Toto drummers... Jeff or Simon?

[jun_BALARAW]

Simon or Jeff for toto???

[bugoy_king]

Jeff. There's nothing like the original. Best grooves for Toto were done by Jeff, including his most famous one (Rosanna). Simon is good, but the Toto sound was created when Jeff was drumming. Sayang nung namatay siya, the drumming community lost a big contributor

[bam0120]

Simon or Jeff for toto???

jeff for me.
mas gusto ko yung simplicity ang dating ng banda nung si jeff ang pumapapalo..mas gusto ko ang "feel" ni jeff.. lahat ng palo.. lasap na lasap. astig ba?

pero...

oks din si simon, lumabas ang progressive side nila....nahatak ang technical side ng bandmates niya.

[cs_mapper]

at one point simon felt really uneasy playing with toto coz he knows
the feel of the band is going to be really different with him around but he did mentioned that toto is one band he would join any day and boy what a chance of lifetime he's so blessed with. Still Simons feels like a whipper snapper kid drummer compared to Jeff, LOL!

so for me Jeff is still Toto's "real" drummer.

[drumster]

Of course Jeff Porcaro will always be the drummer of Toto.  He is irreplacable.  Unfortunately, he passed away so soon.

For me, I feel that Simon Phillips is a great replacement.  I know it's unfair to compare these two great drummers because both have their own distinct styles.  I thought that Simon does a great job with Toto.  And he just has to be himself; he doesn't need to copy Jeff's drumming style.

Jeff grooves.  Simon rocks.  Jeff can rock too and Simon can lay down a great groove too.  Both are powerful in their own ways.  Both are musical drummers.  Both are world-class musicians.  Both of them are winners in my book. 


I want to share some excerpts from various articles/resources...


*****

Info from Wikipedia (under Toto [band]):

When Jeff passed away, TOTO found themselves confronted with whether or not the band should go on. With the Kingdom of Desire Tour just around the corner and their resolve shaken, TOTO decided to go ahead with the tour because they felt that Jeff would have wanted them to. In selecting a drummer to replace Jeff, the band decided that they wanted someone who would put their own signature to the TOTO sound rather than try to copy Jeff. Steve Lukather suggested Simon Phillips, whom he had remembered from the Beck/Santana Tour. Phillips accepted the task of filling in for Jeff on the Kingdom of Desire Tour.


*****

From a Q&A portion of Simon Phillips' Website (http://www.simon-phillips.com/), regarding this subject:

Question: When you came in for Jeff in 1992, how was the feeling for you? Were there many people which compared you to Jeff and said things like that: Ah Jeff is doing this better and Jeff is doing that better, ...? I think it is very difficult to sit in for a drummer like Jeff and I would like to say that you did (and of course also do) a great job! 

Simon: You know I was never aware of any of those comments, if there were indeed any. My objective was to learn the songs and interpret them the way I do naturally. One of the main reasons the band asked me, and not someone else, was because I had a distinctive style and would approach the songs from a different standpoint - and not copy what Jeff did. I am sure there were some people that did compare the way we played and maybe still think that Jeff's way was better suited - but things change. Life changes and you have to move on. My joining, and the fact that the other guys felt it was right, has made it possible for Toto to continue for another 10 years after Jeff's passing. I am sure he would feel that all his time and efforts were worth it that the band has now reached it's 25th year!! 

*****


From Modern Drummer Magazine, June 2000 issue, under Reflections (Simon Phillips On...):

Jeff Porcaro

I was always amazed at the maturity in Jeff's playing.  We were very close in age.  When you hear yourself playing, you obviously hear yourself in a very different way from how other people hear you.  When I heard Jeff play, his drumming was so much more mature than mine, so much more mature than his years.

We had similar careers - he did a lot of sessions in Los Angeles and I did a lot sessions in London, both when we were very young.  And ironically, now I'm playing in Toto, a band that he formed and helped to make a success.

Jeff seemed to instinctively know exactly what to play in whatever situation.  Of course everybody knows how wonderful his groove was.  But a lot of people don't know that he had excellent technique.  Steve Lukather has told me how he would turn up at a rehearsal and Jeff would be wailing away on the drumkit.  Steve would say to him, "You should take a solo during the show".  And Jeff would say, "No, no, no, that's not me."

I only met Jeff a couple of times.  But, even though he's been gone, I've gotten to know him a lot in these last seven years because Jeff is always talked about.  He has a very strong presence.


*****

Pardon the very long post.  Toto is one of my favorite bands, and Jeff and Simon are two of my favorite drummers.  I consider them as huge influences in my drumming and musicianship. 

[vaisteen2003]

IMHO both of them are best for TOTO. Jeff for the awsome groove and of course as a founding member of TOTO and Simon as a very good replacement. Sort of like Paul Gilbert and Ritchie KOtzen.

Simon is IMHO the best replacement for Jeff. He made it sound like SIMON and not someone trying to copy Jeff. That alone give a certain level of credibility and skills to Simon.

my 2 cents

[jun_BALARAW]

sa post ni dio solve na solve ako. hehehe

[BiliBidboy]

jeff pa din...TOTO is jeff porcaro!  dos sentimos

[marco_katigbak]

id go for jeff porcaro...i love his simplicity. simon is good..very good but jeff will always be the heart and soul of toto..

but simon is doing an excellent job for toto..grabe din..kinikilig ako

pero si jeff nakakalibog..(sorry sa word..pero totoo eh)

 

[mccartney]

Jeff Porcaro
"golden groove"

[glynminded]

I'd go for both... both drummers change the face of drumming. And I agree with drumster kasi pangit nga naman magcompare diba? tska ung situation din eh... Jeff was the was great with toto Napaaga lang talaga si Jeff... so they needed someone that was great with them too... that's when simon kicks in...

MARU

[xalanx]

both are my favorites!!!...di ma-compare eh magkaiba ng strenghts and weakness. Awesome drummers!!!.......

[lil.drummerboy]

malupet parehas eh..

[pyong_2]

both gusto ko sa kanila syempre yung galing nila pero ang sarap nila panoorin yung appearance nila pag tumutugtog lalo na sa lumang drum instructional ni simon philips yung ngiti nya parang nakakarelaks......di ako badin hah hehehehe.....GDBLZ

[vdonati_fan]

I can't choose between two of the best drummers.

each has a remarkable style.

each has their own character in terms of drumming.

and both did and is doing a great job for Toto.

Don't forget to watch the concert of TOTO!!!

April 3....Simon, welcome back!

[oliver_soh]

Nothing can copy the real groove master,
Mr. Jeff Porcaro




but
Simon Philips is good too..

[reueldrums]

id go for both... no sense in comparing them because its just like comparing oranges to apples. Both are good on what they do.

[Tugpaktugpak]

Parehas lang malupit yan....patas lang

[intake]

pareho naman silang magaling eh..both! 

kay Jeff ako, orig eh! siya din IMO ang nagpaganda pa sa tunog ng Toto, madali kang mahhook   

kay Simon naman, mas pinaganda lang niya yung ginawa ni Jeff..para bang minodify niya 

[daemonite]

Both are great drummers....

They both define Toto in different ways....

[tipsyboy]

Yup, both of them are good and they both define Toto in great ways. Iba lang talaga tunog nila, siyempre, bawa't drummer may sariling tunog diba?
Nung bata pa ko, Jeff na Jeff talaga ako. Then I heard Simon play "Hydra" on the album Absolutely Live and he floored me. Since then, bagay na para sakin si Simon for Toto.

[Chotzzzz]

Ganito yan, Jeff was with Toto way back their High School life, Sir Simon was with toto after Sir Jeff's death. Sir Simon sound clinical, Sir Jeff sound was Toto's sound. Both of them deserves to be part of Toto. Both great drummer & percussionist. Sir Simon got monstrous kit, Sir Jeff got also monstrous kit pero mukang mabait yung kit hehehe. Both clinician both great great drummer, walang dapat pagtaluhan kung sino dapat toto drummer, pero kung buhay pa si Sir Jeff malamang sya pa rin and drummer ng Toto. Sir Jeff malinis umatake ng beat as well as Sir Simon so pareho lang magaling at karapat dapat. Let's be the beat carrier ika nga ni Sir Buddy Rich..

[drumachine]

O.T. guys? sino sa inyo manonood ng concert ng TOTO dito sa April 3?

[cymor]

simula nung mabasa ko about sa pag-compare...ayoko ko na magcompare...kasi masama nga naman, wahaha! pag ako kinumpara sa iba parang mahirap din un..

[drumster]

O.T. guys? sino sa inyo manonood ng concert ng TOTO dito sa April 3?

OT...  I just came home from the concert.  Grabe ang galing!  And Simon Phillips was burning as usual behind his classic setup.  But this time, he used a Tama Starclassic Mirage acrylic kit, and it sounded huge!  His new "Monarch" Signature snare drum also sounded great.  I'm now in the process of writing my blog about it...  It was very inspiring.