Reflections of Bill Bruford

Although he is probably not as readily recognized among the classic rock crowd as a John Bonham or Neil Peart, Bill Bruford has to be among the top 10 of my all-time favorite drummers.

The 58-year-old percussionist’s time with super group Yes gave birth to some of their most inspiring and technically accomplished work.

These days Bruford’s time spent behind a drum kit is spent in tribute to his first love: Jazz.

Although he obviously has respect for much of his earlier work with King Crimson, he does not speak as favorably regarding the time he spent with Genesis, admitting that he lacked an emotional commitment to the music at the time.

I was a little disappointed to hear his comments around the current state of his old pals from Yes, and how he feels about the fact that they continue to tour and attract two or three thousand concert goers in 200 or so cities around the world.

"…so they can keep mining that ad nauseam, but it is definitely ad nauseam," says Bruford. Gee Bill, if people still love the music and still want to pay to see it performed live, more power to them. Perhaps the man is setting the height of his drum throne a tad too high these days.

I may not care for his comments with regard to his view about the current state of Yes, but it cannot be denied that Bruford is a legend among classic rock drummers and I shall continue to listen to all those old Yes tunes, even at the risk of becoming nauseated.

For the full story surf on over to The Times of London.