DRUM TRACK OF THE DAY: Some Like It Hot by Power Station featuring Tony Thompson We decided to post this In memory of drummer Tony Thompson who passed away on this day in 2003. Tony Thompson distinguished himself as a top session drummer and is best known as a member of The Power Station as well as Chic. This particular track from The Power Stations 1985 debut album captures the essence of Tonys unique drumming style that combined incredible power with a funky groove. Definite highlights are his well-placed signature hi-hat barks throughout the song and the rushed fill @ 0:30 which adds tension to the opening vocals. A monstrously heavy performance! Born in New York in 1954, Thompson got his start with the R&B group LaBelle. In 1977, he took the drum chair in Chic, which scored the No. 1 R&B hits Le Freak and Good Times. The signature lick from the latter song became a rhythmic linchpin in Grandmaster Flashs groundbreaking 1981 rap single, The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel. He also performed with members of Chic on the classic hit We Are Family, Hes The Greatest Dancer by Sister Sledge, and Upside Down and Im Coming Out by Diana Ross. After Chic dissolved in 1981, Thompson often worked on producer Nile Rodgers sessions. One of the most memorable was for David Bowies 1983 album, Lets Dance. Rodgers recalls that Thompson and former Chic bassist Bernard Edwards were called in to work on a couple of tracks, and nailed the takes within 15 minutes. According to Rodgers, That kind of virtuosity and that kind of musicality was the essence of what Tony did. Thompson also played behind other artists like Madonna (on Like a Virgin), Mick Jagger (on his solo album Shes the Boss), Debbie Harry, Rod Stewart, Jody Watley, Duran Duran, and Robert Palmer. In 1985, Thompson teamed up with Palmer and Duran Durans John and Andy Taylor in the rock unit The Power Station. The groups self-titled album contained two top-10 hits, Some Like It Hot and the T. Rex cover Get It On (Bang a Gong). The same year, Thompson joined surviving Led Zeppelin members Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones, along with second drummer Phil Collins, for a semi-Zeppelin reunion at the star-studded Live Aid concert. There was talk that Thompson would take Bonhams seat in a reformed Led Zeppelin, but recording sessions came to a halt after he was involved in a serious car accident in 1986. Following a full recovery, Thompson returned to the recording scene until his tragic death in 2003. Thompson died within a month of being diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer) just three days before his 49th birthday and only two months after the death of his Power Station bandmate, Robert Palmer, who suffered a heart attack. Tony Thompson is a drummer whom we should never forget. If you arent that familiar with his body of work, you should be. He was one of the best!
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 18:40:15 +0000
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