Billy Cobham

• Genre: Fusion
• Hometown: New York

About

Seminal Fusion drummer Billy Cobham has built his career battering through jagged, off-kilter Jazz Rock beats interspersed with mind-blowing fills. His work on classic albums -- such as Miles Davis' Bitches Brew, Mahavishnu Orchestra's Birds of Fire, and his own Spectrum -- helped define the new style of drumming that was to dominate Fusion from the 1970s onward. On his solo albums, he brought together astounding, fresh talent (the Brecker brothers and a young John Scofield, for example) to work their way through complex odd-time signatures and furious improvisations laced with dizzying keyboards and crisply executed ensemble work. Cobham has recently returned from playing pared-down Jazz-Funk with his own groups and on projects such as Jazz is Dead. In addition to the numerous drummers slaving to figure out his mind-numbingly fast fills, Cobham's playing has had a strong influence on modern artists who have sampled his beats, including trip-hoppers Massive Attack and countless hip-hop artists.

- Jessy Terry