Uriel Jones, Motown Legend
Uriel Jones, drummer on many Motown hits, died in March 2009. This was over a year ago but the man is worth celebrating. He had an unbelievably powerful groove, as did the other two main Motown drummers, Benny Benjamin and Pistol Allen. However, the approach Jones had was more muscular than his two more elegantly grooving colleagues.
The impact that Jones and all of the studio musicians he worked with at Motown had cannot be overstated. Firstly, the Motown hits themselves would not have been what they were without the musicians that played on them. This in not meant to convey disrespect to the great singers that sang on the Motown hits. Nevertheless, as drummer Stanley Jordan (who is greatly influenced by the Motown drummers) stated: “you could’ve had Deputy Dawg singing on some of those records and they’d still be hits”.
The power of those hits was in the groove and spirit of the musicians and Uriel Jones was every bit the part of that. I have heard people describe the “Motown sound” as being attributable to everything from the microphones used to the density of the floorboards in the studio. These things have a small role but to gloss over the fact that the Motown sound IS the musicians that played on the tracks is a joke.
I am thankful to Uriel for setting a template of funkiness that rocks. When I play rock music I add funk to the feel. Not in an “R&B drummer playing rock” kind of way, I mean rock drumming on a stylistic level mixed with a funk feel. Part of what helps me do this is plenty of Uriel Jones in the listening diet.
One last thing I would like to say in tribute to Mr. Jones is that he was actively playing until just before his death. That means he lived, lived, and lived before he went to the next level. He had health issues, but he didn’t just wait to die. He LIVED until he died. Thanks for the example, Mr. Jones, musically and personally.
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