Danny Cummings
| Danny Cummings | |
|---|---|
 Danny Cummings at the NAC in Ottawa Ontario July 2005. | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Sheffield, Yorkshire, England |
| Genres | Rock, Latin, Celtic rock, Country, Blues |
| Instruments | drums, percussion |
| Labels | Vertigo, Mercury |
| Associated acts | Mark Knopfler, Dire Straits |
Danny Cummings is an English drummer, percussionist and vocalist originally from Sheffield.
Musical biography
The first Latin Percussion instrument that Danny Cummings ever acquired was a second-hand conga he persuaded his parents to buy him for his 21st birthday. "That black fiberglass drum marked the beginning of a new era for me," says Cummings.[1] And perhaps it did: In the years since, the London-based musician has recorded with such notables as the late John Martyn, Dire Straits, Johnny Hallyday, Vicente Amigo,Tina Turner, George Michael, Penguin Café Orchestra, Elton John, Pet Shop Boys, Simply Red, Daniel Bedingfield, Talk Talk, David Sylvian, Mark Knopfler, Depeche Mode and Bryan Adams and on the cabaret-tinged "Shag Tobacco" by vocalist Gavin Friday. He appears as percussionist and backing vocalist on Bryan Adams' albums, On a Day Like Today and Bryan Adams MTV Unplugged.
At age 12, Cummings began playing snare drum in his school band, then got hooked on exotic percussion. His personal musical influences include Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys, The Beatles,The Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix. Today, in addition to drums, congas and a vast assortment of hand percussion Cummings plays a collection of original African instruments and also enjoys using experimental electronic sounds:
The last Dire Straits album On Every Street featured Cummings as a percussionist and he also contributed to Knopfler's album releases later, as his drummer on the albums Kill to Get Crimson, Get Lucky and All The Roadrunning with Knopfler and Emmylou Harris. He toured with Knopfler on the tours for each of these albums, and featured on the live CDs and DVDs On The Night and Real Live Roadrunning featuring Emmylou Harris.
Cummings also appears on Guy Fletcher's albums Inamorata (2007) and Natural Selection (2010). In 2016 he recorded percussion on the David Gilmore album "Rattle That Lock" and as drummer on an album for artist Chris De Burgh.
He plays drums as a core member of a blues band "BluesClub", playing songs by Little Walter, Big Joe Williams, Howling Wolf, Muddy Waters and others.