Jon Coghill
Encyclopedia
Jon Coghill is an Australian drummer best known for his work with Australian rock band, Powderfinger
Powderfinger
Powderfinger was an Australian rock band that formed in Brisbane in 1989. From 1992 until their breakup the band lineup consisted of vocalist Bernard Fanning, guitarists Darren Middleton and Ian Haug, bassist John Collins, and drummer Jon Coghill....

, although he has also toured with Regurgitator
Regurgitator
Regurgitator are an Australian rock band from Brisbane, currently consisting of Quan Yeomans , Ben Ely and Peter Kostic . The band formed in 1994, its original line-up consisting of Yeomans, Ely and drummer Martin Lee...

. Coghill replaced Powderfinger's original drummer Steven Bishop
Steven Bishop
Stephen Bishop is an Australian drummer, formerly of Australian band Powderfinger though he left the band before their rise to prominence because of illness. Later, while working in the UK for two years he played in London based bands...

 in 1991 when Bishop wanted to pursue further studies. At this time, Powderfinger had not made any recordings, and as such, Coghill has been the group's drummer for all of their releases.

Biography

Coghill attended Nambour State High School
Nambour State High School
Nambour State High School is a co-educational, state high school located in Nambour, Queensland, Australia.Established on 2 February 1953, in 2006 the school had enrolment figures of 1,367, including adult students...

 in Nambour, Queensland
Nambour, Queensland
The area now known as Nambour, was first settled in 1870. The town was then called Petrie's Creek. In 1890 the Maroochy Divisional Board was established...

 where his father was a Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...

 teacher, graduating in 1988. While in high school, Coghill's ambitions were not directed towards music, as he expressed an interest in football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...

 or surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...

. Upon graduating, he moved to Queensland's state capital Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...

 and began studying Botany
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...

 at the University of Queensland
University of Queensland
The University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...

, however was interested in the Brisbane local music scene. Before long, Coghill had begun playing drums for local bands including side project Shock Fungus.

Coghill met Powderfinger when he attended one of their practice sessions and joked with the band, introducing himself as a drummer. Two years later, when Steven Bishop
Steven Bishop
Stephen Bishop is an Australian drummer, formerly of Australian band Powderfinger though he left the band before their rise to prominence because of illness. Later, while working in the UK for two years he played in London based bands...

 left the band, guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...

 Ian Haug
Ian Haug
Ian David Haug is a lead guitarist and backing vocalist in the Australian rock band Powderfinger. Mainstays Haug and bass guitarist John Collins formed the band in Brisbane in 1989. During a hiatus in Powderfinger's career, Haug worked on a side project, The Predators, with Collins and original...

 recognised Coghill at an audition, and signed him at that point. Previously, Coghill had been rejected in an audition for Custard
Custard (band)
-Overview:The band were originally known as Custard Gun and featured David McCormack on vocals and guitar, Paul Medew on bass, James Straker on guitar and Shane Brunn on drums. After a few shows and line up changes Custard Gun morphed into Custard...

. Jon spent about six months playing alongside Scott Coleman and Marc Zande in the Brisbane grunge band, Gland, before committing full time to Powderfinger in early 1992. In December 1997, Coghill took a brief break from Powderfinger and toured with Regurgitator
Regurgitator
Regurgitator are an Australian rock band from Brisbane, currently consisting of Quan Yeomans , Ben Ely and Peter Kostic . The band formed in 1994, its original line-up consisting of Yeomans, Ely and drummer Martin Lee...

. Drummer Ross McLennan
Ross McLennan (drummer)
Ross McLennan is an Australian drummer, best known as a member of Australian rock band The Predators. Prior to performing for The Predators, McLennan also drummed for Far Out Corporation, a rock band led by Grant McLennan...

 of Far Out Corporation
Far Out Corporation
Far Out Corporation was a band led by late singer-guitarist Grant McLennan, mostly known as a singer, songwriter and guitarist for Australian rock group The Go-Betweens. McLennan started the group with Ross McLennan on drums, Dave Graney's bass player Adele Pickvance and Powderfinger's guitarist...

 and later from The Predators, took Coghill's place for a Powderfinger performance on 19 December.

Through his time in the band, Coghill has endeavoured to improve his drumming. In 1999 following the release of the band's third album Internationalist
Internationalist (album)
Internationalist is the third studio album by Australian alternative rock band, Powderfinger. The album was released on 7 September 1998 and was often labelled Powderfinger's most adventurous work, with greater experimentation than in previous works....

, he took up lessons with Brisbane-based drum tutor Col Gillies. Coghill has stated that he took the lessons due to being "really sore" "three quarters the way through a show".

In 2004, Coghill was named Best Drummer by Jack Daniels
Jack Daniel's
Jack Daniel's is a brand of sour mash Tennessee whiskey that is among the world's best-selling liquors. It is known for its square bottles and black label. As of November, 2007, one blogger was claiming that it was the best-selling whiskey in the world. It is produced in Lynchburg, Tennessee by...

 for their inaugural Jack Awards
Jack Awards
The Jack Awards are a set of popularly-voted Australian music awards, sponsored by Tennessee whiskey company Jack Daniel's. The awards were conceived by Damien Wilson, former creative director of Peer Group Media to create a national platform that rewarded all areas of Australian live music, from...

. To commemorate this, he joined with several other Australian musicians to form the one-shot band Superfinger Sleepychair. Composed of members of The Superjesus
The Superjesus
The Superjesus were an ARIA award–winning rock band from Adelaide, Australia. They are best known for their singles "Shut My Eyes", "Down Again" and "Gravity".-History:...

, Silverchair
Silverchair
Silverchair were an Australian rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Merewether, Newcastle with the line-up of Ben Gillies on drums, Chris Joannou on bass guitar and Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars. The group got their big break in mid-1994 when they won a national demo...

 and Sleepy Jackson, along with Coghill from Powderfinger, the group's name is a portmanteau of all of the members' band's names.

Coghill has been described by Powderfinger lead singer Bernard Fanning
Bernard Fanning
Bernard Joseph Fanning is a musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer and frontman of Australian alternative rock band Powderfinger from its formation in 1989 to its dissolution in 2010....

 as "psycho", stating "There's a constant battle between Cogsy and I as to who's the biggest psycho in the band" on numerous occasions. Fanning has also said of Coghill "He likes to antagonise people, and I don't mean that in a mean way", and continued to say jokingly that "It makes me want to smash him sometimes." Guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...

 Darren Middleton
Darren Middleton
Darren Stuart Middleton is an Australian lead guitarist for alternative rock band Powderfinger. He is also the lead singer for Drag....

 says of Coghill "Jon likes movies with explosions in them", and has also described him as stubborn. Fellow guitarist Ian Haug
Ian Haug
Ian David Haug is a lead guitarist and backing vocalist in the Australian rock band Powderfinger. Mainstays Haug and bass guitarist John Collins formed the band in Brisbane in 1989. During a hiatus in Powderfinger's career, Haug worked on a side project, The Predators, with Collins and original...

 says Coghill is an excellent arranger, explaining "he can listen to it all, just sort of sit back and go, 'Okay, that's a really good bit.'" Coghill himself has described himself as a "superhero". He has also stated that he shares the band's hatred of band photos
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...

. Coghill says he shares the stereotype of drummers being the most "out there" member of the band. He says this is true because "We have so much energy...We’re stuck up the back and we’re more likely to do stupid shit to get rid of it." In 2008, Coghill studied a mixture of politics and law at Griffith University
Griffith University
Griffith University is a public, coeducational, research university located in the southeastern region of the Australian state of Queensland. The university has five satellite campuses located in the Gold Coast, Logan City and in the Brisbane suburbs of Mount Gravatt, Nathan and South Bank. Current...

.

Style, technique, and influences

One of the best things about being in the band is that we don't give a fuck about anything else other than having a good time, if people think we're rockstars then so be it, fucking great. Don't analyse things too much - it's not that serious, it's just fucking music.

—Jon Coghill



Coghill took up drumming in high school, because "one of the coolest guy[s]" also played the drums. He says he never enjoyed reading about drumming, but preferred to talk to drummers. He has also stated that he doesn't listen to "drummer music", but prefers listening to music as a whole.

Coghill cites drummers Keith Moon
Keith Moon
Keith John Moon was an English musician, best known for being the drummer of the English rock group The Who. He gained acclaim for his exuberant and innovative drumming style, and notoriety for his eccentric and often self-destructive behaviour, earning him the nickname "Moon the Loon". Moon...

 and Mitch Mitchell
Mitch Mitchell
John Ronald "Mitch" Mitchell was an English drummer, best known for his work in The Jimi Hendrix Experience.-Early life and the Jimi Hendrix Experience:...

 as major influences on his playing, while boxer Mohammad Ali
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...

 as a non-musical inspiration. He notes that multi-instrumentalist Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...

 is his favourite. Others have noted that Coghill is influenced by The Dead Kennedys and The Fugees
The Fugees
Fugees were a Haitian American hip hop group who rose to fame in the mid-1990s. Their repertoire included elements of Hip hop, soul and Caribbean music, particularly reggae. The members of the group were rapper/singer/producer Wyclef Jean, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill, and rapper Pras Michel...

. In 1997, Coghill stated "I’m really interested in groove", and explained that he enjoyed the lyrical elements of Hip Hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...

 and bands such as Spearhead. Coghill has also stated that as a child growing up in Nambour, he had aspired to be "a star like Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

". He says this ambition was sparked by a breakdancing teacher in his home town, and by his sister's love of Jackson's Thriller
Thriller (album)
Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall...

.

Coghill is in Katie Taylor's writing lecture at Griffith University, and she is very happy about that.

Equipment

Coghill received his first drum at the age of 14, which was a Pearl
Pearl Drums
Founded in 1952, the is a multinational corporation based in Japan with a wide range of products, predominately percussion instruments.-History:Pearl was founded by Katsumi Yanagisawa, who began manufacturing music stands in Sumida, Tokyo on April 2, 1946...

 drum kit given to him by his parents. In 1999, Coghill noted that he began using a 1970 Slingerland drum kit, citing that it had a better sound than a new kit, and was cheaper. Coghill uses Avedis Zildjian
Avedis Zildjian Company
The Avedis Zildjian Company is a cymbal manufacturer founded in Istanbul by Armenian Avedis Zildjian in the 17th century during the Ottoman Empire. At nearly 400 years old, Zildjian is one of the oldest companies in the world...

 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. He says that he has been offered sponsorship, but opted for older drums as a matter of preference. Despite this assertion, as of 2007 Coghill's name is mentioned in the Brady Drums
Brady Drum Company
Brady Drum Company is an Australian manufacturing company who specialise in handcrafted drums. The designs and workmanship is predominantly the duty of the company's creator, Chris Brady. The firm uses native Australian hardwoods, particularly jarrah, sheoak, wandoo and brown mallet for the drums...

 artist roster.

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards
APRA Awards
The APRA Music Awards are several award ceremonies run in Australia and New Zealand by Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually....

 are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association
Australasian Performing Right Association
The Australasian Performing Right Association is a copyright collective representing New Zealand and Australian composers, lyricists and music publishers. The association's head offices located in Sydney Australia, and it has branch offices in Auckland, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth...

 (APRA).

|-
|rowspan="2"| 2004
APRA Awards of 2004
The Australasian Performing Right Association Awards of 2004 are a series of awards which include the APRA Music Awards, Classical Music Awards, and Screen Music Awards. The APRA Music Awards ceremony occurred on 24 May at Melbourne's Regent Theatre, they were presented by APRA and the...

 || Powderfinger – Bernard Fanning
Bernard Fanning
Bernard Joseph Fanning is a musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer and frontman of Australian alternative rock band Powderfinger from its formation in 1989 to its dissolution in 2010....

, Coghill, Ian Haug
Ian Haug
Ian David Haug is a lead guitarist and backing vocalist in the Australian rock band Powderfinger. Mainstays Haug and bass guitarist John Collins formed the band in Brisbane in 1989. During a hiatus in Powderfinger's career, Haug worked on a side project, The Predators, with Collins and original...

, Darren Middleton
Darren Middleton
Darren Stuart Middleton is an Australian lead guitarist for alternative rock band Powderfinger. He is also the lead singer for Drag....

, John Collins
John Collins (Australian musician)
John Andrew Collins is the mainstay bass guitarst for Australian rock band Powderfinger since 1989. He is one of the founding members of the band, along with guitarist Ian Haug, forming at their high school, Brisbane Grammar School as a three piece. Powderfinger has released seven studio albums, a...

 || Songwriter of the Year ||
|-
|"On My Mind
(Baby I've Got You) On My Mind
" On My Mind" is a song on Powderfinger's fifth studio album Vulture Street. It was released as a single in 2003 and reached #9 on the Australian music chart, the band's third highest charting single to date.-Background:After two albums of Powderfinger releasing singles that were either acoustic...

" – Bernard Fanning
Bernard Fanning
Bernard Joseph Fanning is a musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer and frontman of Australian alternative rock band Powderfinger from its formation in 1989 to its dissolution in 2010....

, Darren Middleton
Darren Middleton
Darren Stuart Middleton is an Australian lead guitarist for alternative rock band Powderfinger. He is also the lead singer for Drag....

, John Collins
John Collins (Australian musician)
John Andrew Collins is the mainstay bass guitarst for Australian rock band Powderfinger since 1989. He is one of the founding members of the band, along with guitarist Ian Haug, forming at their high school, Brisbane Grammar School as a three piece. Powderfinger has released seven studio albums, a...

, Ian Haug
Ian Haug
Ian David Haug is a lead guitarist and backing vocalist in the Australian rock band Powderfinger. Mainstays Haug and bass guitarist John Collins formed the band in Brisbane in 1989. During a hiatus in Powderfinger's career, Haug worked on a side project, The Predators, with Collins and original...

, Coghill || Most Performed Australian Work ||
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2008
APRA Awards of 2008
The Australasian Performing Right Association Awards of 2008 are a series of awards which include the APRA Music Awards, Classical Music Awards, and Screen Music Awards. The APRA Music Awards ceremony occurred on 16 June at the Sydney Hilton, they were presented by APRA and the Australasian...

 ||rowspan="2"| "Lost and Running
Lost and Running
"Lost and Running" is a song by Australian rock group Powderfinger. It was released as the first single from the group's sixth studio album Dream Days at the Hotel Existence. It is the band's twenty-second single and peaked at No. 5 on the Australian chart, the group's second highest charting...

" – Coghill, John Collins
John Collins (Australian musician)
John Andrew Collins is the mainstay bass guitarst for Australian rock band Powderfinger since 1989. He is one of the founding members of the band, along with guitarist Ian Haug, forming at their high school, Brisbane Grammar School as a three piece. Powderfinger has released seven studio albums, a...

, Bernard Fanning
Bernard Fanning
Bernard Joseph Fanning is a musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer and frontman of Australian alternative rock band Powderfinger from its formation in 1989 to its dissolution in 2010....

, Ian Haug
Ian Haug
Ian David Haug is a lead guitarist and backing vocalist in the Australian rock band Powderfinger. Mainstays Haug and bass guitarist John Collins formed the band in Brisbane in 1989. During a hiatus in Powderfinger's career, Haug worked on a side project, The Predators, with Collins and original...

, Darren Middleton
Darren Middleton
Darren Stuart Middleton is an Australian lead guitarist for alternative rock band Powderfinger. He is also the lead singer for Drag....

 || Song of the Year ||
|-
|Most Played Australian Work ||

Discography

  • Parables for Wooden Ears
    Parables for Wooden Ears
    Parables for Wooden Ears was the debut studio album released by the Australian band Powderfinger. It was released on 18 July 1994 by Polydor Records, after recording at Melbourne's Metropolis Studios in February 1994....

    (1994)
  • Double Allergic
    Double Allergic
    Double Allergic is the second studio album by Australian alternative rock band Powderfinger. Released in Australia on 2 September 1996 Polydor, the album was produced by Tim Whitten and widely considered Powderfinger's mainstream breakthrough....

    (1996)
  • Internationalist
    Internationalist (album)
    Internationalist is the third studio album by Australian alternative rock band, Powderfinger. The album was released on 7 September 1998 and was often labelled Powderfinger's most adventurous work, with greater experimentation than in previous works....

    (1998)
  • Odyssey Number Five
    Odyssey Number Five
    Odyssey Number Five is the fourth studio album by Australian rock band Powderfinger, produced by Nick DiDia and released on 4 September 2000. The album was the band's shortest yet, focusing on social, political, and emotional issues that had appeared in prior works, especially Internationalist.The...

    (2000)
  • Vulture Street
    Vulture Street
    Vulture Street is the fifth studio album by Australian alternative rock band Powderfinger, released by Universal Music on 29 July 2003. Produced by Nick DiDia, Vulture Street was certified platinum, and spent 47 weeks on the ARIA Charts and peaked at #1...

    (2003)
  • Dream Days at the Hotel Existence
    Dream Days at the Hotel Existence
    Dream Days at the Hotel Existence is the sixth studio album by Australian rock band Powderfinger, released by Universal Music on 2 June 2007 in Australia, 19 November 2007 in the United Kingdom, and 11 November 2008 in the United States on the Dew Process label...

    (2007)
  • Golden Rule (2009)
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