Son of a Drum (Haha, you see what I did there? No?)

As you may know, Nirvana had a lot of drummers. Some were better than others, but they all deserve their place in Nirvana’s history, for one reason or another. Since all of them played the song “Spank Thru” at least once, I’ll use that for comparison. However, that’s not the only song they played, so I’ll add another one that I think shows off their skills well.

Their first drummer was Aaron Burckhard, who was kicked out for not caring about the band, and for getting in too many fights. “Spank Thru” is from Nirvana’s second show (and his last), a radio session, in 1987. His drumming isn’t bad, but it’s not that notable either. He’s still their first drummer, so that deserves something. And the second song is a cover of Heartbreaker, by Led Zeppelin (not Heartbreaker by some modern pop guy). Spank Thru Heartbreaker

Dave Crover came after, and he is also known for being in The Melvins. He never really was in the band; he was just helping out. He actually recorded a couple of songs that appear on Bleach, because Chad (another guy) couldn’t play them properly. Dale also joined Nirvana for one of the 1990 tours. Spank Thru Floyd The Barber

Then there was Dave Foster. He was kicked out for living too far away from the rest of the band. The second song is from one of 2 shows at the Community World Theater in ‘88, and it was unfortunately never recorded in a studio. And yes, that’s him with the Mario moustache. Spank Thru Raunchola (aka Erectum)

The exact order of drummers is kind of murky, and I don’t feel like totally researching it, but Nirvana’s most famous drummer besides Dave Grohl was Chad Channing. He played on most of Bleach, recorded the demos for Nevermind, and also toured for the album in 1989. This song is from his second last show, and he has a more loose style of playing as opposed to power. Spank Thru Pay To Play

Dan Peters (from Mudhoney) only played one show, and recorded one single (Sliver) with Nirvana. His drumming is also loose like Chad’s… I guess. But the show he played at was very good, very energetic. Dave Grohl was also in the audience (the story is that he spent most of the concert outside talking to a friend). Spank Thru In Bloom

Then there’s the famous Dave Grohl (now frontman and guitarist of Foo Fighters). He hits really hard. I’m not sure if that needs any other explanation. The video is the last time “Spank Thru” was performed live (at Buenos Aires, one of their most infamous shows). Then there’s a televised performance on the MTV Video Awards ‘92, where they play the most well known live version of “Lithium” ever (well… besides Reading ’92). And by “Hi Axl!” they mean Axl Rose. Spank Thru Lithium