Budgie (drummer)
| Budgie | |
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Budgie in Oakland, California, June 1986
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Peter Edward Clarke |
| Also known as | Blister, Budgie |
| Born | 21 August 1957 |
| Origin | St Helens, Lancashire, England, UK |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | Percussion, drums, guitars, keyboards |
| Years active | 1979-present |
| Labels | Geffen, Polydor, Sioux |
| Associated acts | Big in Japan, Pink Military, the Spitfire Boys, the Slits, Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Creatures, John Grant |
Peter Edward Clarke (born 21 August 1957, St Helens), known professionally as Budgie, is an English drummer. His first recording was with the Slits in 1979. He then became the drummer of the influential band Siouxsie and the Banshees (1979–96) and the drum-and-voice duo the Creatures (1981–2004). Budgie worked with other musicians including John Cale, Leonard Eto (formerly of the Kodo Drummers) and John Grant.
In 2013, Spin rated him at No. 28 in their list of "The 100 Greatest Drummers of Alternative Music", writing: "Post-punk introduced a lot of amazing drummers, but none more influential than Budgie. With the Banshees, Budgie didn't just play rhythms—he played hooks and leads, brilliant parts that set the songs on fire. His tom-tom-intensive approach, [was] enlightened by his awareness of world music".Spin considered his "most booming moment" to be "Into the Light", from 1981's Juju, saying: "Budgie drums up a marvel of kinetic syncopation and invention".
Budgie was hailed in 2013 by peer Stewart Copeland of the Police as one of the 16 most interesting drummers. Copeland described Budgie's playing as "very economical and offbeat", adding, "Budgie didn’t play your standard hi-hat–kick–snare; there were a lot of tom-toms and a big throb."Ari Up of the Slits praised him as "a very sensitive drummer", saying, "He could go from reggae to punk to funk to jazz [...] but still very steady."NME named Budgie the best drummer of 1983.
He debuted as a drummer with the Spitfire Boys and Big in Japan before playing with the Slits on the 1979 album Cut. Years later in 2010, Slits singer Ari Up commented:
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