Pioneer

James I. Lent (recorded "The Ragtime Drummer" in 1904)


Top 1920s Drummers

Tony SbarbaroBen Pollack
Baby DoddsVic Berton
Chauncey MorehouseZutty Singleton
Paul Barbarin


Swing Era

Jo Jones (with Count Basie)
Sonny Greer (with Duke Ellington)
Gene Krupa
Chick Webb
Dave Tough
Big Sid Catlett
Cozy Cole
Ray McKinley


Dixieland

George Wettling
Ray Bauduc
Nick Fatool


Unbeatable Virtuoso

Buddy Rich


Founders of Bebop Drums

Kenny Clarke
Max Roach
Art Blakey


1950s

Roy Haynes
Philly Jo Jones
Chico Hamilton
Connie Kay (with Modern Jazz Quaret)
Shelly Manne
Joe Morello (with Dave Brubeck)
Art Taylor
Jimmy Cobb
Ed Thigpen (with Oscar Peterson)
Stan Levey


Avantgarde

Ed Blackwell (with Ornette Coleman)
Danny Richmond (with Charles Mingus)
Don Moye (with Art Ensemble Og Chicago)
Gerry Hemingway (with Anthony Braxton)

Elvin JonesRashied Ali
Milford GravesCharles Moffett
Dennis CharlesAndrew Cyrille
Sunny MurrayPhilip Wilson
J.C. MosesClifford Jarvis
Joe ChambersBeaver Harris
Pheeroan Ak LaffBob Moses
Barry AltschulSteve McCall
Paul MotianJoey Baron
Han BenninkTony Oxley
Paul LovensBobby Previte


Fusion

Billy Cobham
Lenny White (with Return To Forever)
Alphonse Mouzon
Steve Gadd
Peter Erskine (with Weather Report)
Ronald Shannon Jackson
Dave Weckl (with Chick Corea)
Bull Bruford


Big Band Drummers

Louie BellsonMel Lewis
Sonny PayneRufus Jones
Frank CappJeff Hamilton
Sam Woodyard


1980s - 1990s

T.S. MonkTony Williams
Jack DeJohnetteBilly Higgins
Jake HannaLouis Hayes
Roy McCurdyGrady Tate
Roy BrooksMickey Roker
Alan DawsonJoe LaBarbera
Al FosterBilly Hart
Danny GottliebDennis Chambers
Victor LewisJeff Watts
Herlin RileyRalph Penland
Adam NussbaumRalph Peterson
Cyndi BlackmanLeon Parker
Terri Lyle CarringtonMarvin "Smitty" Smith
Kenny WashingtonCarl Allen
Lewis NashWinard Harper
Matt Wilson