- Micky Waller
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Micky Waller Birth name Michael Waller[1] Born 6 September 1941
Hammersmith, LondonDied 6 May 2008 (aged 66)
LondonInstruments Drums Years active 1960–2008 Associated acts Jeff Beck Group
The Steampacket
The Flee-Rekkers
Cyril Davies
Brian Auger and The TrinityMicky Waller (6 September 1941 – 6 May 2008)[1] was an English drummer, who played with many of the biggest names on the UK rock and blues scene, after he became a professional musician in 1960. In addition to being a member, albeit sometimes briefly, of some of the seminal bands of the 1960s, Waller played as a session musician with a host of UK and US artists.[2]
Biography
He was born Michael Waller in 1941, in Hammersmith, London.[1] Waller's first professional band, The Flee-Rekkers, had a #23 hit in the UK Singles Chart in 1960, with their recording of "Green Jeans" produced by Joe Meek.[3] He soon left to join a well-known band of the day, Joe Brown and the Bruvvers.[1]
In July 1963, he joined the Cyril Davies R&B All Stars, a band with a volatile line-up, replacing the band's original drummer Carlo Little. At that time the line-up was:
- Cyril Davies (vocals, harmonica)
- Long John Baldry (vocals)
- Geoff Bradford (guitar)
- Cliff Barton (bass)
- Keith Scott (piano)
- Micky Waller (drums)
Davies died on 7 January 1964,[4] and Waller left as the band was changed by Long John Baldry to become the Hoochie Coochie Men. Waller went on to play with Marty Wilde as one of the Wildecats.[1] While with Wilde, Waller played on two tours with Little Richard around the UK.[2]
Like many musicians of the day, Waller moved frequently from band to band, or as was often the case, the band he was in metamorphosed into another. After a short stint with Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames, a band he was to rejoin several times, he joined Brian Auger to become part of The Trinity,[1] and was soon followed by Long John Baldry. In April 1965, the group was expanded by Rod Stewart and Julie Driscoll and evolved into a new band, The Steampacket:
- Long John Baldry (vocals)
- Rod Stewart (vocals)
- Julie Driscoll (vocals)
- Vic Briggs (guitar)
- Brian Auger (keyboards)
- Rick Brown (bass)
- Micky Waller (drums)[1]
In April 1966, Rod Stewart left, and the other members remained as the nucleus of a new band, Brian Auger, Julie Driscoll & The Trinity:
- Julie Driscoll (vocals)
- Vic Briggs (guitar)
- Rick Brown (bass)
- Brian Auger (keyboards)
- Micky Waller (drums)
Waller subsequently joined John Mayall's Bluesbreakers for a few gigs in April 1967,[1] while Mayall looked for a permanent drummer, and was soon replaced by Mick Fleetwood.
- John Mayall (vocals, guitar, keyboards)
- Peter Green (guitar, vocals)
- John McVie (bass)
- Micky Waller (drums)
In August 1967, Waller joined the Jeff Beck Group, with former bandmate Rod Stewart:
The group produced two albums. Truth in 1968 saw the four piece play a mixture of blues with guitar riffs. The instrumental, "Beck's Bolero", with Jimmy Page on rhythm guitar, The Who's Keith Moon on drums, and bassist John Paul Jones; combined with Waller's playing on the remake of The Yardbirds' hit "Shapes of Things"; set the template for a heavier blues style. The following year, a second album from the band was Beck-Ola. But by this point Waller had already departed the band,[2] to be replaced by Tony Newman. Waller's relationship with Stewart and Wood served him well, as he would go on to join them on Stewart's solo album, Every Picture Tells a Story.[2] The coupling meant that Waller played percussion on Stewart's transatlantic chart topping hit single, "Maggie May".[1]
In 1969, Waller flew to Venice Beach Los Angeles to form the band "Silver Metre" with guitarist Leigh Stephens of Blue Cheer fame, and fellow Brit Pete Sears on bass and keyboards. They recorded one album at Trident Studios in London, England which was released on National General Records.
In 1971, Waller joined the Long John Baldry blues band for Baldry's first tour of the United States. The band included Ian Armitt on piano, and fellow Rod Stewart session men, Sam Mitchell on guitar, and Pete Sears on bass. Waller continued to work regularly in both rock and blues bands, and joined the original line-up of the Deluxe Blues Band, with Dick Heckstall-Smith, and bassist Bob Brunning.
- Danny Adler (vocal, guitar)
- Bob Brunning (bass)
- Bob Hall (piano)
- Dick Heckstall-Smith (sax)
- Micky Waller (drums)
Deluxe Blues Band, 1988In the early 1980s, Waller was a member of the Terry Smith Blues Band, with Jo Ann Kelly (vocals) and Tony Ashton (organ). Over the intervening years Waller's playing experience included credits with The Walker Brothers, Cat Stevens, Eric Clapton, Bo Diddley, Dusty Springfield and Paul McCartney.[2]
Brunning subsequently hung onto the Deluxe Blues band name, reusing it for a number of line-ups, whilst Waller went to play in Italy for a period. Upon his return to London, Waller briefly joined a revived Deluxe Blues Band that reunited him with Heckstall-Smith and Brunning, along with new members Dave Beaumont, Alan Vincent and Phil Taylor. He continued to play intermittently with a number of blues bands in the London area, including the eponymous Micky Waller Band.[2]
In his later life, Waller took a degree in law, and utilised his gained knowledge to win court claims for unpaid royalties.[2]
Waller died of liver failure[2] in London, in May 2008, at the age of 66.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Thedeadrockstarsclub.com - accessed January 2011. Some sources give his date of death as 29 April 2008. Other sources, including an obituary in the The Guardian, listed his stage name spelling as Mickey Waller.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Mickey Waller: Drummer with the Jeff Beck Group who was a familiar face on the 1960s music scene". The Guardian. 28 May 2008. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/may/28/obituaries.mainsection. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 205. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Thedeadrockstarsclub.com - accessed December 2009
External links
Jeff Beck
Micky Waller • Rod Stewart • Ronnie Wood • Nicky Hopkins • Tony Newman • Aynsley Dunbar • Bobby Tench • Max Middleton • Cozy Powell • Clive Chaman • Tim Bogert • Carmine Appice • Kim MilfordStudio albums Songs "You Shook Me" • "Shapes of Things" • "Barabajagal" (with Donovan) • "I Ain't Superstitious" • "Morning Dew" • "Ol' Man River"Related articles Categories:- 1941 births
- English blues musicians
- English rock drummers
- 2008 deaths
- People from Hammersmith
- Musicians from London
- English session musicians
- Deaths from renal failure
- British rhythm and blues boom musicians
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