DWF 2008 - Rick Latham
Rick surprised the organization... and since we had nothing better to do... he asked if we could urgently arrange a bassist...! We, who take on almost every challenge, managed it in no time (a stroke of luck), and a new duo was born. Rick "Grand Master Funk" was great, true to himself, and laid down a solid groove. He had clearly studied his own book very well!!!
Latham, who sat behind a drum kit for the first time at age twelve, had a very smooth start. At a young age, he was already playing in the band of none other than B.B. King and worked with jazz trombonist Bill Watrous. His birthplace Dallas, Texas, soon became too small, so Latham moved to LA, where work was plentiful. His book and growing experience landed him countless studio gigs. He played session work for TV series, commercials, and also for movies like Gone In Sixty Seconds (with Nicolas Cage and Angelina Jolie) and Daredevil (Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner).
In 1990, Latham wrote his second book, Contemporary Drumset Techniques, and five years later, he turned material from both books into a DVD.
Beat Master Rick Latham played from 1997 to 2002 with the Edgar Winter Band, including a performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival. He founded his own band, Rick Latham and the Groove Doctors, in 2000. The Groove Doctors, described as the best Fun Funk Band of today, recorded two albums.
Latham’s books are clearly no fluke, and their value is evident during his clinic at the fifth festival, where his band was described as the best funk fun band of today.
Rick Latham (Beat Master) is a widely written-about artist who is often unfairly criticized. His clinics are masterful and prove that his book wasn’t just a lucky hit.
As a drummer, I must say it sometimes seems like he’s frozen in the pages of his book... but when you hear him play, his foundation is his thought, and his thought is his playing. That’s what keeps Rick surprising everyone.
Rick stays ahead of many drummers on many fronts and always makes sure his clinics are truly worth attending.
Photography: Arjan Aelmans & Arthur van Uden
