Alvin Taylor (born March 26, 1953) is an American drummer, producer and

musical director A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the ...

, who is best known for his work with

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 ...

Eric Burdon Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941) is an English singer. He was previously the lead vocalist of R&B and rock band the Animals and funk band War. He is regarded as one of the British Invasion's most distinctive singers with his deep, powe ...

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

Billy Preston William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American keyboardist, singer and songwriter whose work encompassed R&B, rock, soul, funk, and gospel. Preston was a top session keyboardist in the 1960s, during which he ba ...

, and Bob Welch.

Early life and career

Alvin Taylor started playing drums at the age of 5. He played in various local bands and began his professional career at the age of 14, when he started touring with

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

. As part of Little Richard's band, Taylor played with

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

and opened a show for

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

. Later he played with

PG&E The Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is an American investor-owned utility (IOU). The company is headquartered in the Pacific Gas & Electric Building, in San Francisco, California. PG&E provides natural gas and electricity to 5.2 milli ...

on their number one record, ''Are You Ready''. He turned down Jerry Goldstein's offer to play in the famous

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

band

War War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

, but joined

's band after Burdon left War. The Eric Burdon Band released a

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

-packed album, '' Sun Secrets''; Taylor is shown on the cover. Taylor was also featured on their unreleased album ''

Mirage A mirage is a naturally-occurring optical phenomenon in which light rays bend via refraction to produce a displaced image of distant objects or the sky. The word comes to English via the French ''(se) mirer'', from the Latin ''mirari'', meanin ...

'' (released in 2008), ''

Don Kirshner's Rock Concert ''Don Kirshner's Rock Concert'' is an American television music variety show that ran during the 1970s and early 1980s, created and produced by Don Kirshner and syndicated to television stations, initially through Viacom Enterprises, and later ...

'' (on February 9, 1974), and is mentioned in Burdon's 2001 book ''Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood''. Taylor performed at the first ever airing of ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

'' on October 11, 1975. In 1976 he played on

's album ''

Thirty Three & 1/3 ''Thirty Three & ⅓'' (stylised as ''Thirty Three & 1/ॐ'' on the album cover) is the seventh studio album by English musician George Harrison, released in November 1976. It was Harrison's first album release on his Dark Horse record label, t ...

'', recorded at the former Beatle's

Friar Park Friar Park is a Victorian neo-Gothic mansion in Henley-on-Thames, England, built in 1889. It was originally owned by eccentric lawyer Sir Frank Crisp and purchased in January 1970 by English rock musician and former Beatle George Harrison. ...

estate in England. Citing the album sessions, Taylor later called Harrison "the very best and my most favorite person" of all the artists with which he had worked. He played on two albums by

, ''

'' (1976) and '' A Whole New Thing'' (1977). He then joined Bob Welch's band and recorded the album ''

French Kiss A French kiss, also known as cataglottism or a tongue kiss, is an amorous kiss in which the participants' tongues extend to touch each other's lips or tongue. A kiss with the tongue stimulates the partner's lips, tongue and mouth, which are sens ...

'' (1977), which featured the hit single "Ebony Eyes". During subsequent years he appeared on albums by artists including

Aalon Aalon is an American soul group from Los Angeles formed by lead singer and guitarist Aalon Butler. Butler played guitar for Eric Burdon in the 1970s prior to forming the band Aalon, which signed to Arista Records in 1977. Their debut album, '' Cre ...

Jesse Colin Young Perry Miller (born November 22, 1941), known professionally as Jesse Colin Young, is an American singer and songwriter. He was a founding member and lead singer of the 1960s group the The Youngbloods, Youngbloods. After their dissolution in 1972 ...

Les McCann Leslie Coleman McCann (born September 23, 1935) is an American jazz pianist and vocalist.Feather, Leonard, and Ira Gitler (2007), ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz'', p. 448. Oxford University Press. Early life Les McCann was born in ...

Lauren Wood Lauren Wood (born Ilene Rappaport in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), also known as Chunky, is an American singer-songwriter, voice-over artist, and producer. Her 1989 single "Fallen" was used in the 1990 movie ''Pretty Woman'', even though it was rec ...

, Gil-Scott Heron, The Originals,

Syreeta Syreeta Wright (February 28, 1946 – July 6, 2004), who recorded professionally under the single name Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter, best known for her music during the early 1970s through the early 1980s. Wright's career heights we ...

The Mighty Clouds of Joy The Mighty Clouds of Joy are an American traditional gospel music quartet. Joe Ligon Bio: Willie Joe Ligon was born on October 11, 1936, and died on December 11, 2016 (80 years, 2 months). He dedicated his life to Jesus making many hit songs ...

Keni Burke Kenneth M. "Keni" Burke (born September 28, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist who began his career with four siblings in the 1970s band the Five Stairsteps. Biography Five Stairsteps As a member ...

, Stargard,

Sammy Hagar Samuel Roy Hagar (born October 13, 1947), also known as the Red Rocker, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He rose to prominence in the early 1970s with the hard rock band Montrose and subsequently launched a successful solo car ...

Billy Thorpe William Richard Thorpe AM (29 March 1946 – 28 February 2007) was an English-born Australian singer-songwriter, and record producer. As lead singer of his band Billy Thorpe & the Aztecs, he had success in the 1960s with "Blue Day", " Poison Iv ...

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...

Sly & the Family Stone Sly and the Family Stone was an American band from San Francisco. Active from 1966 to 1983, it was pivotal in the development of funk, soul, rock, and psychedelic music. Its core line-up was led by singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi-i ...

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (1972) ...

, and ''

Three Hearts ''Three Hearts'' is the second solo album by rock musician and former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Bob Welch. Just like Welch's previous effort ''French Kiss'', ''Three Hearts'' was a commercial success. The album reached number 20 on the US charts ...

'' by Bob Welch. On

Danny O'Keefe Danny O'Keefe (born May 20, 1943) is an American folk singer and songwriter. Career In 1968, O'Keefe was a member of a four-man heavy psychedelic rock band named Calliope. The group recorded one album, ''Steamed'', for Buddah Records before di ...

's record '' American Roulette'' (1977) he appeared alongside

Reggie McBride Reggie McBride (born September 17, 1954) is an American bass player. Biography McBride was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, United States; listening to Motown records, he began to play bass at the age of 8. At the age of 14, he played in ...

Mike Melvoin Mike Melvoin (May 10, 1937February 22, 2012) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. He served as chairman and president of The Recording Academy and worked as a prolific studio musician, recording with Frank Sinatra, John Lennon, ...

, and David Lindley. In 1979, he appeared on

's single ''

(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" is a song co-written by soul singer Otis Redding and guitarist Steve Cropper. It was recorded by Redding twice in 1967, including once just three days before his death in a plane crash on December 10, 1967. Th ...

'' which features

Leland Sklar Leland Bruce Sklar (born May 28, 1947) is an American bassist and session musician. Sklar rose to prominence as a member of James Taylor's backing band, which coaleced into a group in its own right, The Section. This group of musicians so frequ ...

Barry Goudreau Barry Goudreau (born November 29, 1951) is an American musician. He was one of two original guitarists for the Rock music, rock band Boston (band), Boston alongside founder Tom Scholz; both Scholz and Goudreau shared lead and rhythm guitar parts ...

and

Steve Cropper Steven Lee Cropper (born October 21, 1941), sometimes known as "The Colonel", is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as Ot ...

, who originally played on the

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

version. Later in the same year he appeared on Cher's album ''Prisoner'' with Toto members

Steve Lukather Steven Lee Lukather (born October 21, 1957) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer, best known as the sole continuous founding member of the rock band Toto. His reputation as a skilled guitarist led to a stea ...

Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (; April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work with the rock band Toto but is one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working on ...

David Hungate William David Hungate (born August 5, 1948) is an American bass guitarist noted as a member of the Los Angeles pop-rock band Toto from 1976 to 1982 and again from 2014 to 2015, and the son of judge William L. Hungate. Along with most of his T ...

David Paich David Frank Paich (born June 25, 1954) is an American musician, best known as the co-founder, principal songwriter, keyboardist and singer of the rock band Toto since 1977. He wrote or co-wrote much of Toto's original material, including the ba ...

, and others. In 1980 he appeared again with Lukather and Paich on

's album '' 21 at 33''. Other notable musicians include

Bill Champlin William Bradford Champlin (born May 21, 1947) is an American singer, musician, arranger, producer, and songwriter. He formed the band Sons of Champlin in 1965, which still performs today, and was a member of the band Chicago from 1981–2009. H ...

Chuck Findley Charles B. Findley (born December 13, 1947 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania) is an American trumpet player known for his diverse work as a session musician. He also plays other brass instruments such as flugelhorn and trombone. His technical abilities ...

, and

Lenny Castro Lenny or Lennie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Lenny (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Lennie (surname), a list of people * Lenny (singer) (born 1993), Czech songwriter Arts and entertainment Music * ''L ...

. Taylor then appeared on Bob Welch's albums ''

Man Overboard "Man overboard!" is an exclamation given aboard a vessel to indicate that a member of the crew or a passenger has fallen off of the ship into the water and is in need of immediate rescue. Whoever sees the person's fall is to shout, "Man overboa ...

'' (1980) and '' Bob Welch'' (1981). In 1981, he also appeared on the album '' 1234'' by

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 ...

member

Ron Wood Ron is a shortening of the name Ronald. Ron or RON may also refer to: Arts and media * Big Ron (''EastEnders''), a TV character * Ron (''King of Fighters''), a video game character *Ron Douglas, the protagonist in ''Lucky Stiff'' played by Joe A ...

. Since 2011 he has been working with Ukulele Ray and regularly plays at

NAMM The NAMM Show is an annual event in the United States that is organized by the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), who describe it as "the industry’s largest stage, uniting the global music, sound and entertainment technology commun ...

. Beginning in 2013 he tours with "The Gypsy Experience" as well as former

Earth, Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million re ...

member, David Lautrec and his group Desert Redux.

Discography

George Harrison

* ''

'' (1976)

Bill Withers

* ''

Menagerie A menagerie is a collection of captive animals, frequently exotic, kept for display; or the place where such a collection is kept, a precursor to the modern Zoo, zoological garden. The term was first used in 17th-century France, in reference to ...

'' (1977) * ''The Complete Sussex and Columbia Albums'' (2012, Compilation) * ''Original Album Classics'' (2013, Compilation)

Billy Preston

* ''

'' (1976) * '' A Whole New Thing'' (1977)

Bob Welch

* ''

'' (1977) * ''

'' (1979) * ''

'' (1980) * '' Bob Welch'' (1981) * '' Live from the Roxy'' (2004, Live-Recording from 1981)

Elton John

* '' 21 at 33'' (1980) * '' The Fox'' (1981) * '' To Be Continued...'' (1990, Compilation)

Eric Burdon

* '' Sun Secrets'' (1974) * ''

Stop Stop may refer to: Places * Stop, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the United States * Stop (Rogatica), a village in Rogatica, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina Facilities * Bus stop * Truck stop, a type of rest stop for truck d ...

'' (1975) * '' Survivor'' (1977) * ''Sun Secrets & Stop'' (1993, Compilation) * '' Soldier of Fortune'' (1997, Unreleased-Compilation) * '' Live at the Roxy'' (1998, Live-Recording from 1975) * '' Live 17th October 1974'' (2009, Live-Recording from 1974)

Sly & the Family Stone

* ''

Back on the Right Track ''Back on the Right Track'' is the ninth studio album by Sly and the Family Stone, released by Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, i ...

'' (1979) * ''Who in the Funk Do You Think You Are'' (2001, Compilation)

Other Credits

* The Originals - ''Communique'' (1976) *

- ''One to One'' (1977) *

- ''American Roulette'' (1977) * Aalon - ''Cream City'' (1977) * Stargard - ''What You Waitin' For'' (1978) *

- ''Prisoner'' (1979) * Pyrymyd - ''Pyrymyd'' (1980) *

- ''Stimulation'' (1981) *

- ''1234'' (1981) *

- ''View From The Ground'' (1982)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Alvin American male drummers Living people 1953 births 20th-century American drummers 20th-century American male musicians