--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Marvin Gaye was a killer drummer. I think…" description: "\"Marvin Gaye was a killer drummer. I think he just played during the soundchecks and he'd have another guy sing his parts while he played the drums. He ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94b/dr-john-13961_drummer_marvin-gaye-was-a-killer-drummer-i-think_2861558.jpg" --- # Marvin Gaye was a killer drummer. I think he just played… ![“Marvin Gaye was a killer drummer. I think he just played during the soundchecks and he'd have another guy sing his parts while he played the drums. He just wanted to play the drums and have some fun.” quote by Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94b/dr-john-13961_drummer_marvin-gaye-was-a-killer-drummer-i-think_2861558.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94b/dr-john-13961_drummer_marvin-gaye-was-a-killer-drummer-i-think_2861558.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94b/dr-john-13961_drummer_marvin-gaye-was-a-killer-drummer-i-think_2861558.jpg) > “Marvin Gaye was a killer drummer. I think he just played during the soundchecks and he'd have another guy sing his parts while he played the drums. He just wanted to play the drums and have some fun.” [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The musician preferred playing drums for fun, delegating vocal parts to others, highlighting personal joy over fame. **In simple terms:** He chose fun drumming over singing. Key Takeaway Enjoy your role and let others fill gaps. Themes passion collaboration role specialization Mood inspirational lighthearted Type musical philosophical When to use this quote - studio sessions - live performances - band rehearsals - creative projects Key Concepts creative freedom team dynamics Questions to Reflect On - Do you prioritize personal joy over recognition? - How can teams support each member’s strengths? A Different Perspective Risk of being typecast or underappreciated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Drummer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drummer/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Killers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killers/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [No husband of mine will say, "I could have been a drummer, but I had to think about the wife and kids. You know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/no-husband-of-mine-will-say-i-could-have-been-a-drummer-but-i-had-to/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [I think you get to a point where you watch something just to enjoy it. I don't think it's really done so that you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-watts/i-think-you-get-to-a-point-where-you-watch-something-just-to-enjoy-it/) [Charlie Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-watts/) > [I'm the best live rock drummer. That's what I think of myself. That's who I am. I can't help it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-rudd/i-m-the-best-live-rock-drummer-that-s-what-i-think-of-myself-that-s/) [Phil Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-rudd/) > [Not really, drums found me, I just liked music, all kinds of music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-mastelotto/not-really-drums-found-me-i-just-liked-music-all-kinds-of-music/) [Pat Mastelotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-mastelotto/) > [When I was much younger I tried to play guitar and bass first. Drums were just the easiest thing for me to play. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-schock/when-i-was-much-younger-i-tried-to-play-guitar-and-bass-first-drums/) [Gina Schock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-schock/) > [“You play 30 instruments. What's the toughest? Drums, just because I don't get to play them a whole lot. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-play-30-instruments-what-s-the-toughest-drums-just-because-i-don/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was a kid living in New Jersey, who - I'd wanted to make movies since I was a little kid, so that came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-chazelle/i-was-a-kid-living-in-new-jersey-who-i-d-wanted-to-make-movies-since/) [Damien Chazelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-chazelle/) > [Drums just always sounded like the most fun part of that good music for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/levon-helm/drums-just-always-sounded-like-the-most-fun-part-of-that-good-music/) [Levon Helm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/levon-helm/) > [All I ever wanted to do was play the drums; I felt good about myself when I played the drums. So I worked anywhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-weinberg/all-i-ever-wanted-to-do-was-play-the-drums-i-felt-good-about-myself/) [Max Weinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-weinberg/) > [When I was a kid, I played drums, and when I first got a 4-track, I would put down drumbeats and then do the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yngwie-malmsteen/when-i-was-a-kid-i-played-drums-and-when-i-first-got-a-4-track-i/) [Yngwie Malmsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yngwie-malmsteen/) > [My dad played drums.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alana-haim/my-dad-played-drums/) [Alana Haim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alana-haim/) > [I played in a punk rock band in high school called the High Heel Flip Flops. I was the drummer. I played drums for,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-rhett/i-played-in-a-punk-rock-band-in-high-school-called-the-high-heel-flip/) [Thomas Rhett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-rhett/) > [I played the drums, and I was in a band called Funkasaurus Rex in Toronto. When I left for school, it became hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-epstein/i-played-the-drums-and-i-was-in-a-band-called-funkasaurus-rex-in/) [Jake Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-epstein/) > [I've played drums since I was 15. My sisters and I all played instruments. I kind of started with piano and then I actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-teller/i-ve-played-drums-since-i-was-15-my-sisters-and-i-all-played/) [Miles Teller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-teller/) > [ I'm quite honored by it. They \[people\] tell me that , 'If it hadn't of been for you, I wouldn't have played drums.' Hey,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ringo-starr/i-m-quite-honored-by-it-they-people-tell-me-that-if-it-hadn-t-of-been/) [Ringo Starr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ringo-starr/) ## More by Dr. John > [Where Charlie Christian left off, Papoose started a new thing; he was an innovator of the guitar. The things he did during his recording…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/where-charlie-christian-left-off-papoose-started-a-new-thing-he-was/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [Like the tangled veins of cypress roots that meander this way and that in the swamp, everything in New Orleans is interrelated, wrapped around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/like-the-tangled-veins-of-cypress-roots-that-meander-this-way-and/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [I been trying to clean up my act with my children for a long time. And I pretty much got them all talking to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/i-been-trying-to-clean-up-my-act-with-my-children-for-a-long-time-and/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [The whole Lower Ninth Ward hasn't really recovered, but I feel a good spirit in my heart that something is going on - music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/the-whole-lower-ninth-ward-hasn-t-really-recovered-but-i-feel-a-good/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [New Orleans cats don't play a lot of solos unless they got something to say. It's not an ego thing like it is with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/new-orleans-cats-don-t-play-a-lot-of-solos-unless-they-got-something/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [I think that any of the places that's cut off from money, things come up, what the people have to rely on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/i-think-that-any-of-the-places-that-s-cut-off-from-money-things-come/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [The specter of color is apparent even when it goes unmentioned, and it is all too often the unseen force that influences public policy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/the-specter-of-color-is-apparent-even-when-it-goes-unmentioned-and-it/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [Everybody in my neighborhood in the '40s, they played pianos. That's how people partied. They didn't try the TV, the radio was OK, records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/everybody-in-my-neighborhood-in-the-40s-they-played-pianos-that-s-how/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [Doc has been my name all my life, and John is my middle name. I'm proud of all my names - Malcolm John Michael…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/doc-has-been-my-name-all-my-life-and-john-is-my-middle-name-i-m-proud/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [It was the first time I was looking, really, right after the storm, that I saw maybe the amount of devastation that had happened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/it-was-the-first-time-i-was-looking-really-right-after-the-storm-that/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [There was a lot of freedom, so bands in those days did not have to play for the public. They played for club owners…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/there-was-a-lot-of-freedom-so-bands-in-those-days-did-not-have-to/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [I hung at the studio. Myself and James Booker and several other musicians, as kids, we just literally hung at the studio, hoping somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/i-hung-at-the-studio-myself-and-james-booker-and-several-other/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [I'd rather have the whole world against me than my own soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/i-d-rather-have-the-whole-world-against-me-than-my-own-soul/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [I had somebody call and make a joke about it: 'Oh, Buddy Guy won the Grammy - You should have won.' I said, 'No.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/i-had-somebody-call-and-make-a-joke-about-it-oh-buddy-guy-won-the/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) > [In 1972, I recorded Gumbo, an album that was both a tribute to and my interpretation of the music I had grown up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-john/in-1972-i-recorded-gumbo-an-album-that-was-both-a-tribute-to-and-my/) [Dr. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) [Explore all 48 Dr. John quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-john/) ## More Drummer quotes > [I usually write from the rhythm section...If a drummer got a funky beat on some things - like a half-shuffle or a shuffle or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/i-usually-write-from-the-rhythm-section-if-a-drummer-got-a-funky-beat/) [Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/) > [My motivation for being a good drummer was born out of fear, which, in a way, seems so antithetical to what art should be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-chazelle/my-motivation-for-being-a-good-drummer-was-born-out-of-fear-which-in/) [Damien Chazelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-chazelle/) > [Metallica's the only band i've ever been in. I'm not sure that when it ends in five, ten years, I'm going to put an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-ulrich/metallica-s-the-only-band-i-ve-ever-been-in-i-m-not-sure-that-when-it/) [Lars Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-ulrich/) > [Imagine if you were a drummer, and you accidentally picked up two magic wands instead of sticks. There you are, keeping the beat, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/imagine-if-you-were-a-drummer-and-you-accidentally-picked-up-two/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [I used to be a drummer in a band, and I really loved playing the drums, so I look forward to the right opportunity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zedd/i-used-to-be-a-drummer-in-a-band-and-i-really-loved-playing-the-drums/) [Zedd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zedd/) > [Hendrix rehearsed different drummers, before we met Mitch Mitchell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-redding/hendrix-rehearsed-different-drummers-before-we-met-mitch-mitchell/) [Noel Redding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-redding/) > [The drums have hogged a lot of the credit. We're as much -- or more -- \*cymbal\* players, as we are drummers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-erskine/the-drums-have-hogged-a-lot-of-the-credit-we-re-as-much-or-more/) [Peter Erskine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-erskine/) > [Hip Nip just sounds groovy. A drummer laid it on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-morita/hip-nip-just-sounds-groovy-a-drummer-laid-it-on-me/) [Pat Morita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-morita/) > [He's (Ringo Starr) not even the best drummer in the Beatles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mccartney/he-s-ringo-starr-not-even-the-best-drummer-in-the-beatles/) [Paul McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mccartney/) > [That's the thing that we said about the horn before: it's a focus issue. It's like a singer versus a drummer. If a drummer's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-hunter/that-s-the-thing-that-we-said-about-the-horn-before-it-s-a-focus/) [Charlie Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-hunter/) > [There is no roles. No one is keeping any roles. The drummer is also answering everybody and everything. So it is a constant conversation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miroslav-vitous/there-is-no-roles-no-one-is-keeping-any-roles-the-drummer-is-also/) [Miroslav Vitous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miroslav-vitous/) > [I'm a pretty good drummer. I'm pretty good at guitar, bass and piano. I can play accordion; I'm not virtuoso. I've played cello before.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendon-urie/i-m-a-pretty-good-drummer-i-m-pretty-good-at-guitar-bass-and-piano-i/) [Brendon Urie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendon-urie/) > [When I listened to Elvin Jones, man, for the first time I heard a drummer that had all the technique plus emotion, passion, feel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/butch-trucks/when-i-listened-to-elvin-jones-man-for-the-first-time-i-heard-a/) [Butch Trucks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/butch-trucks/) > [I play bass. I play a bit of guitar. I've never been to a lesson, so my theory of music is non-existent in any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sangster/i-play-bass-i-play-a-bit-of-guitar-i-ve-never-been-to-a-lesson-so-my/) [Thomas Sangster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sangster/) > [I'd just play 'til my hands fell off. My parents would yell at me to stop because they couldn't stand the noise any more!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-castillo/i-d-just-play-til-my-hands-fell-off-my-parents-would-yell-at-me-to/) [Randy Castillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-castillo/) [Browse all 532 Drummer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drummer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Marvin Gaye was a killer drummer. I think he just played during the soundchecks and he'd have another guy sing his parts while he played the drums. 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