's better than Jimmy Cobb. Except maybe Max Roach.
Steve Elliott Smith is an American drummer known for being the drummer of the rock band Journey rejoining the band for the third time in 2015. Modern Drummer magazine readers voted him the #1 All-Around Drummer five years in a row.