Ed Graham
Encyclopedia
Edwin James "Ed" Graham (born 20 February 1977 in Great Yarmouth
, England
) is an English musician
who is best known as the drummer
of rock
band The Darkness, as well as the subsequent successor band Stone Gods
, before officially leaving in 2008 due to a physical inability to perform.
Graham is one of four children and as a youth, he attended Kirkley High School with Dan Hawkins
and Justin Hawkins
, later The Darkness bandmates.
Before joining The Darkness, Graham had been in bands such as Superfuzz Bigmuff and Q*Sling, but left the latter when he heard that his already friends Justin Hawkins and Dan Hawkins were forming a band. He co-founded The Darkness with them in 2000.
One of the first gigs that The Darkness ever played was at a memorial service commemorating the life of Graham's previous bandmate from Q*Sling, who was called Sam.
On June 9, 2008 it was announced on The Stone Gods Blog that due to a serious injury, Graham would be unable to join the band on tour, and a temporary replacement was being sought after.
On July 29, 2008 it was announced that Graham was permanently leaving the band due to health issues.
In SPIN magazine it was confirmed that Graham had left with health problems due to a blood disorder called "osteonecrosis", a condition that may have been exacerbated by excessive drinking and has now resulted in him having surgery to replace both of his hips.
In 2011 he reunited with The Darkness, after healing completely from his condition.
Maple Series with 12" and 14" toms and 16" and 18" floor toms with Remo
Clear Pinstripe heads and a 24" bass drum with a Remo Clear Triple Power Stroke head. His snare is a 14" Ludwig Black Beauty with a Remo Coated Ambassador CS head.
The cymbal
s that Graham uses are Zildjian 14" A Mastersound Hi-hat
s, 17", 18" and 19" Custom A Crashes, a 19" A Medium Thin Dark Crash and a 20" A Ping Ride. He uses Vic Firth
American Classic 5B wood tip drum sticks and his hardware is from DW
's 5000 series.
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) is an English musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
who is best known as the drummer
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
of rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band The Darkness, as well as the subsequent successor band Stone Gods
Stone Gods
Stone Gods were a British hard rock / heavy metal band formed by ex-members of the then defunct UK hard rock band The Darkness. Their debut album, titled Silver Spoons & Broken Bones, was released on 7 July 2008, with the first single "Knight of the Living Dead" being released on 23 June 2008...
, before officially leaving in 2008 due to a physical inability to perform.
Graham is one of four children and as a youth, he attended Kirkley High School with Dan Hawkins
Dan Hawkins (musician)
Daniel Francis Hawkins is an English rock guitarist, noted for his strong revival of 1970s classic rock and 1980s metal....
and Justin Hawkins
Justin Hawkins
Justin David Hawkins is an English musician and singer-songwriter, best known for being the lead singer and lead guitarist of The Darkness, alongside his brother, guitarist Dan Hawkins...
, later The Darkness bandmates.
Before joining The Darkness, Graham had been in bands such as Superfuzz Bigmuff and Q*Sling, but left the latter when he heard that his already friends Justin Hawkins and Dan Hawkins were forming a band. He co-founded The Darkness with them in 2000.
One of the first gigs that The Darkness ever played was at a memorial service commemorating the life of Graham's previous bandmate from Q*Sling, who was called Sam.
On June 9, 2008 it was announced on The Stone Gods Blog that due to a serious injury, Graham would be unable to join the band on tour, and a temporary replacement was being sought after.
On July 29, 2008 it was announced that Graham was permanently leaving the band due to health issues.
In SPIN magazine it was confirmed that Graham had left with health problems due to a blood disorder called "osteonecrosis", a condition that may have been exacerbated by excessive drinking and has now resulted in him having surgery to replace both of his hips.
In 2011 he reunited with The Darkness, after healing completely from his condition.
Equipment
Graham plays a Drum WorkshopDrum Workshop
Drum Workshop is a drum and hardware manufacturing company based in Oxnard, California. Their slogan is "The Drummer's Choice".-History:...
Maple Series with 12" and 14" toms and 16" and 18" floor toms with Remo
Remo
Remo is a male given name of Latin origin - see Romulus and Remus.Remo may also refer to:* Remo, an American drum skin company* Remo , another name for the German wine grape Riesling* Remo language, a Panoan language of Brazil and Peru...
Clear Pinstripe heads and a 24" bass drum with a Remo Clear Triple Power Stroke head. His snare is a 14" Ludwig Black Beauty with a Remo Coated Ambassador CS head.
The cymbal
Cymbal
Cymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...
s that Graham uses are Zildjian 14" A Mastersound Hi-hat
Hi-hat
A hi-hat, or hihat, is a type of cymbal and stand used as a typical part of a drum kit by percussionists in R&B, hip-hop, disco, jazz, rock and roll, house, reggae and other forms of contemporary popular music.- Operation :...
s, 17", 18" and 19" Custom A Crashes, a 19" A Medium Thin Dark Crash and a 20" A Ping Ride. He uses Vic Firth
Vic Firth
Vic Firth is an American musician and is the founder of Vic Firth Company , a percussion stick and mallet manufacturing company that he started in 1963. The company bills itself as the world's largest manufacturer of drum sticks and mallets...
American Classic 5B wood tip drum sticks and his hardware is from DW
Drum Workshop
Drum Workshop is a drum and hardware manufacturing company based in Oxnard, California. Their slogan is "The Drummer's Choice".-History:...
's 5000 series.
See also
- The Darkness
- Justin HawkinsJustin HawkinsJustin David Hawkins is an English musician and singer-songwriter, best known for being the lead singer and lead guitarist of The Darkness, alongside his brother, guitarist Dan Hawkins...
- Dan HawkinsDan Hawkins (musician)Daniel Francis Hawkins is an English rock guitarist, noted for his strong revival of 1970s classic rock and 1980s metal....
- Richie EdwardsRichie EdwardsRichie Edwards was born on 25 September 1974, in Lichfield, England. He is the former bassist of the British hard rock band The Darkness and the guitarist/vocalist of their successor band Stone Gods. He was confirmed as a member on 13 June 2005 replacing Frankie Poullain on bass...
- Frankie PoullainFrankie PoullainFrancis Gilles Poullain-Patterson , better known as Frankie Poullain, is the bass player for rock band The Darkness. He was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He attended The Royal High School from 1984 to 1987....
- Stone GodsStone GodsStone Gods were a British hard rock / heavy metal band formed by ex-members of the then defunct UK hard rock band The Darkness. Their debut album, titled Silver Spoons & Broken Bones, was released on 7 July 2008, with the first single "Knight of the Living Dead" being released on 23 June 2008...
External links
- Ed's profile at thedarknessrock.com
- Ed's equipment at thedarknessrock.com
- Interview with Ed at drums.com
- Interview with Ed at undercover.com.au
- FlamingWhopper.com, UK-based fan site for The Darkness, Stone Gods, Hot Leg & British Whale (Est. 2005)
- Article on Hot Leg and Ed's career ending health problems