Gregg Bissonette

[Avi_drums]

He played great on the BRMC, held his own just fine (and that says something).

[bclarkio]

Thanks for chiming in, Mark P

You didn't change my mind, you affirmed my feelings.

[Paul Marangoni]

[Julián Fernández]

[percusski]

* I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M ABOUT TO ARGUE ON THE INTERNET - WHAT A ROAD TO NOWHERE *

I just have to say my piece here, no idea what the purpose of debate is, I won't change anybody's mind and nobody will change mine.

Gregg is my absolute hero.

He has, personally, helped me more than any other musician I know, and aside from being an inspirational drummer that people want on their albums, people want him on their tour buses and on their live shows too.

What one or two of the non-professionals on this board may not realise about our business and can't seem to get past is, no matter how good a drummer someone might be, that is not the be all and end all. Equally, neither is the personality they possess. My best friend, a hilarious man, and one of the kindest souls I know fits windows for a living, do I want him playing guitar on my solo album just because he's a nice guy? No I don't. Equally, do I want a player, (no matter how good they are and how much I admire them as a musician) like _________________ - insert name here - instead? We have nothing in common and although he is an incredible player I don't want him on my tour either.

A little story about Gregg. Outside of a clinic, after returning back to the venue after some dinner, he sees some children looking at the poster for a drum clinic advertised for 'tonight'. Between them they haven't got the right amount of change to go in to watch the show, (which Gregg is the star of btw). Gregg takes them to the front desk and PAYS OUT OF HIS OWN DAMN POCKET for the two boys to go in so that the drum shop putting on the event isn't out of pocket, and the boys can enjoy the show. Imagine those kids faces when Gregg gets up to play. He is a class act and a total example to all of humankind. I have never heard Gregg talk trash about another human, and he is probably the only other drummer I would pay to be on a session I was on just to lift the mood of the room.

Percusski, do you know why Gregg would make a beeline for Ian Paice? Well, Ian is one of his heroes, and I'm sure Gregg would have been as excited as a little kid at the chance to hang with someone he looked up to. What could he otherwise have gained from him, a gig? I'll wager if you were in a room and Vinnie (* or insert other drummer who you admire of your choosing here *) walked in, you'd want to talk to them and hang. I know I would.

Check this link below of Gregg and Vinnie doing a drum duet as a tribute to Tony.

http://cdn-x.drummerworld.com/Sound/vin ... orTony.mp3

Could anyone seriously be saying that the kind of people that he has played with hired him just because he is a nice guy? Personality is 50% of the battle, but it's a given that Gregg is a world-class musician. On that basis Herbie Hancock should his mother to play saxophone for him because they get along? You need to be able to do the job, again, that is a given. The next level is what ELSE you bring to the table.

I'm going to bow out of this thread, because it's simply ridiculous trying to persuade anyone who can't see something to change their opinion through the Internet. I just have to show my support for a guy who is the reason why I have been able to buy my house in London, built solely by drums, and make a good living for myself travelling around the world playing music. Gregg was one of the first people that make me believe and then help me realise I was able to make a life with drums at the helm, and he's been there for support every step of the way, for no reason other than that he is a wonderful, wonderful human...

MP

Wow that's such a touching story, and thanks for using it as an opportunity to give everyone an insight into your hugely successful life and career. I'm sure all the non-professionals on here could learn a lot from your post!

[Matthijs Ament]

Yeah! I've seen that Toto gig with Gregg in Ahoy-Rotterdam '95, loved it! I can remember thinking 'they should keep him' as he was subbing for Simon who had some serious injury at the time if I remember correctly. At this time Jim Chapin was in Holland and I attended one of his classes at Cesar's place in the Hague. After some time during Jim's class Gregg came in and joined us students ... During the one and only break we had I had a change of talking to Gregg and I asked about the Toto show. I had noticed his earpiece [inears were not that common in 1995] and asked him if he used it to play to a click. [being interested in the in-ear mon. system] He gave me this 'look' and replied that it was indeed for the click. He gave me the idea that he was not proud of playing to a click life but I didn't mean anything by mentioning it. I was interested in his gear haha. Very humble guy and I liked his groove and sound very-very much with Toto.

[MRhet]

Gee, this thread has gotten a little . . . hot.

[littlegrooves]

It's kind of funny how people treat the subject of musicians being cool to work with on the pro level as some kind of mystery, like it's different than "real world work". If everyone gets the job done and proficiency is the price of admission, then who you have on the team and their personality determines if you want to come into work or not.

I'm sure Gregg's got some funny jokes to tell after the gig to lighten the mood on the bus while his employer is busy writing their daughter's college tuition check, calling the water heater repair man and paying the mortgage. That probably soothes the nerves more than having a drummer with his practice pedals, working on their 220 bpm 16th-note doubles.

[JohnDrum]

* I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M ABOUT TO ARGUE ON THE INTERNET - WHAT A ROAD TO NOWHERE *

I just have to say my piece here, no idea what the purpose of debate is, I won't change anybody's mind and nobody will change mine.

Gregg is my absolute hero.

He has, personally, helped me more than any other musician I know, and aside from being an inspirational drummer that people want on their albums, people want him on their tour buses and on their live shows too.

What one or two of the non-professionals on this board may not realise about our business and can't seem to get past is, no matter how good a drummer someone might be, that is not the be all and end all. Equally, neither is the personality they possess. My best friend, a hilarious man, and one of the kindest souls I know fits windows for a living, do I want him playing guitar on my solo album just because he's a nice guy? No I don't. Equally, do I want a player, (no matter how good they are and how much I admire them as a musician) like _________________ - insert name here - instead? We have nothing in common and although he is an incredible player I don't want him on my tour either.

A little story about Gregg. Outside of a clinic, after returning back to the venue after some dinner, he sees some children looking at the poster for a drum clinic advertised for 'tonight'. Between them they haven't got the right amount of change to go in to watch the show, (which Gregg is the star of btw). Gregg takes them to the front desk and PAYS OUT OF HIS OWN DAMN POCKET for the two boys to go in so that the drum shop putting on the event isn't out of pocket, and the boys can enjoy the show. Imagine those kids faces when Gregg gets up to play. He is a class act and a total example to all of humankind. I have never heard Gregg talk trash about another human, and he is probably the only other drummer I would pay to be on a session I was on just to lift the mood of the room.

Percusski, do you know why Gregg would make a beeline for Ian Paice? Well, Ian is one of his heroes, and I'm sure Gregg would have been as excited as a little kid at the chance to hang with someone he looked up to. What could he otherwise have gained from him, a gig? I'll wager if you were in a room and Vinnie (* or insert other drummer who you admire of your choosing here *) walked in, you'd want to talk to them and hang. I know I would.

Check this link below of Gregg and Vinnie doing a drum duet as a tribute to Tony.

http://cdn-x.drummerworld.com/Sound/vin ... orTony.mp3

Could anyone seriously be saying that the kind of people that he has played with hired him just because he is a nice guy? Personality is 50% of the battle, but it's a given that Gregg is a world-class musician. On that basis Herbie Hancock should his mother to play saxophone for him because they get along? You need to be able to do the job, again, that is a given. The next level is what ELSE you bring to the table.

I'm going to bow out of this thread, because it's simply ridiculous trying to persuade anyone who can't see something to change their opinion through the Internet. I just have to show my support for a guy who is the reason why I have been able to buy my house in London, built solely by drums, and make a good living for myself travelling around the world playing music. Gregg was one of the first people that make me believe and then help me realise I was able to make a life with drums at the helm, and he's been there for support every step of the way, for no reason other than that he is a wonderful, wonderful human...

MP

Thanks for chipping in Mark. Great story(both Gregg's generosity and your own).
I've said this before and I'll say it again here: at my ripe old age (63 & still gigging), I am in awe of, and totally respect anyone who can support themselves (& families) through playing this marvellous instrument of ours, irrespective of their musical genre, or level of technical prowess - having been there for a few glorious years in the 70s I would do it again in a heartbeat.

[Odd-Arne Oseberg]

Artistically, as a listener I must say Gregg does not really float my boat, but that's just personal taste.

He obviously knows his craft. Claiming anything else is just silly. He has a great attitude and has done a great job in most of the settings I've heard him.