Rate Larry Mullen as a Drummer

Larry Mullen - how do you rate him as a drummer.

He has his own distinct style which fitted well with u2. He isn’t very imaginative when it comes to U2’s medium/slower songs, except for ishfwilf and bullet. But he definitely made a contribution to the band’s distinct sound. His zenith was his contribution on acrobat. Superb drumming there. He’s never going to be bracketed with the likes of bonham and moon etc in the top echelon of drummers though.

I feel he’s an average, but very effective, drummer. Same with edge and Adam when they play their instruments.

When they all come together, the magic happens. Separately, I don’t think they’re all that. U2 are an excellent example of the sum being greater than the parts. Same with most bands.

Yeah.

Is he an all time best drummer ever?

No.

Is he the absolute best drummer for U2?

Fuck yeah.

Yeah.

Is he an all time best drummer ever?

No.

Is he the absolute best drummer for U2?

Fuck yeah.

What she wrote.

Since I could not express the nuances of my opinion in the poll, I went with Above Average.

I’d like to note also that I and others pushed back on a poster’s harsh judgement of LMJ’s drumming skills.

That poster specializes in harsh judgements of the band members’ personal qualities in a way I find to be more about the poster than the band.

Quote from: laoghaire on June 28, 2023, 07:41:48 AM

Yeah.

Is he an all time best drummer ever?

No.

Is he the absolute best drummer for U2?

Fuck yeah.

What she wrote.

Hang on, that's what I said. First.

Quote from: MPare1966 on June 28, 2023, 07:47:45 AM

Quote from: laoghaire on June 28, 2023, 07:41:48 AM

Yeah.

Is he an all time best drummer ever?

No.

Is he the absolute best drummer for U2?

Fuck yeah.

What she wrote.

Hang on, that's what I said. First.

The Fuck Yeah sealed it for Laoghaire.

Next time, try to be more gritty.

Quote from: Larry Lovebucket on June 28, 2023, 08:00:48 AM

Quote from: MPare1966 on June 28, 2023, 07:47:45 AM

Quote from: laoghaire on June 28, 2023, 07:41:48 AM

Yeah.

Is he an all time best drummer ever?

No.

Is he the absolute best drummer for U2?

Fuck yeah.

What she wrote.

Hang on, that's what I said. First.

The Fuck Yeah sealed it for Laoghaire.

Next time, try to be more gritty.

 

So far not much evidence to support the view that 'this forum trashes Mullen'.....

I think he's above-average. He's not the most technical, as he himself will readily admit, but he does come up with some interesting and inventive patterns. I admire musicians who play the song, not the instrument, and Larry is a perfect example of that. He knows just a what song needs and focuses on that element, something that has influenced me in my 25 years of drumming.

Serve the song, not yourself. In that regard Larry is one of the finest, even if his skills aren't going to blow anyone away. U2 has always been special in that regard.

Larry Mullen is a great drummer and has made major contributions to U2's recordings and Live performances which overall are the best of any artist in history.

Larry Mullen is a great drummer and has made major contributions to U2's recordings and Live performances which overall are the best of any artist in history.

Well, you’d think he has made major contributions to U2’s recordings and live performances, given he was the drummer in the band.

How does Larry compare to the drummer in the police, wons? I’d say the drummer in the police was better.

I can’t use the poll on my phone at the moment but I’m gonna say this :

Larry was educated with very crude drum rolls but when the band started he was one of the most apt to play and perform (something someone said in a book) among the band members.
In that sense he helped the band develop on a solid canvas.

Fairly early on, Larry developed a sound that was an evolution of the drum rolls I spoke about. I’m thinking about A Sort of Homecoming. It is truly unique, especially in the context of the 80’s, when people thought drummers would be replaced by machines.

There are very, very few songs that you can recognize with a drum intro. And yet, Larry has a few up his sleeve : Sunday Bloody Sunday, Bullet the Blue Sky…

I think many people dismiss him because he is loud and sometimes lacks nuances.

Larry was one of the first U2 members to explore with technology : the intro to With or Without You and Mothers of the Disappeared… I think most people ignore this but the weird sounds that set the tone of the song are played with drums.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about check the live version starting at 1:20 : it has both the weird sound and the drum sound in the mix, they removed most of the drum sound for the record.

https://youtu.be/zviYtGNNWgs

In the early 90’s Larry found efficient ways to give a groove for the rest of the band to expand on.

In the late 90’s, Larry reportedly took drum classes in New York. This combined with the use of a click track on most of the songs slowly but surely killed his sound and made him more mundane. That said, he is now more equipped, technically, than he ever was.

When Bono & Edge played « 2 shots of happy » with an orchestra I thought Larry would never be able to play this, but as it turns out he delivered a perfect carbon copy on the Nancy Sinatra version.

https://youtu.be/3DuI9vvGkIw

What saddens me is that Larry doesn’t seem to care. His work on the Alice Cooper albums is dreadful.

To conclude I think he is technically underrated and was once a fierce discoverer but his most recent output doesn’t speak for him. As such he is the true leader of U2 since the band had the same trajectory.

Millions around the world recognize the drum intro on their mega-hit “Breathe”


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