Graeme Edge: The Moody Legendary Drummer Plays The Blues

    Gen Z Talks Rock Music is back with more breaking rock news from a person, who is an old man that found the fountain of youth, because there is no way a guy that young is a rock n’ roll expert. Today, I will talk about the sad news about another legendary rock drummer that has pass away, who was the co-founder of an icon progressive rock band from the 1960’s to the 1980’s. I am going to discuss the life of this rock star and his top 10 best drumming songs. Then what made him such a simple drummer and person from his bandmates and what makes him underrated.

    This musician was the engine room of this legendary rock band as he was an important piece to this band’s sound. The band and him started in 1965 with a progressive and psychedelic sound with a base of rhythm and blues and they were part of the British Invasion, which included the Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Who, and this band. This band was heavy influenced by The Beatles as they would use techniques that The Beatles made popular with their albums. This musician’s band became famous for the experimental album named “Days Of The Future Passed” with two top 10 hits with “Nights In White Satin” and “Tuesday Afternoon.” They would have a resurgence in the 1980’s, when MTV made their song, “You’re Wildest Dreams” famous. This is the life of Graeme Edge part of the band, The Moody Blues.

Graeme Edge Bio:

    Graeme Edge was born on March 30, 1941, in Rochester, Staffordshire, which is a village and a civil parish in England. Edge was only 6 months of age, when his family moved to the major city of Birmingham in England. He was another musician that was surrounded by music. Edge’s mother was pianist for silent movies, while his father, grandfather, and great grandfather were all music-hall singers. However, Edge wouldn’t pick up playing drums later in his life as he trained to be a draughtsman, who is making drafts of blueprints, technical plans, and legal documents. This job wasn’t permanent as he wanted to be involved with the music scene and he became manager of a group called The Blue Rhythm Band. Edge as the manager would involve helping the band find a roomy place to practice and move the equipment from place to place. Edge became fascinated with watching the drummer of Blue Rhythm Band fool around and play the drums and it was first time he became interested to play the drums.

    Edge would get his opportunity to play drums for The Blue Rhythm Band, when their original drummer quit. This is the first time that Edge played professionally for a band as he just dabbled here and there on the drums. This gig would only last for three weeks as the band found a replacement with his own drum kit. The Blue Rhythm Band is just one of the bands that Edge put together and play drums for as he helped formed The Silhouettes and Gary Levene and The Avengers.

    When Gary Levene and The Avengers broke up in 1964, Edge formed The R&B Preachers with later members of The Moody Blues, who were Clint Warwick and Denny Laine and this band would be shorted lived. He would keep in contact with Warwick and Laine and then recruit Ray Thomas and Mike Pinder to form M&B 5. They would later change the name to The Moody Blues and came out with their first album called “The Magnificent Moodies.” The Moody Blues would have a number one song on this record called “Go Now” and they would have rock star status for over 50 years. He died peaceful at his home in Bradenton, Fla. on November 11, 2021, at the age of 80. Here is a link below if you want to learn more about Graeme Edge’s extraordinary life. Graeme Edge - The Moody Blues (moodybluestoday.com)

Why Graeme Edge Is An Underrated Musician:

    I think Graeme Edge is an underrated musician because he had more talent than drumming skills. He wasn’t like Carl Palmer or Charlie Watt, who were the last two drummers I blogged about, that he was unique in the way he played or an entertaining showman. He was a simple drummer that kept the beat and could keep up with the time of the song. What made him talented was his songwriting as he would write poems for some of the Moody Blues’ songs, and he was co-writer in a lot of The Moody Blues’ songs. These poems would open or close out their songs and it really set the Moody Blues apart from other rock bands. Edge’s well-written poems is such a highlight of what he contributed to the band, because he always was able to capture the tone and atmosphere of the song. Then he was always in the songwriting process as he helped and co-wrote songs with his band members. He was such an essential band member to The Moody Blues, because he contributed so much to the band with his drumming and poetry.

Graeme Edge’s Bandmates’ Thoughts On Their Drummer

    Moody Blues’ bassist, John Lodge, and guitarist, Justin Hayward, had kind words to say about their friend and bandmate. After Edge passed away, Hayward went on Facebook to tell the world, how much Graeme Edge meant to him. He said, “When Graeme told he was retiring I knew that without him it couldn’t be the Moody Blues anymore. And that’s what happened. It’s true to say that he kept the group together throughout the years, because he loved it.” Hayward really felt that Edge was the glue that kept The Moody Blues together for all those years, because he cared about it like it was his child. Lodge posted on his Twitter about the passing of Edge, and he said, “To me he was the White Eagle of North with his beautiful poetry. His friendship, his love of life and unique style of drumming that was the engine room of The Moody Blues.” Lodge really felt he was something special to the band with his poetry, drumming, and happy-go-lucky personality.

    Edge was a legendary rock n’ roll star with his band, The Moody Blues, from the 1960’s to the 1980’s. He bought a unique element to his band, which was the beautiful poems. Poems in rock music wasn’t a common thing, until Edge wrote them for The Moody Blues. This would become a trademark for the sound of The Moody Blues. Edge was known for being an all-around musician as he entertained people with his lyrics, and his drumming. Here are links of my top 10 poems and drumming from Graeme Edge. Let me know, what you think of Graeme Edge and the Moody Blues in the comments below. Also, put in the comments if you know and like any songs featuring poems or verbal parts in the song. This might be the end of a Gen Z Talks Rock Music blog but come back next week for another rock n’ roll blog.

The Night: Nights in White Satin - The Moody Blues [1967] [Full Version Remastered] - YouTube

The Moody Blues - Departure & Ride My See-Saw (1968) HD - YouTube

The Word & Om - The Moody Blues - YouTube

The Moody Blues: In The Beginning- Lovely To See You - YouTube

The Moody Blues: The Dream- Have You Heard- Parts I&II - YouTube

Higher And Higher - YouTube

Beyond - YouTube

The Balance - YouTube

I'm Just A Singer (In A Rock And Roll Band) - YouTube

After You Came - YouTube

Legendary Drummer Carl Palmer Playing At William Paterson University

 

    Gen Z Talks Rock, the hot spot for the latest announcements about rock music by someone who must be lying about his age to know this much about this music, is back with another blog. Today’s discussion will be about my university having one of the best drummers performing at our performing art center. I will reveal my thoughts on this surreal event happening at my college and the story of how I found out about this. Then finally, a bio section of who this musician is.                  This musician is on all music lovers and critics’ list of top five drummers in rock n’ roll. He was known for having a giant drum kit that wrapped around him, which inspired many drummers like Neil Peart from the band Rush to have a similar drum setup. He entertained rock fans with his incredible speed and mastery of drumming. This musician was part of the successful progressive rock trio in 1970’s and he was part of a successful progressive rock supergroup in the 1980’s. This is no other than the drummer from Emerson Lake & Palmer and Asia, Carl Palmer.

Carl Palmer Bio:

    Before I go over my reaction on how Carl Palmer and his band is playing at my college, here is the story of how he became an outstanding drummer. Then I will talk about how I found out about his show at William Paterson University. Carl Palmer was born on March 20, 1950, in Birmingham, England. Palmer was born into a family of musicians as his grandfather was a drummer, his grandmother was a violinist, his mother was multi-instrumentalist, and his father was a vocal entertainer, a guitarist, and a drummer. Palmer was meant to be a musician with his family history. Palmer would play the drums and his brother would play the guitar at a young age as they would appreciate the art of music. Palmer was fascinated with studying music especially classical violin. Palmer’s life would change when watching film called “Drum Crazy,” which was the story of jazz drummer Gene Krupa, because he was inspired to be a professional drummer, after watching this film. Another jazz drummer, Buddy Rich, would influence him as well. Palmer’s parents took notice of their son’s interest in the drums and bought him a new drum kit at age 11. He would take lessons from Tommy Cunliffe, who was the drummer from Midland Light Orchestra for three years.

    At age 14, Palmer joined his first professional band as he became the drummer for The Mecca Dance Band and at age 15, he would join the Motown band called The Craig. By age 16, he became a well-respected drummer that he would join Chris Farlowe and the Thunderbirds. Chris Farlowe and Thunderbirds with Palmer would have two top singles called “My Way Of Giving” and Rolling Stones’ cover “Out Of Time.” He would move on from Chris Farlowe and the Thunderbirds to join The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown as Palmer replaced drummer Drachen Theaker at 18 years old. Palmer would tour the United States with rock legends like The Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, and Iron Butterfly. Palmer’s first real success didn’t come until he formed his own band with Atomic Rooster with keyboardist Vincent Crane, and bassist Nick Graham in 1970. Atomic Rooster’s debut album was in the top 50 in the United Kingdom.

    This album would catch interest of keyboard virtuous, Keith Emerson, from the progressive rock band, The Nice, and bassist, Greg Lake, who was the founder of King Crimson. Emerson gave Palmer a call, because he wanted Palmer to be the drummer of his new band. Palmer left Atomic Rooster to join Emerson and Lake’s band named Emerson Lake & Palmer. They would come out with their self-titled debut record and this supergroup’s album would be top 5 in England and top 20 in the United States. “Lucky Man” on their debut album and their stage show would send them to the path of superstardom.

    After 10 successful years of Emerson Lake & Palmer, the band would quietly break-up. Palmer’s career would continue as he was approached by manager Brian Lane. Brain Lane gave him an offer to join another supergroup and Palmer would accept. Palmer would join bassist John Wetton from King Crimson, guitarist Steve Howe from Yes, and keyboardist Greg Downes from The Buggles to form the band named Asia. Asia released their self-titled debut album in 1982 and the album skyrocketed straight to number one as it sold 7 million copies worldwide. This album had four singles that dominated the charts for months, which were “Heat Of The Moment,” “Only Time Will Tell,” “Wildest Dreams,” and “Sole Survivor.” If you want to read more about Palmer’s amazing life, check out the link below. Biography - Carl Palmer Official Global Web Site

How I Found Carl Palmer Playing At William Paterson University:

How I found about this show was on the second Wednesday of November in the afternoon. I am a commuter attending William Paterson University and drove in for my 2 P.M. class on Wednesday. I usually leave my house two hours before class to have lunch, before my class starts. So, it a typical Wednesday, I get there an hour before class to have lunch and then something different happens out of my routine. After lunch, I was walking from the Student Center to the Communication building to attend my International Media class and I noticed a sign on the ground. It was the William Paterson University Presents promo, which is the events happening in our performing arts center. It had Choir! Choir! Choir! on November 18 at 12:30 P.M. and Rock This Town Orchestra’s Holiday Spectacular on December 3 at 8 P.M., but that not what caught my eye. I had to double check because I couldn’t believe my eyes. It said Carl Palmer’s ELP Experience on November 21 at 7 P.M. The moment I was able to process that this event is real, I knew this was blog worthy moment.

Gen Z Opinion On Carl Palmer Coming To William Paterson University:

    I am not going to lie, when I first found out that Carl Palmer and his band is playing at my college to have a tribute show for Keith Emerson and Greg Lake, I was in shock. What in the world is one of all-time best drummer in rock doing performing for a university? He is a drummer for the two most successful progressive rock supergroups in the 1970’s and 1980’s. A gig is a gig I guess, but I really think he is better than performing at a university in New Jersey. I would think he would be performing at a venue like The Count Basie, or he would play multiple shows in Atlantic City.

    All jokes aside, I think this is the coolest thing to happen at my university. Fans of Carl Palmer and I know Carl Palmer is such a showman on the drums. He has this huge drum kit that weighs 2 tons, which features seven single-headed toms, two floor toms, a massive bass drum with a bass drum pedal, snare drum, cymbals, hi-hats, and two gongs. Palmer is a treat to watch play, because he has incredible skills on the drums that it unbelievable how he can play with speed and have amazing drum rolling solos on a massive drum kit. He makes the complicated drum playing look so easy on the stage. College students would be blown away with his playing that even if they don’t who he is, they would enjoy every second of the show.

    Now, I looked at the show’s details and I was only disappointed with one thing, which is the ticket price. Don’t get me wrong, the price for the show is reasonable as the highest ticket is at 50 dollars, but it is for everybody. It doesn’t matter if you attend William Paterson University, there is no discount or free tickets for their college students. I get it, I guarantee most college students do not know who Carl Palmer is, but at least have a nice offer for college students. They go to this university and pays lot of money between tuition, dorms, books and much more, you would think students would get a break, because don’t they pay enough. What happened to having student perks for attending the university? Let’s face it, this complaining about not having free tickets is not stopping me from giving Carl Palmer my money and seeing the show.          The rock legend and the best drummer in rock is coming to William Paterson University to rock out at Shea Performing Art Center. He is an explosive talented drummer that was part of two of the iconic supergroups of the progressive rock era, which were Emerson Lake & Palmer and Asia. Here are links to my top 10 favorite drumming songs by Carl Palmer. Let me know in the comments below of what you think of Carl Palmer’s rock journey. Also, let me know who you think the best drummer in music is. This Gen Z Talks Rock Music blog is finished but keep your eye on another rock n’ roll blog next week.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Karn Evil 9 - 1st Impression - Part 2 - YouTube

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Trilogy - YouTube

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Nut Rocker - YouTube

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Fanfare For The Common Man - YouTube

Tarkus - Emerson, Lake & Palmer - YouTube

ASIA - SOLE SURVIVOR - YouTube

ASIA | Only Time Will Tell [Lyrics] HD - YouTube

Heat of the Moment - Asia - YouTube

Asia - Eye to Eye - YouTube

Asia - Don't Cry - YouTube