Floyd Sneed,80 passes

[old_K_ride]

he was the very first rock drummer I saw LIVE...1971...

Three Dog Night Drummer, Floyd Sneed, Dies at 80 - Best Classic Bands

He performed on the group's remarkable run of eleven Top 10 singles in the late '60s and '70s, including three #1s

bestclassicbands.com

 

[shuffle]

Badazz drummer!
Met him twice in Reno.
He told me he was an Arena drummer because he played so hard in arena gigs,he was a great drummer!
RIP
Loved TDNs version of Chest Fever!

 

[yetanotherdrummer]

One of my favorite drummers when I was a kid. I loved that Zickos set.

We just picked up a record player and one of the albums we picked up at the antique mall was Three Dog Night, Live at the Forum.

 

[VintageUSA]

I worked sound for a portion of the 3-Dog tour in 1973.
Mr. Sneed was so easy to get along with and did not disrespect the roadies....ever.

 

[Stone Wilcoxon]

Floyd was one of the best of the era. I would contend that his very distinctive drumming was every bit as important to the success of Three Dog Night as the voices of those three guys up front. When Floyd played, you knew instantly it was him. I've seen videos of the band after he left. Meh. It's just not the same. He was very much an influence on my playing. I have found myself many times thinking WWFP? What Would Floyd Play? The cool thing is that for some time, he was active on his FaceBook page, and I had the chance to tell him there what his playing meant to me. Wish I could have met him in person. By all accounts, he was a gem. RIP Floyd.

 

[mydadisjr]

Yeah, what a great drummer.

Back in the day I did not pay much attention to TDN, they were a little too "poppy" for my high-falutin' prog-rock/fusion jazz ways, but now when they come on the classic rock radio station I turn it up!

Very funky band.

Here is one with some good shots of Floyd and his Zickos drums...

 

[T_Weaves]

Sad news. Monster player. I read somewhere that even Buddy Rich liked his playing. May he rest in peace. Jeesh, 2023 is off to a really rough start.

 

[Fat Drummer]

Another legend falls.... he had such an impact on the up and coming drummers of his era, I certainly loved his playing and have always found his feel tough to replicate when covering the classic 3DN cuts live.

In my custom days I received this 26" Ludwig from a well known drum tech in the industry at that time and who said this had been Floyd's. I never saw Floyd play Ludwig so I don't actually know if that was correct but he paid a great deal of money (for that day) to have it put back together and restored so maybe it really was for him.

 

[equipmentdork]

His playing propelled those hits and they're all permanently branded in my mind. RIP and thanks for the grooves!



Dan

 

[piccupstix]

Badazz drummer!
Met him twice in Reno.
He told me he was an Arena drummer because he played so hard in arena gigs,he was a great drummer!
RIP
Loved TDNs version of Chest Fever!

Pretty much the same story here. I met Floyd backstage in Sparks, NV a few years ago (Hot August Nights) and he was so cool. He was complaining about "today's" drummers and how they don't utilize the bass drum inventively anymore.

Stone mentioned above he had a style and way of playing that was distinctive and you instantly knew it was him...so true!! He had a funky/swampy/fluid/African tribal feel that influenced me heavily. R.I.P. Floyd Sneed : (

 

[shuffle]

Pretty much the same story here. I met Floyd backstage in Sparks, NV a few years ago (Hot August Nights) and he was so cool. He was complaining about "today's" drummers and how they don't utilize the bass drum inventively anymore.

Stone mentioned above he had a style and way of playing that was distinctive and you instantly knew it was him...so true!! He had a funky/swampy/fluid/African tribal feel that influenced me heavily. R.I.P. Floyd Sneed : (

Great story!
What year was that?
I have played HANs several times.
His other passion was painting and that's how they were,tribal,funky,fluid!
Great story,thanks

 

[DanRH]

Huge influence for me too. I loved playing TDN songs.

 

[Luddite]

I was a big fan of TDN. They were absolutely burning up the Top 40 when I was a kid, and my brother had their Greatest Hits album. One of my bands covered “Joy to the World” and “Never Been to Spain,” another did “One Man Band,” another did their version of “Try a Little Tenderness.” Each song was a veritable school when it came to hip syncopation and across the bar fills—-in a Top Ten Pop song!! He had an amazing ear for getting a little outside while still grooving hard and playing for the song. I learned a lot when I learned those songs. RIP.

 

[dcrigger]

Floyd Sneed was one those early influences for me that I don't usually think that much about - or post whenever anyone asks for "Your 10 biggest influences". And yet, every now and then I pull up those first two or three TDN albums and am amazed to the degree, that I remember every note.

So him live - once. Actually at my high school - they played in the football stadium. I think it was one of those gigs that was booked as they were just first taking off - thus something the high school could afford, but still somewhat know. But then of course, in a period of months - they got huge.... really quick.

So great concert - and Floyd was as impressive as all get out.... great player.

I still play a lick or two that I totally copped from him

 

[DamnSingerAlsoDrums]

Floyd crushed it on their version of Never been to Spain. The groove is so badass it's not even funny. One of my favorite songs from that whole era of great songs...

 

[piccupstix]

Great story!
What year was that?
I have played HANs several times.
His other passion was painting and that's how they were,tribal,funky,fluid!
Great story,thanks

shuffle, likely sometime in the 90's.

I live in the San Gabriel Valley area of So. Cal and there used to be a club in a nearby city that usually featured blues bands and had regular jams. I remember reading in the local trades that Floyd Sneed played there occasionally. I wonder if he lived nearby.

 

[earteaga]

Floyd Sneed was a big influence on me. I read somewhere he also played with the Ohio Players for a while. Rest Easy.

--
Eddie

 

[hawker]

A great drummer and according to everyone just a prince of a guy. Supposedly he had a contract to write a book in 2016 but I can't find a reference to it anywhere. And TDN was just one of my fave bands always...SO MANY HITS!!

 

[CC Cirillo]

Made an impression on CC’s young ears.

I thank him.

 

[CC Cirillo]

L

Yeah, what a great drummer.

Back in the day I did not pay much attention to TDN, they were a little too "poppy" for my high-falutin' prog-rock/fusion jazz ways, but now when they come on the classic rock radio station I turn it up!

Very funky band.

Here is one with some good shots of Floyd and his Zickos drums...

The cowbell intro on B&W! He’s singing along in some of the choruses.

Also, the second video, lead singer attempts to stop the band with a fist grab, they miss it, then they got it on the second time around.