Brendan Colin Charles Hill (born 27 March 1970 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England) is an English-born

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

musician, best known as the drummer (and one of the co-founders) of the

jam band A jam band is a musical group whose concerts (and live albums) are characterized by lengthy improvisational "jams." These include extended musical improvisation over rhythmic grooves and chord patterns, and long sets of music which often cr ...

Blues Traveler Blues Traveler (formerly known as "The Establishment" or "The Black Cat Jam" or "The Establishment Blues Band") is an American rock band that formed in Princeton, New Jersey in 1987. They are known for extensive use of segues in live performance ...

History

Hill is one of the original members of Blues Traveler. In 1983, while attending Princeton High School in

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, Hill met

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

player

John Popper John Popper (born March 29, 1967) is an American musician and songwriter, known as the co-founder, lead vocalist, and frontman of the rock band Blues Traveler. Early life John Popper was born in Chardon, Ohio. His father was a Hungarian immig ...

, and they formed a group dubbed Blues Band. They played mostly at parties and saw numerous

bassists A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboard bass or a low bra ...

and

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

ists come and go. In 1987, with the addition of

Chan Kinchla Chandler Kinchla, better known as Chan Kinchla, (born May 29, 1969) is a Canadian-American musician best known as the guitarist for the jam band Blues Traveler. Early life Kinchla was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Kinchla is the older b ...

on guitar and Bobby Sheehan on bass, they renamed themselves "Blues Traveler". After graduating from Princeton High School, Brendan (along with John and Bobby) enrolled in

The New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR) is a graduate-level educational institution that is one of the divisions of The New School in New York City, United States. The university was founded in 1919 as a home for progressive era thinkers. NSSR ...

to study music. Hill currently lives on

Bainbridge Island, Washington Bainbridge Island is a city and island in Kitsap County, Washington. It is located in Puget Sound. The population was 23,025 at the 2010 census and an estimated 25,298 in 2019, making Bainbridge Island the second largest city in Kitsap County. ...

, and owns a retail marijuana store on the island named Paper and Leaf. Hill uses Pearl drums and

Zildjian :''Zildjian leads here. For people with the surname, see Zildjian (disambiguation)'' The Avedis Zildjian Company, simply known as Zildjian (), is a musical instrument manufacturer specializing in cymbals and other percussion instruments. Founded ...

cymbals.

Side project

In his spare time, Brendan is also a drummer for the band Stolen Ogre. Brendan was involved in the formation of this band with

H.O.R.D.E. Horizons of Rock Developing Everywhere or H.O.R.D.E. Festival was a touring summer rock music festival originated by the musical group Blues Traveler in 1992. In addition to travelling headliners, the festival gave exposure to bands, charities, a ...

buddy

Michael McMorrow Stolen Ogre is an American rock band based in Seattle, Washington. Michael McMorrow and Blues Traveler drummer Brendan Hill formed the group after they met on the H.O.R.D.E. tour in the mid-1990s. The band's current members are lead singer-son ...

and still plays with them as his schedule permits, but Ogre does have a permanent drummer and tours without Hill.

References

External links

Brendan Hill's bio - BluesTraveler.com
* 1970 births Living people Blues Traveler members English rock drummers Grammy Award winners People from Princeton, New Jersey Princeton High School (New Jersey) alumni Musicians from New Jersey 21st-century drummers {{UK-drummer-stub