Mel George Gaynor (born 29 May 1959) is a British drummer, best known as the longtime drummer for the rock band Simple Minds.

Biography

Gaynor was born to a Jamaican father and an

Afro-Brazilian Afro-Brazilians ( pt, afro-brasileiros; ) are Brazilians who have predominantly African ancestry (see "Black people#Brazil, preto"). Most members of another group of people, Pardo Brazilians, multiracial Brazilians or ''pardos'', may also have a ...

mother. He began drumming at age 11 and had his first professional engagement at age 14. After leaving the hard rock band

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...

(in which he played alongside future

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

vocalist

Bruce Dickinson Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958) is an English singer who has been the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden from 1981 to 1993 and 1999–present. He is known for his wide-ranging operatic vocal style and energetic stage ...

), Gaynor joined Simple Minds in 1982 as a session drummer for the '' New Gold Dream'' album (as a recommendation by record producer Pete Walsh), playing on six of the nine tracks. He later joined the band permanently for the ''New Gold Dream'' tour, as a replacement for

Mike Ogletree Mike Ogletree (born 1 May 1956) is a Scottish drummer and guitarist of Afro-European descent. A founding member of the Scottish rock band Café Jacques, he is best known for his work in the new wave bands Fiction Factory and Simple Minds.Larki ...

. Except for a period (1992–97) away from the band after the ''

Real Life Real life is a phrase used originally in literature to distinguish between the real world and fictional, virtual or idealized worlds, and in acting to distinguish between actors and the characters they portray. It has become a popular term on th ...

'' tour of 1991–92, he remained the Simple Minds drummer until 2017. In addition to drumming, he is active as a songwriter and a record producer. Gaynor considers

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

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James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

, and the

Mahavishnu Orchestra The Mahavishnu Orchestra were a jazz fusion band formed in New York City in 1971, led by English guitarist John McLaughlin. The group underwent several line-up changes throughout its history across its two periods of activity, from 1971 to 1976 a ...

to be his main influences. In addition to Simple Minds, he has played alongside other acts such as:

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

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Mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...

Kirsty MacColl Kirsty Anna MacColl (10 October 1959 – 18 December 2000) was a British singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including " There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears ...

, The Associates,

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, Prljavo kazalište,

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, Robert Palmer,

Joan Armatrading Joan Anita Barbara Armatrading, (, born 9 December 1950) is a Kittitian-English singer-songwriter and guitarist. A three-time Grammy Award nominee, Armatrading has also been nominated twice for BRIT Awards as Best Female Artist. She received ...

and Light of the World. In 2007, Gaynor kicked off his solo project with a version of "Play That Funky Music" and his new solo album was released at end of 2016 Gaynor's first single is the re recording of Robert Palmer's Addicted to Love released 12 September 2016. Gaynor was also a member of Birmingham-based Muscles, a funk-oriented covers band that had minor chart success with "If It Relaxes Your Mind" and "I'm a Girlwatcher". A new band Risk – also known as Mel Gaynor's Risk – a three piece rock band with a difference, powerful, precise and harmonious sound began recording and touring extensively from 2018. Gaynor not only drums but also covers vocals with other band members including blues guitarist James Ford and bassist Sarit Black.

Equipment

Gaynor has played a variety of drum sets over the years, including and currently Natal drums, and uses

Remo Remo Inc. is an American musical instruments manufacturing company based in Valencia, California, and founded by Remo Belli in 1957. Products manufactured include drum kits, drumheads, drums, and hardware. History Drummer and founder Re ...

drumheads. He has played a variety of cymbals as well, including at first

Paiste Paiste (English pronunciation: , ) is a Swiss musical instrument manufacturing company. It is the world's third largest manufacturer of cymbals, gongs, and metal percussion. is an Estonian word that means "shine". Apart from cymbals and gong ...

during at the start of his career, but then switched to Zildjian in the early 1980s upon joining Simple Minds, which he played for much of the duration of his career. He has also endorsed Anatolian, UFIP, and also Meinl cymbals at various other stages in his career. In 2011, Paiste announced him as an official endorser again, but at the end of 2018 he became an endorser with Italian company Vulcan Cymbals. Gaynor plays with his signature sticks called Drum Art, and will also be coming out with a signature snare drum from the same company. Gaynor's current list of equipment is as follows. *Natal drums **24" BD **10" 12" 13" Rack toms **14" and 16" Floor toms **20" gong Tom **14x6.5 Metal Shell Snare *Vulcan Cymbals ** 22" Ride Etna series ** 2x20" Thin Crashes Etna series ** 19" Medium Crash Etna series ** 19" Medium Light Crash Etna series ** 22" China Etna series ** 14" HiHat Etna series *DrumArt (mel gaynor model) sticks DrumArt snare drums *Remo heads

Freemasonry

Gaynor is a

Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

. He and his Simple Minds colleague

Derek Forbes Derek Forbes (born 22 June 1956) is a Scottish bassist, vocalist, and occasional guitarist. He is mostly associated with the Scottish band Simple Minds, having joined in time to record their early demos in 1978 and stayed with the band during ...

are members of Lodge Shalom 1600 on the Roll of The

Grand Lodge of Scotland The Grand Lodge of Antient Free and Accepted Masons of Scotland is the governing body of Freemasonry in Scotland. It was founded in 1736. About one third of Scotland's lodges were represented at the foundation meeting of the Grand Lodge. Histor ...

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaynor, Mel Simple Minds members People from Balham 1959 births Living people Black British rock musicians English people of Jamaican descent English people of Brazilian descent English rock drummers Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England Samson (band) members