Jethro Tull's First Drummer - Clive Bunker

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Famous Drummers - Clive Bunker by Drew Mers

Clive Bunker is a blues enthusiast and Jethro Tull was an extension of his love. The band mixed folk music, blues, and rock and was very popular, touring America and producing several albums. He left the band when the music began to turn more towards progressive rock which was something that Bunker was uninterested in pursuing.

He was still under contract though with Chrysalis Records which is why he began working with other bands and juggling that with his other work endeavors and his marriage. He also began shifting from blues to folk music, working with bands such as the Vikki Clayton Band and performing with his new band Twin Dragons.

Bunker was born in 1946 in Luton, England. He took up the drums as a serious musical profession when he partnered with Mick Abrahams to play around the town of Luton. This allowed him to get his mix and match drum kit which matched his mix and match style of playing. He also became friends with other drummers on the tour of the band and took/gave some inspiration from and to them.

He left Jethro Tull cordially enough and went on to become more of a freelance drummer while enjoying married life and working on engineering. Although he is now divorced from his wife, he continues to perform in the function of a session drummer for people who ask him and otherwise enjoys a quiet life on his farm. He is a very popular session drummer though and often remarks on the offers that come pouring in for his work. He produced an album for New Day records and performs with his band Twin Dragons while working with other bands and performers as a session drummer.

Drew Mers is a consultant to Empire Rehearsal Studios, which rents aspiring bands, musicians and drummers a music rehearsal studio in Long Island City, Queens, New York.