9. Ginger Baker

Born - 08/1939 | Nationality - British | Genre - Rock, Jazz

Ginger Baker has been in many successful bands playing both jazz and rock, but is best known for his work in rock super-group Cream. He pioneered the use of double bass drums in rock drumming, and laid the foundation for today's rock drummers even though his roots are in jazz.

His style is similar to Keith Moon's - often ferocious and intense, but perhaps a little more controlled. With Cream, he played loud and he played creatively using some of his jazz drumming skills including off beats and syncopation. Effectivley, he was the first jazz-rock fusion drummer, and that's one of his big contributions to the world of drums and partly what makes him one of the best drummers ever.

Ginger's technique and creativity were also top draw, as was his big drum sound. He even went as far as to build his own drums out of perspex to get the sound he wanted. How about that!

Ginger isn't always given the credit he deserves by the general public, but drummers and musicians still hail him as one of the world's best drummers and most important jazz-rock drummers ever. His influence and impact have been far reaching and he planted the seed for fusion drummers everywhere.