IMO

John Blackwell
Michael Bland
Sheila E
Kirk Johnson
Prince
Bobby Z

too hard 2 chose...although I must say Johnny B'well is great.

Best to worst:

Sheila E.
Michael Bland
Bobby Z.
John Blackwell
Prince
Kirky J.

Michael B

Bobby Z. wasn´t that bad...come on ...!
IMO: 1 ) Sheila E. / Michael B. both equal cause both created a very unique, special sound and style, a certain "sound " of an era, so to say.

2) John B`well is cool, but nowhere near Sheila or Michael...I´m not talking about technique or versatility but a certain style, and I can´t stand that stupid whiplike sound he uses during most of the shows of this incarnation of the NPG...
.by the way, he shouldn´t have called this lineup NPG...not without Michael,Morris and Sonny, but that´s off topic.

3) ...

No, changed my mind...it should be...:

1...Ms.Sheila E / and of course Mr. Linn Drum
2...Michael B,
3...Johnny B´well
4...Bobby Z
5...KirkJ( nice guy probably, good percussionist maybe, but Prince´s drummer ?)
Don´t know really where and how to rank Prince..he´s also the composer , after all.

KoolEaze said:

one-two-three-four-one-two-three-Whip!

Is that what you mean? aaarrrghh! I hate it with a passion. I can't see that it adds anything to the sound...quite the opposite...put it away John...I don't care if Prince likes it...it sucks!!!

oh...

Michael B
Sheila E
John B
Bobby Z
Mayte's buttcheeks ( they play a mean tambourine )

1 - John Blackwell
2 - Michael B
3 - Shelia E
4 - Bobby Z
5 - Kirky J

John B's "whip" sound rocks! It's the closest thing we're gonna get to going back to the Linn drum. The difference is, when Bobby / Shelia used the Linn clap live, it ran off a loop, with them playing over the top. John incorporates it into the song while he is playing, he's an octopus on crack!


If anyone here hasn't put John Blackwell at number one, do yourself a favour and check out his DVD or go to one of his clinics if they come to your town, You will quickly reconsider and put him back on top!

dnaplaya said:

"he's an octopus on crack!"

1. Sheila E.
2. John B.
3. Michael B.
4. Bobby Z.
5. Kirky J.

SDNafka said:

i just LOVE that whip sound.

fonky...

on THE WORK pt 1 on the VEGAS dvd, i love it how it changes on which count it is hit during the solos.

dawntreader said:[quote]

SDNafka said:

I think it was a little "extra" on the Vegas DVD. But I think it sounded best in Raspberry Beret.

Does Sheila E do the percussion at the beginning of U Got The Look? I love that...

Michael Bland
Michael Bland
and
Michael Bland

JC said:

How about Michael Bland?

My favorites are Michael, Jellybean, & Sheila

The rest are just puppets.

Sheila E
John B.
Michael B.
Prince
Bobby Z.
Kirk J.

While I'm impressed by John Blackwell and "love" Sheila-- for many reasons-- if I had to choose it would be Michael Bland. Bobby gets love because he was an important part of P's greatest band.

joyinrepetition said:

Yeah, that's my list.

John Blackwell is the best
Kirk Johnson is the average
Sheila E is primarily a percussionist, right?

1st : Michael B.
2nd : John Blackwell (Been warming up to the guy lately...)
3rd : Sheila E.
4th : Bobby Z.
5th : Kirk J.

On a side note, just after Prince split the NPG in '96 I saw Michael B. playing with Paul Westerberg. He came out in full robes with his big purple drum kit just like he was still playing for Prince! Not as effective for Westerberg as for Prince, it was still a kick to see him in that unexpected context.

Stormbringer

CherrieMoonKisses said:

Sheila is definitely a drummer too,haven't you watched the SOTT movie?

My opinion doesnt count for sheet, but id say that mike b was the only drummer that actually CONTRIBUTED a sound to prince. If you listen to all the mike b records compared to the ones from everyone else's, ull hear that it was on top of prince music, instead of working right in like the other drummers seem to do. I am a fan of contribution more than a fan of a session player. Mike is a contributor. Actually the guys from the mid 90's NPG contributed almost as much as wendy and lisa did for their era. Mike B is also one of my buddies

P.S. I read somewhere that John B said he actually tries to emulate mike b's groove, and puts his personal mark on the solo work. So if that goes for anything, id say even prince liked mike the best. He even said so in that chris rock interview. Blackwell is still a VERY close 2 because the guy is just phuckin nuts live.
Thats all I have to say about that.

blackwell is the best...it's quite simple really

John Blackwell
Michael Bland
Sheila E.
Bobby Z.
Kirk Johnson
...Morris Day?

PEJ said:

YOure crazy if you think Kirk is better than Prince on Drums

1. Prince - The songs all start here.
2. Mr. Linn - Still refreshing, after all these years.
3. Sheila E. - Drums as paint pallete.
4. Michael Bland - Saw him channel Mitch Mitchell once.
5. Morris Day - Crisp and funky.
6. Bobby Z. - More trigger happy than Bonnie and Clyde.
7. John Blackwell - Drums like he's in an '80's "hair" band.
8. Kirk Johnson - Better than me.

dnaplaya said:

JOHN BLACKWELL IS #1

squirrelgrease said:

80s
Hair
Band?

Best? It's Blackwell -- no Prince drummer has impressed me more.

Honorable mention goes to Sheila on percussion.

ElephantitisOfTheNuts said:

damn right!!! I saw him play last night at the HOB with P and the band!!! he's young, quick, and his skills and style are untouchable... prince came to a point where he needed the best drummer around... he found him!!!

undulatingacrobat said:

Let's see I've seen Prince on the drums about a total of 15 minutes tops..... I've seen Kirk on drums a few hours... How bout if I say this... they both suck as drummers.








[This message was edited Tue Feb 10 0:33:39 PST 2004 by PEJ]

Mmmm... it's actually harder to choose than I thought.
But, I'd have to go with...

1. John Blackwell
2. Michael B.
3. Sheila E.
4. Prince
5. Bobby Z.
6. Kirky J.


John Blackwell is certainly the most technically accomplished
drummer Prince has worked with. That's why he tops my chart,
even though I think Michael B had more of an impact on
Prince's music.

...And I don't mind the 'whip-drum' sound John B uses. It
gives that 'Linn-Drum' feel to certain songs that need it.
My only criticism is that it's often a bit too high in the
mix, and he always uses it in the same place (on the 8),
when in Prince's original linn drum programming he was a
bit more creative. In fact thinking about it, I'd love to
see John B try to emulate the actual rhythm of some of the
original linn drum lines as the base for his drumming on
certain songs.