Andrea
Jimmy DeGrasso is one of the most talented and well-known drummers in the music industry.
He has an impressive resume for a musician, one of which is having played with many iconic bands and with famous musicians, such as Megadeth. That notoriously hard-hitting metal band was one of his bands.
DeGrasso’s skills behind the drums are incredible, and he continues to impress fans and music critics with his outstanding performances as a band drummer or touring drummer. That’s why he’s known as one of the best drummers in the metal scene.
Jimmy DeGrasso’s Short Biography
Jimmy DeGrasso was born on March 16, 1963, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States. He was an alumnus of Liberty High School in Bethlehem in 1981. Since then, he was already a member of a band named Liberty High School’s Grenadier Band.
Jimmy DeGrasso began playing the drums when he was eight years old, and by the time he started to get some drumming gigs. DeGrasso has a high interest in metal and rock genres, and it can be shown in how he began playing with bands like Black Sabbath and White Lion right after he chose to start his music career.
Early Career of Jimmy DeGrasso
It’s undeniable that he’s one of the biggest names in metal rock music. Before his big break, he played with a band with Ozzy Osbourne and Jake E. Lee.
In 1986, DeGrasso joined the veteran metal band Y&T, replacing the original drummer Leonard Haze. He played the drums with the group until the 1990s. Later that year, he briefly joined White Lion’s touring drummer when their drummer Greg D’Angelo left the band in 1991.
DeGrasso was getting his moment in 1992 when he was asked to join rock legend Alice Cooper’s band. He remained with him for about four years. During that time, he also played on the drummer’s solo album called The Last Temptation.
The David Lee Roth, Black Star Riders, and the Others
After playing together with Cooper, DeGrasso joined Megadeth in 1996. He replaced Nick Menza as a drummer. There are three Megadeth albums recorded with him.
These are Cryptic Writings (1997), Risk (1999), and The World Needs a Hero (2001). Then, he left the band in 2002. DeGrasso then joined and rejoined various bands in a period from 2006 to 2017, such as Alice Cooper Band, F5, Dokken, Black Star Riders, and The David Lee Roth.
DeGrasso also performed in many events, such as the Modern Drummer Festival in 2002, Drummer Live in the United Kingdom, Ultimate Drummers Weekend in Australia, and toured with Stone Sour (Slipknot vocalist Corey Taylor‘s side project) and with guitar legend Ronnie Montrose.
De Grasso and SABIAN Cymbals
Besides members of heavy metal bands, DeGrasso is also an endorser of SABIAN Cymbals. Since the early 1990s, he has been playing SABIAN Cymbals.
He is featured in several of their instructional and tutorial DVDs, including The Art of Heavy Metal Drumming and The Power of Rock Drumming. Jimmy DeGrasso also shares his knowledge about many topics and his experience as a touring musician in SABIAN’s online drumming lessons. Not to mention he also gives insight into how to play the double bass and how to set up a drummer’s kit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Jimmy DeGrasso’s Personal Life
As for the personal life of Jimmy DeGrasso, he currently resides in San Jose, California. It’s the place where he used to own and manage his own drum shop, namely San Jose Pro Drum.
Why did Jimmy DeGrasso leave Megadeth?
In 2002, Dave Mustaine quit Megadeth, many people thought it was because he fell asleep with his hand draping over the back of a chair. Thus, the rest of the band decided to leave the band, including Jimmy DeGrasso.
