Steve White | |
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Steve White performing live
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Background information | |
Birth name | Steven Douglas White |
Born |
Southwark, London, England |
31 May 1965
Genres |
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Instruments | Drums |
Years active | 1981–present |
Associated acts | Paul Weller, The Style Council, The Players, The Who, Chad Smith, Talbot & White, Trio Valore, The Family Silver |
Website | whiteydrums.com |
Steven Douglas White (born 31 May 1965 in Southwark, London) is an English drummer who has worked extensively with Paul Weller and The Style Council amongst others.
White was given a small drum as a child by his uncle and upon joining his local Boys Brigade he began to learn his craft. As with White's band mate Paul Weller, he was given full support from his parents who went out of their way to help their son develop. White spent his youth having lessons from the late George Scott of Wanstead; learning from recordings of Buddy Rich and Louis Bellson. White later took lessons with drumming teacher Bob Armstrong at Bob's Masterclass studio, then in Hornchurch, Essex. White complemented his work gigging with local bands with part-time work, spending any spare cash on updating his collection of jazz records. In 1983, White auditioned for an unnamed band which turned out to be Paul Weller's new group, The Style Council. Weller was impressed with the 17-year-old drummer's jazz background and asked White to come back the following day. White stayed with the band for some years but was never actually invited to join, even though he appeared in most of their videos and on all but a few recordings. He became the youngest drummer on stage at Live Aid at Wembley in 1985 (and also played the Live 8 gig at Hyde Park with The Who).
White left The Style Council in 1989 to pursue other projects and went on to play with many well known acts, such as Ian Dury, The Redskins and the Jazz Renegades. When The Style Council reformed for a one off gig for Japanese TV in 1990, Paul Weller invited White to his studio to hear a few demo tracks. White was soon back full-time behind the kit for Weller's solo projects. His brother Alan White is also a drummer who played for Oasis for nine years (1995–2004). Alan White has been quoted as saying about his brother that besides influences such as Ringo Starr and John Bonham, his brother was also one of his main influences. During Oasis's tour of the United States in 2001, Alan White had tendinitis leading to Steve standing in on several shows.