My mom bought me my first drum set when I was 10 or 11 years old because I would tap my fingers on everything. It was an incomplete 1965 gold sparkle Slingerland kit. It came with a matching wood snare drum, one 12″ tom, and a 20″ bass drum. It didn’t have a floor tom and I don’t think I had one for at least 2 years. It had one cymbal stand and a hi-hat. It might have come with one cymbal. Maybe. Regardless of these extraordinary limitations I began playing along to everything I heard on radio station KUDI in Great Falls, Montana.
The self-taught beginnings on this incomplete kit were rather unique to say the least. But I was determined. And, besides, there was that hand-thumping, finger-taping talent my mom saw in me that had to be put to better use and advance to the next level. Looking back, her buying me that drum set was probably the best, most insightful thing anyone has ever done for me. Thanks mom!
Sometime around 1976 – 77, I bought a very used 5-piece Ludwig set from a friend for $50 and combined the 2 kits to make one decent sized drum set, including my first floor tom, hi-hat cymbals and double bass drums! (While double bass drum sets were beginning to appear more and more in rock and roll music at the time, having a set up like that at age 15 was rather unusual.) And, if not proficient with both feet, at least I looked cooler than most when I hit the stage for the first time in the spring of 1981 in Bozeman, Montana. That’s when I joined my first college band, Roller, which lead to the next band, which lead to the next, and the next… etc., etc. Over the next 3 decades I was in 11 bands and sat in with several others.
My last gig ran for 3 years with the Mike Wagoner Band. That came to an end on the evening of Oct 30, 2009 when, at the age of 48, I suffered a stroke. Luckily I was at home with my family at the time. The stroke didn’t take away my ability to play. Instead, it robbed me of the desire to play. A deep desire that I had had for all of my life. And that was a dark and difficult reality that lasted for nearly 10 years.
Three years after the stroke, in December of 2012 I had open heart surgery followed by another 6 years of indifference to music. It wasn’t until 2018 that I began to find a tiny interest in music again. It started with the discovery of Styx drummer and coach, Todd Sucherman and his “Rock Drumming Master Class” at Drumeo. I then had another little spark of excitement over purchasing some new gear. I felt like a kid again. Slowly, and little by little I rediscovered some of the same love for the drums I had had for most of my life. Some, but certainly not all. I also knew that things would never be the same.
For the past several years I’ve been taking drum lessons from the best players in the world via Drumeo. My favorite coach by far has been Todd Sucherman. It wasn’t just his skills that enticed me, but his personality and his attitude toward being a drummer matched my own. Incidentally, Styx was one of the only bands I could never play along with on the radio when I was a kid. Their music was much too sophisticated for a self-taught, four-on-the-floor kind of drummer like me. But now I had the opportunity to learn what I was missing. During this time I also began building a home studio where I could practice, write and record some original songs. That gave me renewed interest in music as well. And, because I learned to play the guitar with the group “Two of Us” my ability to produce what I’ve heard in my head became a reality. Finally. The clouds were really beginning to part.
So, with all of this renewed sense of hope one day in my late 50’s, while wishing I had taken lessons as a boy, it finally dawned on me that as long as I’m still around it’s never too late to learn how to play the drums! THAT was a revelation I will never forget. I thank God it’s not too late. No excuses now.
Another notable event that took place early in this period of renewal was a reunion event held by the band “Story” in 2019. I hadn’t felt that kind of excitement to gather with some old friends and play music in over a decade. It was a wonderful feeling that I will never forget.
So, to sum it up, I went from being on stage very early to now playing almost exclusively in my basement. And, having been through all of that, I can honestly say I have absolutely no regrets when it comes to my lifelong journey on the drums.
~ Mike
Here’s a notable self-taught drummer and one who shares my feelings on lessons, solos, drummers in a band, needing other people, playing with a band, dynamics, never getting there, and just about everything else about drumming. I was blown away when I first watched this video of Charlie Watts. I had no idea we shared the same “faults.” There is one thing we didn’t share, however. I’ve never been a jazz drummer. I’ve been totally four on the floor, groove, make-em-dance. Charlie was all about that and literally everything else. And now, thanks to Charlie, I’ve advanced to beginner jazz!