10. Billy Cobham

Born - 05/1944 | Nationality - Panamainian | Genre - Rock/Fusion

Billy Cobham became known in the drum world in the late 60's and early 70's playing with Miles Davis and with the Mahavishnu Orchestra, a jazz-rock fusion group. He is widely seen as the best fusion drummer in the world, and one of the best drummers in any genre of music.

Some of the things that make Billy one of the best drummers include his technique which is superb, he also plays open handed which isn't all that common. This combines with his explosive power to produce a style that's precise and and full of energy. The amount of passion that he puts into his playing is clear to see and it comes across in his music.

Creativley, he puts a lot of other drummers to shame with his driving tom and snare rolls, and his cymbal work. But, at the other end of the spectrum, he's just as good at coming up with delicate little phrases and ride cymbal patterns too.

The top things that make Billy one of the best drummers around are his style and influence. His diverse style is unique to him and he has influenced the playing of drummers in jazz, rock, funk, and fusion. He's the best fusion drummer ever, and he helped to develop drum set playing and take it a new directions.

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.

8. Keith Moon

Born - 08/1946 | Nationality - British | Genre - Pop/Rock

Keith Moon is often thought of as the wild man of rock drums, and I guess that's actually true. But, that's not all there is to remember about Keith.

With The Who he pushed the boundaries of rock drumming by throwing conventional playing out of the window (along with a few tv's might I add).

He stopped using hi-hats altogether and placed tom rolls and double bass drum parts in some unusual but amazingly effective gaps in the music. It was a very original, perhaps even sloppy sounding style, but it worked brilliantly in the Who's music.

One of the reasons Keith was so unique was that he wasn't afraid to do or try anything when he was sat behind the kit. He played off of the guitar parts and vocals by Who band mates Townsend and Daltry, where other drummers would just play a straight safe beat.

He was integral to the band's sound, and showed that a rock drummer doesn't have to be restrained to keeping time and playing a fill at the end of every 8 bars. A fill can be played anywhere, a beat can be more inventive, lively, and impulsive. If it sounds good and works, do it! This is why he was one of the best drummers ever.

Some people see him as being a nut who just thrashed around the kit, but those who take a closer look at his playing realise just how remarkable it was. His technique wasn't the best, but his originality, style, feel, and contribution to drumming more than make up for that. One of the best drummers in rock for sure.

7. Steve Gadd

Born - 04/1945 | Nationality - American | Genre - Jazz, Pop, Fusions, Latin, Sessions

Steve Gadd is perhaps one of the lesser known drummers in this list, primarily because he didn't achieve widespread fame in a band, he was a session legend. His ability to create an iressitable groove and sit right in the pocket is simply extraordinary.

One of the reasons he has been so successful and has played on countless records (including big names like Paul Simon and Steely Dan) is his ability to turn a good song into a great song by coming up with the perfect drum part.

Some of the best drum set grooves ever written, such as '50 Ways To Leave Your Lover' and 'Late In The Evening', were coined by Steve. His technique and touch on the drums can be light and graceful, hard and piercing, or anyway in between but it's always hugely tasteful and sprinkled with his special brand of drumming magic.

The attributes that make Steve one of the best drummers ever are probably his creativity, feel, and technique. He may not be as well known or as influential on such a large scale as some of the other drummers, but those who are aware of his playing recognise him for the amazing talent he is.

6. Carl Palmer

Born - 03/1950 | Nationality - British | Genre - Prog Rock

Carl Palmer is unquestionably one of rock's best drummers ever. He's a brilliant technician and showman who also has super speed and dynamics in abundance. Starting drums at age 11, he never looked back and was already a well respected working drummer by age 16.

Initially he was influenced by jazz drumming legends like Buddy Rich, Joe Morello, and Art Blakey among others, but Carl developed his own technique and feel which he has used with great success in many different bands.

Argueably, Carl's best work was with rock group Emerson, Lake, & Palmer in the 1970's. The group's mixture of art rock, jazz, electronica, pop, and rock 'n' roll allowed Carl to use his wide range of drumming skills to the full. He combined showmanship, inventiveness, and good old rock intensity to produce a style that was to-the-point and interesting, but never predictable. His drum solos were also explosive and full of creative ideas and touches.

It's not suprising that the features of Carl's playing that make him one of the best drummers ever are his technique and creativity. His influence isn't as far reaching as some other drummers, but it should be. He's a real drummer's drummer.

5. Max Roach

Born - 01/1924 | Nationality - American | Genre - Jazz

Max Roach was the most precise and musical jazz drummer in the bebop era. In fact, he was a pioneer of bebop, but also worked in other styles later in his career. He helped drummers gain respect as true musicians, and was big influence on the pulse being transferred to the ride cymbal.

Like many of the best drummers he started playing at a young age, and went on to play with many great jazz musicians such as Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and more.

His technique was excellent producing a sharp, crisp sound and he could play at previously unheard of tempos. Max's four-limb independence was amazingly good too, and was put to use in his drum solos.

Max pushed drumming boundaries further by writing some very succesful drum compositions such as The Drum Also Waltzes and Drums Unlimted that showed off the drum set as a solo instrument capable of creating structure, themes, and phrases.

His contruibution to the world of drums is massive. He was an innovator, he changed the way the drum set was played, showed what the drum set alone was capable of, and was a driving force behind a new type of jazz. Combine that with his style, technique, and creativity, and there's no doubt he was one of the best drummers ever and deserves to be in the top 10.

Who do you think is the worlds best drummer among this ten.

4. Elvin Jones

Born - 09/1927 | Nationality - American | Genre - Jazz

Elvin Jones was one of the hottest jazz drummers around in his day. He started drumming from an early age and built up amazing technique, speed, and feel. He is quite probably the most innovative and passionate drummer ever.

He had a relentless, driving style that made full use of his fantastic limb independence. With tumbling triplets and polyrhythmic beats, he seemed to treat every drum and cymbal in the set as equally important. Sometimes, he could look very chaotic when he played, but he was always in control, and always knew what he was doing.

Elvin played with some of the biggest names in jazz including Charles Mingus, Miles Davis, and John Coltrane. But, it's his 6 years with Coltrane that are often seen to have produced his best recordings, espcially the iconic album A Love Supreme.

Elvin's contribution to drumming is perhaps the biggest reason he's one of the best drummers ever. But, his original style, impact, technicality and intense passion when playing are also big reasons. He was an innovator who took jazz drums in a new, bombastic, exciting direction.