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Martin Drew was born February 11, 1944 in Northampton, England. Though Martin began playing drums as a child and studied under the dance-band drummer, George Fierstone, it wasn't until he was 29 that he became a full-time professional musician.

His first performance was with Frank Rosolino at Ronnie Scott's club in London where he later became a house drummer. For the next few years, he played in several clubs and made many recordings with such major musicians as Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Buddy Tate and Dizzy Gillespie during their tours of the United Kingdom. 1

Martin Drew and Oscar Peterson first met at Ronnie Scott's Club in 1976, when Martin Drew was part of Scott's quartet and Oscar Peterson made one of his first appearances at the club. Towards the end of Drew's set, Oscar Peterson joined in on the piano. The two quickly discovered how musically compatible they were. In need of a replacement for Bobby Durham, Oscar Peterson asked Drew to join the trio (with Niels-Henning Ørsted Pederson on bass). This marked the beginning of a long association which led to many recordings (over 28 albums) and tours that continued into the 1980s.

A flexible and versatile performer, Martin Drew is considered "an outstanding mainstream drummer" and remains "one of the most sought-after session drummers playing in the UK today." 2

Selected Recordings:

Red Rodney and the Bebop Preservation Society (1975, Spot. 7)
A Tribute to my Friends, with Oscar Peterson (1984, Pablo 908)
Time After Time, with Oscar Peterson (1986, Pablo 2310-947)

Footnotes

1 Kernfeld, Barry.   The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz.   London: Macmillan Press Ltd, 1988.

2 Gammond, Peter.   The Oxford Companion to Popular Music.   New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.

O.P. & Friends

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