Richard John Ploog (born 29 October 1962) is an Australian

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...

, songwriter, producer and singer who was a member of rock band The Church between 1981 and 1990. Ploog also drummed for

Beasts of Bourbon Beasts of Bourbon were an Australian blues rock band formed in August 1983, with James Baker on drums (ex-Hoodoo Gurus, The Scientists), Spencer P. Jones on guitar (The Johnnys), Tex Perkins on vocals (Dum Dums), Kim Salmon on guitar and Boris ...

in 1983,

Damien Lovelock Damien Richard Lovelock (21 May 1954 – 3 August 2019), known familiarly as Damo, was an Australian musician, sports broadcaster and writer. He fronted the hard rock band The Celibate Rifles from 1980 as their lead singer-songwriter and later ...

in 1988 and with fellow The Church member

Peter Koppes Peter Koppes (born 21 November 1955) is an Australian guitarist, best known as a founding and almost-continuous member of the independent rock band The Church. He is a multi-instrumentalist, also playing mandolin, drums, piano, and harmonica. ...

in 1991 for an album and tour. He is the father of Irie Ploog.

Biography

Richard John Ploog was born on 29 October 1962 and is from

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. As a

, he joined various bands including, The Name Droppers, The Brats and Exhibit A. In early 1981, at the age of 18, he replaced The Church's founding drummer, Nick Ward. In April the band released their debut album, '' Of Skins and Heart'' and the associated single, "The Unguarded Moment", which had been recorded late the previous year with Ward. Ploog's first recording with The Church was the five-track double single, "Too Fast for You" released in July. When ''Of Skins and Heart'' was released internationally (

Carrere Carrere or Carrère may refer to: As a name * Georges Carrère (1897–1986), French classical violinist * Edward Carrere (1906–1984), Mexican art director * Emmanuel Carrère (1957–), French author, screenwriter, and director * Fernando Car ...

for Europe,

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

for North America) it was re-titled as ''The Church'' with "Tear It All Away" replacing original track "Fighter Pilot...Korean War". On early record covers of ''The Church'', Ploog was incorrectly credited with all the drumming—Ward is not listed. Aside from drumming, Ploog also contributed song writing to The Church's releases. He also became involved in various side projects. Firstly, with

as a drummer in 1983 and then performing with its members,

Tex Perkins Gregory Stephen Perkins (born 28 December 1964), better known by his stage name Tex Perkins, is an Australian singer-songwriter who fronted the Australian rock band The Cruel Sea, but has also performed with the Beasts of Bourbon, Thug, James B ...

on vocals and

Kim Salmon Kim Leith Salmon (born 24 January 1957) is an Australian rock musician and songwriter from Perth. He has worked in various groups including The Scientists, Beasts of Bourbon, Kim Salmon and the Surrealists, Kim Salmon and the Business, and Dar ...

on guitar and harmonica, as Salamander Jim in February 1984. He worked on

The Celibate Rifles The Celibate Rifles were an Australian punk rock band which formed in 1979 with a line-up that included mainstays Dave Morris on rhythm guitar and Kent Steedman on lead guitar, within a year they were joined by Damien Lovelock on lead vocals. T ...

' vocalist

's debut solo album, ''Wig Wig Wig Wig World'' in 1988. Ploog left The Church after recording their seventh album, '' Gold Afternoon Fix'' which was released in February 1990. According to

Steve Kilbey Steven John Kilbey (born 13 September 1954) is an English-Australian singer-songwriter and bass guitarist for the rock band the Church. He is also a music producer, poet, and painter. As of 2020, Kilbey has released 14 solo albums and has col ...

, he left the band "because of musical personal differences.

He was replaced by

Jay Dee Daugherty Jay Dee Daugherty (born March 22, 1952) is an American drummer and songwriter most known for his work with Patti Smith. As a member of the Patti Smith Group, he has been nominated twice to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Biography Moving to N ...

(ex-

Patti Smith Group Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter and author who became an influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album ''Horses''. Called the "punk poet ...

). Ploog joined The Church member

' group The Well to tour and record ''From the Well'' (1990) and ''Iridescence'' (1991). Ploog has also drummed for The Wigmen, The Deadly Hume, Funkicide, and

The Sleep-ins The Sleep-ins are an indie rock band formed in Sydney, Australia. They are signed to the US label 128 Records. The band gained notoriety with their 2010 album ''Songs About Girls & Outer Space'', which charted on the CMJ New Music Report. "Silv ...

. Ploog returned to live drumming in 2013 with a series of gigs accompanying

and

Mark Gable Mark Dixon Kitchen (born 8 September 1950), known professionally as Mark Gable, is an Australian musician who serves as the frontman and a founding member of the rock band The Choirboys. The band was formed in Sydney in 1979. Mark was born in ...

. He is also a member of Groom Epoch. The band have released three albums, '' Scalar Trails'' (2014), '' Solar Warden'' (2018) and ''

Initiation Initiation is a rite of passage marking entrance or acceptance into a group or society. It could also be a formal admission to adulthood in a community or one of its formal components. In an extended sense, it can also signify a transformation ...

'' (2019).

References

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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ploog, Richard Australian drummers Male drummers 1962 births Living people The Church (band) members