4 Rock Songs Where the Drummer Is the Real Main Character

The rhythm section is a very important part of a song, especially in rock music. Though guitars are often the main characters of songs in this genre, a good riff is nothing without a strong musical backbone to work off of. The four songs below all feature superb drummers. The work they came up with is so powerful that they’ve taken what is usually relegated to background noise and given it a brighter spotlight. It’s impossible to ignore the rhythm in these songs, and it’s what people still talk about from them today.

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“When The Levee Breaks” — Led Zeppelin

This Led Zeppelin classic is seductive to say the least. Every instrument has a heaviness to it that gives it oodles of appeal. There are many main characters in this song, but the opening drumbeat, which plays without any other instrumentation, is really what makes this track recognizable.

John Bonham is responsible for this thundering drum fill. His distinctive playing shines through even with his other bandmates firing on all cylinders.

“Hot For Teacher” — Van Halen

It’s easy to get distracted by the guitar playing in Van Halen’s “Hot For Teacher.” But, playing with equal fervor right beneath this iconic riff is an electrifying drumbeat.

Alex Van Halen wows the audience with his tingly drum sound in this song. While some drumming is felt more than it’s noticed, that’s not the case with Van Halen’s in-your-face drumming here.

“My Generation” — The Who

The Who’s “My Generation” features some pretty classic drumming from Keith Moon. When you think of rock drumming, this simple but affecting beat is what comes to mind.

Despite being more straightforward than some of the percussionists on this list, Moon did everything he needed to do on this song. It’s a driving rhythm that gives this song the edge its subject matter demands.

“Rosanna” — Toto

Toto’s “Rosanna” features a subtle drum rhythm. But, subtle doesn’t mean it goes unnoticed. Like a perfectly colored painting, the drumming on “Rosanna” is just grooving enough to give this song some sway without sacrificing its softness.

Many burgeoning drummers have tried their hand at this soft rock hit. What they’ve found is that it takes a keen player to be able to pull off a light touch. Simplicity doesn’t always prove to be simple.

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