Saturday Song Share: Rare Earth - Get Ready (Plus Discussion on Top Drummer Lead Vocalists)

Rare Earth was rare indeed - one of the very few white acts that signed to the Motown label.  That being said, they definitely had a funky vibe:



Beyond that rarity, they also had a drummer that handled the lead vocals.  In thinking about that, there are a couple that stand out, so in honor of Rare Earth's Peter Rivera, I give you my top five lead vocalist drummers:

5) Peter Rivera - Rare Earth: See above

4) Peter Criss - Kiss: While Criss is best known for the first ever hard rock ballad Beth, it is a song that never featured drums.  Go figure.  Despite that, Criss handled leads on Kiss classics like Nothin' to Lose and their best song ever, Black Diamond

3) Levon Helm - The Band: The Band's classic sound would be missing everything if not for Helm's distinctive sound.

2) Phil Collins - Genesis (and solo): He saved Genesis as a band upon the departure of lead singer Peter Gabriel, then launched a wildly successful solo career, with much of it conducted from behind the set.

1) Don Henley - The Eagles: The song Hotel California shows both sides of his performance so perfectly - the driving beats and the unmistakable velvety vocals.  

Now, let's discuss who's not on the list:

• Ringo Starr - The Beatles: His vocals are terrible, as is his drumming.  In fact, much of the material from the later albums featured drumming from other members of the Beatles instead of from Starr
• Dave Grohl - Nirvana and Foo Fighters: While a great drummer and a great singer, Grohl never focused on doing both at the same time while with either band
• Micky Dolenz - The Monkees: This one was hard.  It's not Micky's fault that they had forced them to accept other musicians playing for the Monkee lineup.