Charles Connor's (Little Richard's original Drummer) Official
Web page.
CHARLES “Keep-A-Knockin” CONNOR, original drummer for Little Richard, created the unique “Choo Choo Train” style of successive eighth notes with a loud backbeat used by nearly all subsequent Rock 'n' Roll drummers and, in fact, his drumsticks are on display at the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland, Ohio.


The son of a chief chef Merchant Marine seaman and father from Santo-Domingo and a Louisiana-born mother, CONNOR reveals, "I was born in New Orleans, in the heart of the French Quarter, the very hub of Cajun, Blues and down-island rhythms. My mother told me that whenever music was played, I kicked really hard in her womb.” He grins and exclaims, “I was born to be a drummer!” He winks and continues, “Probably 'cuz of that exotic Creole and Dominican blood coursing through my veins,” then laughs mischievously.


As a toddler, CONNOR was drawn to marching parades and the “second-line funeral bands” playing Dixieland jazz through the streets of New Orleans and loved to hear his father, home on a three-month leave, sing Calypso songs around the house. Imitating the drums, CONNOR banged on pots and pans all-day and cried hard when his mother had to take them away to cook family meals.


Although his parents had two other sons and a daughter and could not afford expensive gifts, they saved enough money to buy CONNOR his first drum set when he was five. When his drumming became “a loud nuisance” to the neighbors, he practiced with his drumsticks four to five hours a day on a practice pad.


Inspired by such notables as Bob Alden, Art Blakey, Charles Otis, Gene Krupa, Buddy Rich and Max Roach, CONNOR dreamed big and diligently spent all his spare time working towards his goal of becoming “a professional drummer.” His hard work paid off at age 12 when he began playing drums for local parties and wedding receptions, but his “professional” career began at 15 when Roy “Professor Longhair” Byrd hired him as a last-minute replacement for the 1950 Mardi Gras in New Orleans.


With family blessings and his mother's sage advice, “never use your skin color as an excuse; never doubt yourself; if you believe in yourself, everybody else will, too,” CONNOR went on to drum for Smiley Lewis, Guitar Slim, Jack Dupree then Shirley and Lee.


At 18, CONNOR joined flamboyant Little Richard's original road band, The Upsetters, his joy marred only by the deep racial intolerance the band had to endure. CONNOR says, “[Black] musicians back then didn't have Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr to motivate them. We had to find inspiration from our faith and within our hearts.”


CONNOR cocks his head and says, “Little Richard was an ingenious promoter. To draw attention to his band and ensure they could perform on stage, he had to show bigots that the band wouldn't threaten their way of life. Little Richard promoted the band and avoided racial prejudice by insisting the musicians wear thick pancake makeup and act effeminate!”


CONNOR pulls at his chin, and then smiles as he admits, “ I really had fun. I worked with artists like Lloyd Price during vacations from Little Richard and, since Little Richard and James Brown shared the same booking agent, on "off-nights" I appeared with “The Godfather of Soul,” who coined the phrase, “CONNOR was the first to put the funk in the rhythm!”


CONNOR continues: “I was 20 when Little Richard's band toured the United States in 1955. We played all the major theaters, including such prestigious venues as the Turner Arena and Howard Theater in Washington, D.C.; the Royal Theater in Baltimore, Maryland; the Apollo Theater in Harlem and the Paramount Theater with Alan Freed in Brooklyn.” He says in awe, “In New York, the white teenagers saw blacks having so much fun that they would dance in the aisles with them! Man, those were heady times,” and chuckles aloud.


While on a 1955 tour of Japan and the Philippines, a young girl approached CONNOR, and asked for an autograph, but he had no idea then that she would later influence his life. The years disappear as he grins and, in wonderment, says “[For some reason] I wrote: I hope you come to America someday. Keep Rock 'n' Roll in your life.”


Gaining momentum in 1956, Little Richard's band appeared in such popular feature films as “The Girl Can't Help It” with actress Jayne Mansfield; “Don't Knock the Rock” and “Mr. Rock 'n' Roll.” Then, as Rock 'n' Roll exploded on the music scene, the band recorded several hit songs like “Keep-A-Knockin',” featuring CONNOR'S first four-bar drum intro on a Rock 'n' Roll record; “ Ooh! My Soul,” also featuring CONNOR'S distinctive "Choo Choo Train" beat; and “She's Got It,” with a regular backbeat. CONNOR reminisces, “The Civil Rights Act may have been passed in 1964, but Rock 'n' Roll music brought young people and the world together a decade earlier.” He concludes proudly, “We got respect and power; our popularity cut across racial lines” ...

Jim Walent's Official Web Site.
drummer:
I've been playing drums for about 23 years.
I've studied privately for about 3/4 of that time. But not always
in that time signature. (musician humor)

Over the years,
I've studied privately with John Smith (Really), Tim Egan, Charlie
Blanchette, Ed Kaspic, Steve Wilkes, and Dave DiCenso.

I played in various bands in and out of school from elementary through
High school including a big band orchestra called Swing Teens.

I attended Berklee College of Music from the Fall of 92' through the
Spring of 93' At Berklee I studied with Steve Wilkes, Larry Finn, Alan Hall,
and Ed Kaspic.

I am versed in most styles of music and can adapt to
almost any situation musically and personally ...

Mike Portnoy is the acclaimed drummer of Dream Theater as well as various side-projects such as Liquid Tension Experiment, TransAtlantic and O.S.I.

Mike's long list of Awards include 21 Modern Drummer Magazine Reader's Poll Awards including: 2004 Hall of Fame Inductee, Best Progressive Rock Drummer (10 years in a row!!), Best Clinician (twice), Best Educational Video/DVD for Liquid Drum Theater, and Best Recorded Performance of the Year (5 times) for Dream Theater's Awake, A Change of Seasons, Falling Into Infinity, Scenes From A Memory, and Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence.
As anybody who knows me personally would tell you, I am the walking definition of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder..... I always have been and probably always will be...

This curse for me means that when I "get into" something, I can't just casually enjoy it.... I become obsessed with every aspect of it.... If I discover a band that I like, I must go out and get their entire catalog. If I see a film I like, I must go out and see every film that the director has made...and even worse, collect the director's entire body of work for my video, laser & DVD library...

This behavior has not only driven my wife Marlene crazy, but has forced us into building a huge library/ "Dream Theater museum" seperately from the rest of my house so nobody gets hurt! : )

As anybody who has interviewed me would tell you, I would rather spend my time discussing & promoting other bands or films than talking about myself or Dream Theater....(How DT or my record company continue to let me be the band's main spokesman is still beyond me!!!) : )

What this part of my web-site provides is a real look into my biggest interests:
Film, Boxing and of course, Music....(and a few other things for good measure)

Some of you may read through these lists and say "you know, I could care less about this crap!"....but that's OK with me; because of my OCD, I had fun compiling these lists....even if only for myself! ...

My name is Eric Olson and I am 21 years old. I have been playing drums for roughly 12 years. My home base is Boston and I have played session on many projects from pop to jazz to rock some of which are listed in the about section of this page.

I play every and any style possible. My most recent project was a pop band called the Greg Schuler Band which I played in along with playing in the rock band thirdshift. However, I have played in 16 piece jazz bands, in power pop trios, in a punk band, and I have recorded with many bands of many styles.

In the music section of the page I have listed various projects I have played in and some links to the most recent mp3s. Please contact me if you think I can be of use to you in a session project or if you are in need of a drummer for a band ...

Custom drumming and music tracks available from a pro. Can provide drum tracks via the Internet and AIM. Pro Tools proficient.

Please visit http://www.jonmattox.com for drumming & music samples/credits/bio