- Graham Lear
Graham Lear is a Canadian drummer. He was born in the
United Kingdom onJuly 24 ,1949 . In 1952 his family moved toLondon, Ontario (Canada ). He began his professional career at the age of 13 with the London (Ontario) Symphony Orchestra. During his teenage years he practiced, played and toured with several bands in Canada and theUnited States . Canadian superstarGino Vannelli was the first major recording artist to recognize Graham’s talents and he recorded with Gino on some of his most important work. Since those early days, he has toured and/or recorded worldwide withCarlos Santana ,Paul Anka ,REO Speedwagon and Saga. He has also worked with T.V./ Film composersHenry Mancini ,Domenic Troiano ,Jimmy Dale (Pianist/arranger Boss Brass),David Foster , Mexican jazz/fusion group Sacbe, and recorded jingles for Nike,Molson and Avia.His recordings credits include "Moonflower, Inner Secrets, Marathon, Zebop, Shango" and "Viva" (Santana); "Swing of Delight, Havana Moon" and "Blues for Salvador" (Carlos Santana); "The Gist of the Gemini, Powerful People, Storm at Sunup, Yonder Tree", and "Slow Love" (Gino Vannelli); "Second Decade" (REO Speedwagon); "Instinct" (Tom Grant).
"
Modern Drummer " interviewed Graham (July 82, Feb.99) The solo "Heads Hands and Feet" from Santana's "Moonflower" CD and the track "Where Am I Going?" from Gino Vannelli's "Storm At Sunup" CD were transcribed for Modern Drummer issues. Other publications include two cover features in the German publications "Drums and Percussion" (Jan '84) and Sticks (April '90).In 2007, Graham was touring internationally with Paul Anka, performing with Gfour Productions' "Menopause The Musical" in
Portland, Oregon plus teaching, recording and performing in the Portland area with local artists.His sampling and loop CD, "Latin Rock Drumscapes" featuring Orestes Vilato on percussion, released by Northstar Productions, received a 4.5 (out of five) rating in the Dec.98 issue of Electronic Musician.
Graham Lear has two sons, Trevor and Brian. Both currently reside in Portland with their mother. His nephew, Alexander Lee, lives in Seattle and attends the University of Washington.
External links
* [http://www.northstarsamples.com/Drumscapes3.html Graham Lear's Latin Rock Drumscapes page]
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