What Is It With Drummers ? The Radiators’ Revolving drum stool
The classic 1983 ‘rockumentary’ This Is Spinal Tap said it best about the transient nature of drummers. In the case of ‘Tap’ it went like this……
John "Stumpy" Pepys:
Died in a bizarre gardening accident deemed best left unsolved.
Eric "Stumpy Joe" Childs:
Choked on vomit of unknown origin.
Peter "James" Bond:
Spontaneously combusted on stage at a jazz festival.
Mick Shrimpton:
The most recognizable drummer (played by real-life drummer Ric Parnell), famously exploded on stage at the end of This Is Spinal Tap.
Over the almost 50 years of the Radiators there have been the following members
Other than yours truly (BC), the other keyboard player was ex Big Swifty member Tony Mollo, who only stayed on for a few months after the name and direction change, before I joined in early 1979. Brent Dehn replaced Fess on guitar when he ‘retired’ in 2012 and now Martin Cilia holds that position.
But here’s the thing…
there have been (at the time of writing) - 9 x DRUMMERS !
Chris Tagg, Mick Buckley (twice), Brad Heaney, Marcel Rodeka, Alan Bryant, Jeffrey Shapiro, Mark Lucas, and Rick Turner.
Now granted, I’ve counted Mick twice as per his two distinct stints, Rick (Geoff’s son) was filling in for Mark Lucas over a handful of dates and Jeffrey Shapiro only did a few days of recording with us in the USA in 1989. Marcel was also just a temporary arrangement, to fill the gap between Brad and Alan, but his two month stint was almost as long as Alans more ‘permanent’ appointment. Three were fired – Chris, Brad and Alan – all for wildly different reasons. You can read the details behind each of those in my memoir – Life’s A Gamble.
There are four that most influenced and shaped the Rad’s sound
Each of these four drummers have both similarities and differences. Their personalities, as both people and musicians, are all quite unique. In my time with each of them, Chris was gregarious and energetic, Mick was curious and social, Brad was withdrawn and introspective and, while I never played with Mark, I know him to be entrepreneurial and a direct communicator.
Now, at great risk of upsetting someone, I’ll try to analyze their playing styles…..
Chris Tagg played on three albums – Feel The Heat, Up For Grabs and Scream of the Real. He was probably the hardest hitter of the group but also technically adept. His style was very adaptable. This is best highlighted on his work on Scream of the Real, where he moves from the classic rock backbone of You to the swing of Sitting In My Armchair and the quirkiness of his own composition, Getting Closer. Personally, my favourite performance of his is on the song Driving, the little known B-Side to the single version of You. You can listen to this song here. You will also find other Rads rarities on the Sound page of my website. I always loved the sound of Chris’s kit – well tuned, robust sounds, in the classic rock mould. It was sad for all, but most of all himself, that he never fulfilled his full potential as a musician.
Mick Buckley, or ‘Bucko’ played on the Life’s A Gamble and Nasty Habits albums. He was also a hard hitter and stylistically diverse. Mick came to us from the Rupert B Funkified Filth band, so he had a grounding in funk plus a deep interest in swing and jive music. But he could also rock with the best of them. There is a story in my book, Life’s A Gamble, about the band getting up and jamming at my wedding reception, commandeering the party band’s gear. Ten minutes later the drummer’s skins had been decimated by an over exuberant (and very well lubricated) Bucko. Examples of his best work can be heard on the singles from the Life’s A Gamble album, the title track itself and the follow up A Bit of Pain Never Hurts, and there is some great syncopation on Love Ain’t Love from Nasty Habits. Mick was also a great performer, playing up to the crowd and engendering every performance with his boundless energy and enthusiasm.
Brad Heaney was probably the most technically gifted but not as brutal as either Chris or Mick. He was a real metronome with his timing and, unlike his extremely shy off stage persona, could be quite flamboyant as a showman behind the kit. We never made a studio recording with Brad, only the Gimme….Live album, but I expect this is where he would have excelled, as shown by his work on the early Screaming Jets albums.
Mark Lucas and I have never had the pleasure of playing together, but I have watched him many times. He’s closer to Brad than the others, in that he is very technically adept. He’s also an energetic and charismatic character and that comes through in his performances, where he is often the centre of attention in the current Rads show. He also works hard on the sound, maintenance and presentation of his kit. He is now far and away the longest serving of the Rads drummers, at 36 years tenure, and showing no signs of stopping. It seems that the Spinal Tap curse may have finally been lifted.
SOME OF THE OTHERS
Jeffrey Shapiro was only ‘in the band’ for a few days of recording in Santa Monica, USA, the details of which are in my book Life’s A Gamble, covering one of the more interesting and lesser known chapters in Radiators history. We remain friends to this day, not least because he is a devotee of Bowie, Mick Ronson, Ian Hunter, Mott The Hoople, Queen and other artists that feature heavily in my playlists.
Of the others, Marcel Rodeka (formerly of NZ art rock group Mother Goose) was a standout, and a lovelier man you will never meet. He got us out of a real bind when we needed to complete a run of shows following the decision to exit Brad, a situation that had become untenable.
While each of them had their struggles – be it drugs, alcohol, mental health or physical health – fortunately none of them died in a bizarre gardening accident or exploded on stage, although Chris had a few close encounters with our early use of flash bombs, back in the day.
If you want to know a bit more about each of them and their time with me in the Rads (with the exception of Mark), grab a copy of my memoir Life’s A Gamble and read on……
Q: What they call someone who hangs around musicians
A: A drummer
BC
Life’s a Gamble: Arriving, Thriving and Surviving in the Australian Music Business
From sold-out stages to life beyond the spotlight, former Radiators keyboardist Brendan Callinan shares the remarkable story behind the music. Life's a Gamble is an honest, entertaining memoir of resilience, reinvention and surviving the Australian music industry.
