During a recent conversation with Rick Beato, Tool’s Danny Carey said he thinks the Beatles’ music was more for older people.
While talking about his early influences as a child, the drummer noted:
“Beatles was the first thing when I was a little kid. I first heard Zepplin with one of my friends; his older brother had a Zeppelin record. We listened to that, and I was like, ‘Man, this is my [kind of music].’ It wasn’t like The Beatles [which sounded like] kind of older people’s music. That struck me, so then I got my first drum kit around that same time, too.”
Danny Got Excited About Led Zeppelin
Carey went on to share how Led Zeppelin inspired him:
“Man, I was so excited. I remember ‘Physical Graffiti’ coming out, all that stuff. Even ‘Houses of the Holy’, I remember when that came out. The first record I ever bought was the fourth record, like with lawnmower money. ‘When the Levee Breaks’ and all that.”
The rocker’s love for Zeppelin led him to explore other bands like Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Yes, and Genesis. He added:
“Around the same time, I started taking lessons. I had a good teacher who exposed me to some of the fusion things too, and then I started playing in the big band and jazz… I turned on to [Billy] Cobham and Tony Williams and all that. That was my forte then. Learning to read and kicking the big band was just a great experience.”
Carey’s Influence On Wolfgang Van Halen
While these bands influenced Carey as a young musician, he is also an inspiration for others. In a 2022 chat with Matt Pinfield from 95.5 KLOS, Wolfgang Van Halen named Carey one of his biggest drum influences. After sharing his love for Blink-182 and Travis Barker, he said:
“And then, from there, Tool was the bigger band that really influenced me. I couldn’t count or figure out how the songs were being played, but I did my best to mimic everything I heard Danny Carey do, and I think that made me a better drummer for it.”
Carey is preparing to hit the road with Tool for their upcoming European shows. They will start on May 25 in Hannover, Germany, and visit the Netherlands, UK, France, Austria, and more.
Watch the drummer’s full interview with Beato below.