Edwin James Graham (born 20 February 1977) is an English musician who is best known as the original drummer of the rock band the Darkness, as well as the subsequent successor band Stone Gods fronted by guitarist and singer Richie Edwards.

Early life

Graham grew up in Oulton Broad in

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

, attending Kirkley High School with the Hawkins brothers. Not particularly sporty, Graham would spend his break times isolated in the music room where he began to play the drums. After school Graham studied art at Lowestoft College. In 1998 and 1999, Graham studied Film and Television at Salisbury College, gaining a

Higher National Diploma Higher National Diploma (HND), part of the Higher Nationals suite of qualifications, is an academic higher education qualification in the United Kingdom and various other countries. They were first introduced in England and Wales in 1920 alongsi ...

Career

After leaving Salisbury College, Graham returned to Lowestoft and worked in a Sanyo factory for six months to raise money to move to London. In the year 2000 he moved to

Finsbury Park Finsbury Park is a public park in the London neighbourhood of Harringay. It is in the area formerly covered by the historic parish of Hornsey, succeeded by the Municipal Borough of Hornsey. It was one of the first of the great London parks ...

, soon relocating to

Camden Town Camden Town (), often shortened to Camden, is a district of northwest London, England, north of Charing Cross. Historically in Middlesex, it is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Camden, and identified in the London Plan as o ...

, where he remained for over ten years. His first band in London was Q*Sling fronted by Norwegian born Paul-Ronney Angel, who later went on to form the Urban Voodoo Machine. The Darkness was conceived at a millennium eve party by the Hawkins brothers, Justin and Dan. The line up was completed some months later by Graham and bass player Frankie Poullain. Graham played on three studio albums: ''

Permission to Land ''Permission to Land'' is the debut studio album released by British glam rock band the Darkness. The album was released in the United Kingdom on 7 July 2003 and in the United States on 16 September 2003. The album topped the UK Albums Chart an ...

'', '' One Way Ticket to Hell... and Back'' and ''

Hot Cakes ''Hot Cakes'' is the third studio album by British rock band the Darkness, released on 20 August 2012 on Canary Dwarf Records. Produced by Nick Brine and band members Justin and Dan Hawkins, the album is the band's first since their 2011 reun ...

''. In 2006, the Darkness split due to Justin Hawkins leaving. Graham and Dan Hawkins went on to form the Stone Gods, recruiting Toby Macfarlaine and promoting Darkness guitar technician Richie Edwards to frontman. In July 2008, it was announced that he was permanently leaving the band due to health issues. SPIN magazine confirmed that Graham was suffering with

avascular necrosis Avascular necrosis (AVN), also called osteonecrosis or bone infarction, is death of bone tissue due to interruption of the blood supply. Early on, there may be no symptoms. Gradually joint pain may develop which may limit the ability to move. Co ...

, a rare condition causing lack of blood supply to the femur. In 2009, Graham underwent bilateral hip surgery (a major operation) which was a complete success. Subsequently, he formed the band Karaoke for Beginners with ex

Silverfish The silverfish (''Lepisma saccharinum'') is a species of small, primitive, wingless insect in the order Zygentoma (formerly Thysanura). Its common name derives from the insect's silvery light grey colour, combined with the fish-like appearance ...

guitarist Andrew "Fuzz" Duprey. In 2011, the Darkness reunited with all four founding members, with Download 2011 being one of their first come back shows. Following this, the band played numerous European and U.S festivals and toured with

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

. In October 2014, it was announced that the band were no longer working with drummer Ed Graham, stating that "for various reasons, we have all decided to move on. We love Ed and we wish him happiness." In 2015, Graham was the subject of a photographic documentary by photographer Nick Elliott recording Graham's personal and professional life since his departure from the Darkness. In 2015, Graham formed another band with singer-songwriter Angus Duprey, brother of Fuzz Duprey. The band, Puppets to the Supreme Commander, intended to release an EP and play UK shows ahead of an album release. In 2017, Graham performed drums for a one-off band, the Venus Reaction. The project, set up by friend and Puppets to the Supreme Commander bandmate David Donley, also featured Amie Conradine, Jim Lowe, and

Glen Matlock Glen Matlock (born 27 August 1956) is an English musician, best known for being the bass guitarist in the original line-up of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. He is credited as a songwriter on 10 of the 12 songs on the Sex Pistols' only alb ...

of the Sex Pistols. The band released a double A side vinyl single, in a limited run of 500 copies.

References

External links

FlamingWhopper.com
, UK-based fan site for the Darkness, Stone Gods, Hot Leg & British Whale (Est. 2005) {{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, Ed 1977 births Living people English rock drummers People educated at East Point Academy 21st-century drummers