Hi, Tony Thompson, Session drummer & original member of Chic, has past away last Wednesday aged 48. He died from cancer. He made his name as the drummer of one the greatest disco bands of all time, Chic. Here his hard hitting drumming style along with Nile Rogers guitar & Bernard Edwards bass made their music stand out from the crowd. He was first put on the road to fame by watching the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show in the 60's. He then decided he wanted to be a pop star. He got his first drum kit in the early teens & developed an aggresive style of playing. He had his first gigs with Labelle (of Lady Marmalade fame), then Ecstasy, Passion & pain before teaming up with Rogers & Edwards. The band started off playing a mix of R&B mixed in with Rock music. This was the mid 70's. The had a few group names such as Allah & the knife wielding punks, Orange Julius & the Big Apple Band. They became Chic with the addition of two female vocalists. They then tried their hand at disco. Their first record " Dance Dance Dance" set the scene as they then went from strength to strength. Tunes such as Everybody Dance, I want your love, Le Freak, Good Times, My Forebidden lover & My feet keep dancing kept the dance floors full & Record company happy with big sales. Le Freak was the biggest selling single for Atlantic at the time. As their sound proved popular Tony & the boys played on the records of other artists. Sister Sledge, Diana Ross, Shelia B Devotion, were three such artists. As the disco boom faded, Tony did more session work. He played on records by David Bowie, Madonna, Carly Simon, Duran Duran, Mick Jagger, Robert Palmer & Rod Stewart to name a few. He also was a member of Power Station in the mid 80's. The hits he has played on include Lets Dance, Like a Virgin, Addicted to Love, Some Like it hot, Modern Love, We are family, Upside down & many more. He was highly rated as he was allowed to step into John Bonham's shoes to appear with the rest of Led Zepplin at Live Aid. Even today his music is used by samplers to create dance music. Fatman Scoop used the Faith Evans sample which uses the Chic sample of Cest Chic. This features the drums of Tony Thompson. As a big collector of disco music & retro DJ, I have been a fan of Chic since the late 70s. I have many records that he has played on. I have spent many a happy time getting down on the dancefloor. His beat has made my job of getting people dancing alot easier which is always a bonus. Tony Thompson R.I.P. SCIDB
