A newspaper article with Johnny, from a Virginia paper.
Kinda the pre-show interview papers run.
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Johnny Fay Wrote:"But I don't think you can sell 6 million records in your own country and be an R.E.M. cover band. All the people you wanted to get the message across to definitely got it."
So the "how many albums have the Hip sold in Canada" question is finally answered!
"In the early days, sure, we thought making it huge in the states would be great. But if we had that kind of success it might have killed the band," Fay said.
"It's what's driven us. Just trying not to look at the states like it is the brass ring. If we could change it, we wouldn't."
And these quotes should answer any questions regarding how the band treats Stateside promotions.....
>>He saw The Police live in the '80s and said, "The drums sounded like little tin cans."
>>Fay hopes he and The Hip have come close to that level of playing, especially on "Evolution."
Seems to me the closest they ever came to having the drums sound like tin cans was Day For Night...it sounds like Johnny's banging away on garbage can lids. The drums have a much more full, vibrant feel on IBE!
Thanks for the link. Great read!
Kudos to Johnny Fay for believing, like Ringo Starr (a far superior drummer, BTW), that drums should be discreet. In fact, one of the things I dig about the Hip is that---except for Downie, of course :mrgreen: ---none of them seems to want to showboat as individual virtuousos, that boring staple of Progressive Rock bands everywhere.
But here's my question: just how good a drummer do you think Johnny Fay is? Many non-Hip fans cite the drumming as a reason for not being a fan: the beats are too often the same, not much interesting is going on there, etc.. I wouldn't go that far, but I always think that if the band has a weak link it's probably the drumming.
Okay, I'll duck and cover now. Any thoughts?
There was a thread a very long time ago about Johnny's merits as a drummer...look it up if you're interested!
I won't say I hate him because every now and then he has flashes of brilliance (check out Train Kept a-Rollin' for proof he has the chops) but musically I think he's the weakest link in the bad. Like at the beginning of Membership where there's that drum fill at the beginning that fades and dies...I thought it would be a great big rat-tat-tat fill, but it's one of the weakest drum cues I've ever heard.
Live, I think he does a better job than on the albums. The albums don't show off his techniques at all...with most albums the drums are mixed way too tinny so all you hear is a methodical "bang-thwack-bang-thwack" that my little brother could do.
Killer Whale Tank Wrote:Kudos to Johnny Fay for believing, like Ringo Starr (a far superior drummer, BTW), that drums should be discreet. In fact, one of the things I dig about the Hip is that---except for Downie, of course :mrgreen: ---none of them seems to want to showboat as individual virtuousos, that boring staple of Progressive Rock bands everywhere.
But here's my question: just how good a drummer do you think Johnny Fay is? Many non-Hip fans cite the drumming as a reason for not being a fan: the beats are too often the same, not much interesting is going on there, etc.. I wouldn't go that far, but I always think that if the band has a weak link it's probably the drumming.
Okay, I'll duck and cover now. Any thoughts?
Of course every intelligent fan would agree that Johnny isn't a GREAT drummer. In fact, I don't consider any of the musicians in the band great. I think they have great songs but individually none of them are masters in their musical domain. They are good, competent players though.
I also know moderate Hip fans who make fun of every song they hear on the radio having the same drum beat. So what? Johnny is good at keeping the beat and he fits the Hip. They don't do 5 minute solos or stuff like that. What band has complicated, complex drumming that is different for every song? Sure, I'd like some more fills but it's still good. I also think he is better live on the skins. He bangs HARD!
The funny thing is I was playing DFN one day in my truck and my friend asked me who it was. This same guy was making fun of The Hip for having the same simple drumming at all times, yet he didn't recognize the song he was hearing when the drums started. The song was "So Hard Done By". If he didn't know it was the Hip, then how can he explain every song on the drums sounding the same?
For the record, I don't consider any of the Beatles musicians virtuosos either. They had great songs but I don't think the musicianship is all that extraordinary. Lennon was the most talented of the group IMO.
grooveless touque Wrote:There was a thread a very long time ago about Johnny's merits as a drummer...look it up if you're interested!
Yeah, I was the scapegoat in that whole escapade... heres the link <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://forum.hipbase.com/viewtopic.php?t=568&highlight=drum+tabs">http://forum.hipbase.com/viewtopic.php? ... =drum+tabs</a><!-- m --> I've been kinda trying to avoid that whole topic since I brought it up. I still find the last three hip albums and Day For Night fairly interesting, more fills, more finesse and attention to the 'right' volume on the skins, etc., etc.,... Its hard to criticize Johnny on the early albums, as they were straight-forward 'blues-rock' albums... little room for anything special, after all, the drummer sits at the back and anything he does besides the norm (in a blues-rock band especially) will raise an eyebrow or two, for the good OR for the bad... Day For Night is an awesome drum album, in my opinion, especially compared to the crap on the radio today... steel drums and tonga's, and I think I hear a chinese crash on Emergency... and the last three albums better showcase his skills... I've been drumming for about 7 years, I can play every Hip song on the drums without a doubt, but Johnny Fay would kick my ass NO DOUBT... the guys massive, and what I respect most about him is that he plays HARD for two+ hours everynight... but I still tip my hat to Neil Peart, any day of the week...
Albums: I think Johnny tends to stay in a 'keeper of the beat and time' roll more which works well for the song.
Live: If you think Johnny is an average-at-best drummer, you aren't listening closely enough! He adds something new and different to every song, every night. And there are loads of complex fills, yet he still doesn't play over the other guys.
My US$0.02.
I don't really want to get into this again, but for the sake of opinionated conversation... I don't hear the complex fills, or the extra-ordinary every night, nor do I want to hear it... he does a nice fill in 'The Wherewithal' off Live Between Us towards the end, and 'Little Bones' from Centennial Hall in London(98)... but I've also heard miscues and failed attempts at fills... either way, Johnny is a very solid drummer, nothing mind-boggling, but a huge step up from whackjobs like the Nickleback, Collective Soul, and REM drummers of the world...
das_hips Wrote:and REM drummers of the world...
Huhh?? Bill Berry was an incredible drummer. I wouldn't add REM to a list that includes Collective Soul and Nikleback...
That's like quoting three average actors by saying "Jean Claude Van Damme, Corey Feldman and Al Pacino".
One of these kids doesn't belong... know what I mean?
Oh I don't know about that one Sadie...when is the last time you saw "Goonies" that was bigscreen wizardry on Feldman's part!!!!
Goulet!!!
Touque's right, I should have done a 'search' before raising this (although endless circularity seems to be the rule on these kinds of boards). I'm also glad 'Membership' came up. To me, that song is a great example of Fay's limitations, and I don't just mean one clumsy fill. The song uses a river as its central metaphor, and for the life of me, I can't understand why the drums don't rollick along like the thundering stream described in the second verse. Instead, we get this banal 'thump...thump...' That's the one Hip tune where the unimaginative drumming sinks the whole track for me. Most of the time, Johnny is an adequate but uninspired timekeeper, at least on record.
I dunno, I think two of the Beatles were devastating musicians: bass players don't get much better than Paul, and Ringo is vastly underrated as a drummer. Check out 'Rain' if you doubt it. It's instructive, too, because Ringo's drums are never obtrusive or show-offy---he shares Fay's philosophy about drumming---but you can bet that HE would propulsed 'Membership' all the way to glory.
This is a topic inspiring quality debate, KWT, so I'm glad you brought it up again. Since everybody here respects the musicianship of the Hip, this isn't a topic where people are likely to out-and-out fight about it. The kind of debate we need!
You're right about the river metaphor not at all being met by drum technique...I guess I'd never thought about it. For me, the failed fill 1 second in is the low point of the song.
Was kinda surprised by the remark about R.E.M. ... Bill Berry was fantastic but REALLY gets my two thumbs up for being not only a solid drummer but also an incredible songwriter. Perfect Circle, I Remember California, and Everybody Hurts were all based on Bill Berry's contributions to the group. The past few albums, even Up which I actually like, expose his critical role in the band as a now-gaping hole. Joey Waronker and Bill Rieflin have been just tragic missteps. He's much more of a "rhythm" drummer than Johnny, who sticks to the 4/4 beat, and to my knowledge Johnny doesn't do anything than show up and bang when the band wants to record an album. Berry was more of a consummate musical artist.