Who is Kenny Aronoff? What does he look like? Well, if you are reading this, you probably know the answer to these questions. If you are a member of the “general public”, you most likely have no clue. However, you have most assuredly have heard him…a lot.
Have you heard that little ditty about Jack and Diane by John Mellencamp? The iconic drum intro that practically anyone alive knows? That’s Kenny. Are you a fan The Smashing Pumpkins, Bob Seger, John Fogerty, Melissa Etheridge, Jon Bon Jovi, Elton John, Bob Dylan, Rod Stewart, Alanis Morissette, The Rolling Stones, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Puddle of Mudd, Avril Lavigne, Joe Cocker, B. B. King, Mick Jagger, Ray Charles, Alice Cooper, Meat Loaf, Bonnie Raitt, Ricky Martin, Santana, Trey Anastasio, Michelle Branch, Vince Gill, Gladys Knight, Aaron Neville, Trisha Yearwood, Patti LaBelle, George Jones, Conway Tritty or The Buddy Rich Big Band? If so, you have most likely heard Kenny.
According to Aronoff’s website bio:
“With a style of playing that combines power and finesse, Kenny was named the #1 Pop/Rock Drummer and the #1 Studio Drummer for five consecutive years by the readers of Modern Drummer Magazine, and in addition has played on over 30 Grammy-nominated recordings.”
Aronoff has been filling the drum throne with Chickenfoot, normally occupied by Chad Smith. Smith is off touring with his main band, The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Chickenfoot is the super group made up of rock vocal legend Sammy Hagar, guitar icon Joe Satriani, and the renowned rhythm section of bassist Michael Anthony and Smith on drums. Kenny recently told Glide Magazine about the Chickenfoot gig:
“The Chickenfoot gig is the gig that everybody has wanted to have. Everybody gets along, it’s a love fest, everybody has been successful in their own right doing their own thing so everybody is in a good head place. That’s why when Chad Smith couldn’t do the tour, they were very, very cautious on who they got. Sammy called me up and said, “Listen, I’m telling you, I know that you can play the gig and there’s a lot of drummers that can play the gig, but I’m looking for somebody who is going to fit in the way personality-wise that reflects the way you play your music” and it worked out. We got together, we met, we played and it worked out.”
If you take a look at the list of Kenny’s accomplishments, one thing is clear; Kenny works hard.
“Hard work is like a vehicle of transportation to get you where you want in this life. And the people that work their asses off are going to go further. I’m not saying that guarantees fame or anything like that, it just gets you where you got to go. I don’t care if you’re a musician, a businessman, a doctor, a schoolteacher, even a parent trying to raise a family; it’s hard work whatever you love doing, or want to do, or are doing.”
So, what is Kenny’s favorite album on which he has appeared?
“These are all tough questions cause there’s too many of them; too many great albums and moments. A lot of the Mellencamp ones are great because those are my compositions as far as coming up with drum parts that were unique, where the drums were actually significant like “Jack & Diane”. That was huge. It was a drum composition I had to come up with on the spot, at the moment: very challenging. It’s too many records to pinpoint to just one. It’s not possible.”
While Chickenfoot, with Aronoff, has only done a few US tour dates, none of which were in the Rochester, NY area, Kenny is no stranger to Rochester. He was here at The Auditorium Theater in Rochester, with the John Fogerty band, touring celebration of the 25th anniversary of Fogerty’s classic, Centerfield, in September, 2010. Having toured with so many amazing artists and bands, Aronoff has been here many times.
For the full interview with Kenny, please go to Glide Magazine.
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