John Coghlan (drummer)
| John Coghlan | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | John Robert Coghlan |
| Born |
19 September 1946 Dulwich, London, England |
| Origin | London, England |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | drums |
| Years active | 1962–present |
| Associated acts | Status Quo, John Coghlan's Diesel, John Coghlan's Quo |
John Robert Coghlan (19 September 1946) is an English musician, best known as the original drummer of the rock band Status Quo.
The son of a Glasgow-born father and a London born half-French mother, Coghlan grew up in Dulwich and was educated at Kingsdale Comprehensive School. He left school at 15 to begin an apprenticeship as a mechanic. He attended drumming tuition under Lloyd Ryan, who also taught Phil Collins the drum rudiments.
John Coghlan joined Status Quo, then called The Spectres, in early 1962 after a meeting with bassist Alan Lancaster & guitarist Francis Rossi. Drumming for the first 14 of 30 albums Status Quo went on to record, including their first and most successful live album, called "Live!" in 1977, his drumming can be heard on Quo songs such as "Caroline", "Down Down", "Rockin' All Over the World" and "Whatever You Want".
While Status Quo were recording what went on to be their 1+9+8+2 album, Coghlan unexpectedly left the band after almost twenty years of being in the lineup. How this came about, as told by both Francis Rossi & Rick Parfitt in interviews when asked about the subject over the years, Coghlan reportedly went into the studio, sat behind his drum kit to do a take, "tapped around" on it, "then he got up, kicked the whole kit apart walked out and that was that"., Coghlan was replaced by Pete Kircher, formerly of the 1960s band Honeybus, to finish the album. After his departure Coghlan played with Partners in Crime – the band failed to create major attention. He also played on a one-off single by The Rockers, a supergroup also comprising Roy Wood, Phil Lynott and Chas Hodges; "We Are The Boys (Who Make All The Noise)", a rock and roll medley, which was released in November 1983 and made No. 79 in the charts. His own band, 'John Coghlan's Diesel', was a loose ensemble which consisted of a number of musicians he'd known in his years with Status Quo, most notably Bob Young and Andy Bown. Diesel never signed a proper recording contract.
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