Deep Purple’s drummer since he joined the band (age 19) in 1968. Armed with a dazzlingly fast technique, Ian has also worked with Paice, Ashton & Lord, Gary Moore and Whitesnake.
Some consider Deep Purple's Ian Paice to be the forefather of today's rock drumming. Such hits as Space Truckin', Hush, Fireball, and Smoke On The Water prove that Ian was helping create a genre that would last many years to come. In fact, throughout Deep Purple's long career, which has seen numerous changes among the other personnel, he is the only drummer the band has ever had. When the group dissolved in 1976, Ian joined then Deep Purple vocalist David Coverdale to form Whitesnake. After a short hiatus, Deep Purple reunited in 1984 for The Perfect Strangers release and have not stopped performing since.
Born in 1948 in Nottingham, Great Britain, Ian started with the violin but chose later, at age 15, to play the drums. He subsequently joined his father's dance band before turning to heavier stuff. "Eventually I bought a kit for 32 pound and went round accompanying my father who was a pianist playing waltzes and quicksteps. It was a wee bit insipid but it was a start." His early influences included Gene Krupa, Buddy Rich, Bobby Elliot (The Hollies), Ringo Starr, Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge), and Charles Connors (Little Richard Band). Ian brought forward from a previous generation of rock drummers the tight, precise playing and crisp, clean sound of his predecessors but added po.....
