I was contacted by Jenn Miller, editor at Jen Reviews to take a look at an piece that was written about drum kits for beginners and this article in particular was focused on guitarist who might like to learn drums as well, in order to improve their rhythm and possibly their overall groove.
I believe the article was comprehensive and even though in the last section, they speak about the use of electronic drums for jazz, I’m not a fan of electronic drums for much of anything other than using them in your apartment, condo or house with headphones so you don’t disturb anyone.
Joe was born in New York State and moved to The Big Apple after graduating college with a music performance degree.
During the early years of Joe’s career in NYC, he performed in various groups with some of the best jazz musicians in the world. He has performed with bassist Ben Wolfe, trumpeter Joe Magnarelli, saxophonist Jerry Weldon, trumpeter Tom Harrell and pianist Joel Weiskopf to name a few. When not touring, Harry Connick Jr. and musicians from his band would sit in with Joe’s jazz quartet.
In addition to Joe’s jazz chops, he is an accomplished rock, blues, funk and pop drummer who spent many years recording and touring the east coast music scene and regularly performed at national festivals.
In 2004, Joe left NY for the southwest in search of warmer weather, new industry connections and more opportunities to tour and record. His pocket groove, stylistic approach and the depth & breadth of his musical knowledge, was greeted with open arms.
Joe stays busy with a heavy regional live performance schedule, touring to other parts of the country, recording drum/percussion tracks for various artists and giving back through his clinics. In addition to his time spent behind the kit, Joe runs JC Productions, which books music for a variety of venues and bands.
When in Arizona, Joe often performs with well-known organist Papa John DeFrancesco. Joe has also performed with Joey DeFrancesco, Johnny DeFrancesco and Francine Reed.
