What Makes John Bonham Such a Good Drummer?

When a band decides not to continue because you lost your drummer you know he was a special man! They loved this man!

My favorite little Bonham fact is that every pause after a verse in “Black Dog” was a random length. The band stopped counting, and then Bonham would cue them back in by tapping his sticks together a beat before the start of the next guitar part. It’s really faint in the mix, but you can hear it if you listen closely. It’s a really smart way to do a big pause like that in a song, honestly. It takes the pressure away from everybody in the band to be magically in sync with each other, and just gives the rhythm section the authority to decide when the rhythm picks up again.

To think this man was depressed towards the end of his life and said "everyone's a better drummer nowadays than me". How wrong he was and how incredible he still is 50 years later. Still the best drummer of all time. John Bonham may be gone but the music lives on 🤘

I don't play drums, I really don't know much of anything about drums, but Bonham's playing bring a surge of emotion to me that makes me want to cry. I can't say that of any other drummer I've ever heard.

Lets just say every member of Zep was a freak of nature and there will never be another.

“WERE YOU RUSHING OR DRAGGING?!” John Bonham: “both”

During John Bonham's birth, his mother underwent 26 hours of labour at a midwife's house. When he was eventually delivered, his heart stopped and a Doctor was called. The Doctor managed to save his life and....the rest is history. Despite his worldwide fame and fortune, he never forgot his roots and the community he grew up in. A friend of mine recalls watching him on tv and then a few days later seeing him drinking in a local pub.

Zeppelin were freaks of nature. Arguably: - the greatest rock singer of all time - one of the all time great rock guitarists - one of the all time great bassists and multi-instrumentalists - unquestionably the greatest drummer of all time

Led Zeppelin is one of those rare bands where they physically cannot work if a member is missing. All of the members were irreplaceable

Jack White said it best “I don’t trust anyone that doesn’t like Led Zeppelin”

the sound bonham gets when he hits the snare and hi-hat together- its perfect and no other drummer can make it sound quite that good / crisp.

Led Zeppelin is just so perfect, perfect vocalist,godly guitarist,godly drummer and an amazing bassist

The Rock Stars all aligned when this band was formed.

I’ll show my teenage ignorance. By the time I saw Zeppelin play in ‘77 I’d seen a bunch of great bands and great drummers including Neil Peart and Ian Paice. I was not the biggest Zep fan when I went and Bonham was just another drummer. That all changed in a magical instant. We were close to the front near the center when the lights came up. Zeppelin didn’t walk on stage, they floated. I’ve never felt that way ever again.They opened with Song Remains the Same. The first minute of that song changed the way I’d view every other band, every other guitarist and every other drummer…forever. John Bonham played drums like there was no tomorrow, every minute on every song. He was fast and powerful, but Bonham had a unique and distinctive beat that I’d never heard, and still have not heard duplicated. The music of Led Zeppelin is legendary. Thanks in great part to the truly magical groove Bonham created. Apologies for the rambling…it happens every time I reflect on that one night of magic.

I grew up in a jazz household. As a teenager my dad took me to see Miles Davis and others. At the same time I was a huge fan of rock music, especially Led Zeppelin. When I learned later that John Bonham was self taught listening to Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich this made sense to me, as to why I loved their sound. All the musicians in the band of course, but John Bonham’s drumming most of all. When Bonham died I could barely listen to them anymore; for years I did not. Now I am a student of drums and have an even greater appreciation. There’s just nothing like Led Zeppelin and nothing like drummer John Bonham.

In My Time of Dying is the best example of how phenomenal Bonham was. Isolate just his drums. 11 minutes of unfathomable power and rhythm. First couple minutes starts slow, but the last 2/3 of the song he adds layer after layer, breaks and incredible variety with each minute building into an unreal crescendo along with the rest of the band. I zone out to it every time.

As a Led Zeppelin fan I can honestly say watching this opened up another level of understanding to the songs and albums I've heard hundreds of times. Excellent work and explanation.

Bonham was a 19 yr old kid when Zep recorded their first album. He was self taught. GOAT Rock Drummer !!!!

I've never been more randomly obsessed with a musician as I am with Bonzo. I can't explain it beyond my visceral love of music and how his drumming makes me feel...all the feelings.

John Bonham's drumming is as mysteriously good as the writing of some of my favorite writers. It's so natural and effortless and has perfect judgement as to what to emphasize or omit.