Hamid Drake

The charismatic Hamid Drake is a drummer who made his mark on the Chicago free jazz scene in the 1970s. Eclectic and never satisfied, he earned his worldwide reputation by accompanying some of the greatest names in jazz. He also took an interest in other genres, such as world music (with the group The Mandigo Griot Society), new age (Drake often accompanies his percussion with chanting akin to Buddhist incantations), experimental rock (alongside Jeff Parker or John Zorn) and reggae. So it's as much to his talent as to his curiosity, that nasty flaw, that we owe the staggering number (a hundred!) of records and projects he's taken part in over his 35-year career.