LATEST NEWS
THE GREAT DRUM SHOW IS COMING TO LONDON FOR THE FIRST TIME ON SUNDAY MARCH 30TH
update: final few tickets remaining!
BOOK HERE…. https://www.pizzaexpresslive.com/whats-on/pete-cater-big-band-the-great-drum-show
HERE ARE A FEW GIGS OF INTEREST COMING UP IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF THE NEW YEAR.
MARCH 14TH; THE SIMON SPILLETT QUARTET AT THE BARN, WELWYN GARDEN CITY
MARCH 15TH; TONY KOFI & THE ORGANISATION CELEBRATING LOU DONALDSON AT CAFÉ POSK
MARCH 16TH; SIMON SPILLETT QUARTET AT THE WALNUT TREE, BLISWORTH
MARCH 22ND; TONY KOFI & THE ORGANISATION CELEBRATING LOU DONALDSON AT PEGGY’S SKYLIGHT, NOTTINGHAM
MARCH 23RD; THE SIMON SPILLETT QUARTET AT THE OVAL, CROYDON
MARCH 29TH: THE SIMON SPILLETT QUARTET AT PEGGY’S SKYLIGHT, NOTTINGHAM
MARCH 30TH; PETE CATER PRESENTS THE GREAT DRUM SHOW, FEATURIG THE PETE CATER BIG BAND AT SOHO PIZZA EXPRESS
coming soon: downloadable guidance notes & practice exercises for selected videos from Pete’s youtube channel
CERTAIN NEW AND PREVIOUSLY UPLOADED DRUM TUTORIAL VIDEOS WILL SOON HAVE PDF NOTES AVAILABLE TO BUY FROM THE STORE PAGE OF THIS WEBSITE CONTAINING EXPLANATIONS AND NOTATION EXAMPLES TO ACCOMPANY THE VIDEO MATERIAL. THESE WILL BE PRICED BETWEEN £1 & £2 DEPENDING UPON THE AMOUNT OF CONTENT INVOLVED, AND WILL BE A VALUABLE ASSET TO THOSE OF YOU WISHING TO EXPLORE SOME OF THESE CONCEPTS IN GREATER DEPTH.
MISTER PC RECORDS PRESENTS THE SIMON SPILLETT QUARTET, ‘UP IN TOWN’ RECORDED LIVE AT DEAN STREET PIZZA EXPRESS.
AVAILABLE ON CD AND LIMITED EDITION VINYL. RELEASE DATE AND LAUNCH CONCERT, 23/2/25
‘BIG BAND BOSS’ E BOOK AND BACKING TRACKS COMING SOON!
For Spring 2025 release. 80 plus page e book. Techniques, concepts and history of big band drumming.
‘HOOPS’/’STUFF LIKE THAT’ LIMITED EDITION 45 RPM SINGLE AVAILABLE NOW!
Head over to the store page and grab it while you can. Stock is moving fast!
NOW AVAILABLE, BIG BAND MINUS DRUMS PLAY ALONGS!
Following the success of Simon Spillett’s great big band album ‘Dear Tubby H’, we can announce that eight of the tracks are being released as drumless play alongs. They vary between intermediate and advanced level, and each downloadable package consists of the original album recording, the drumless play along with click for intros and drum solos, and the exact drum charts as used on the session in pdf form.
The eight titles to be released are
DEAR JOHNNY B
AS CLOSE AS YOU ARE
FISH SOUP
SOFT AND SUPPLE
RUMPUS
SEVEN STEPS TO HEAVEN
BLUES FOR PIPKINS
SHE INSULTED ME IN MARRAKECH
Also for the very brave there is a bonus version of ‘Seven Steps to Heaven’ with NO CLICK in the 32 bar drum solo. See how close you can get to coming out of it in the right place.
Each individual play along package retails at £4 or you can download all nine (including the ‘Seven Steps Challenge’) for £30.
We are looking forward to your video uploads of you playing these charts, so don’t forget to tag and share, be it on Insta, Tik Tok, You Tube or wherever.
Listings will be going live over the coming days, so keep checking the store page.
These tracks will also be a part of Pete’s upcoming tuition package ‘Big Band Boss’, which will be available to purchase without the audio files for those of you who buy them prior to publication of the book.
THE SIMON SPILLETT BIG BAND DOUBLE VINYL IS AVAILABLE F0R IMMEDIATE DISPATCH
HEAD OVER TO THE STORE PAGE OF THIS WEBSITE TO ORDER YOURS NOW
THE DOUBLE VINYL IS ONLY AVAILABLE TO UK BUYERS VIA THIS WEBSITE. iF YOU ARE OUTSIDE THE UK AND WISH TO PURCHASE PLEASE USE ONE OF THE TWO OPTIONS BELOW
EBAY https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/276495032447
BANDCAMP https://petecater1.bandcamp.com/album/dear-tubby-h
THANK YOU!
Pete Cater
“A gifted and versatile drummer, at home in any context”, (Rough Guide To Jazz)
ORANGE OR BLACK? YOU DECIDE!
There’s alimited edition run of Ministry of Jazz 45 RPM singles in prospect. Vote in the Twitter X poll here….
https://twitter.com/petecaterdrums/status/1790671419778498628 and help us to make the big decision.
BIG BAND BOSS! EDUCATIONAL PACKAGE WITH PLAY ALONGS
Having been on the ‘to do’ list for many years, Pete is putting the finishing touches to his 100 page guide to big band drumming. The package features drumless, play along versions of eight of the tracks from Simon Spillett’s ‘Dear Tubby H’ album, as well as charts and performance notes. This publication will be exclusively available through this website and has all sorts to offer to drummers of all styles and ability levels. Expected to be availabale from July 2024.
THE GREAT DRUM SHOW IS COMING TO LONDON, 30/3/25
Delighted to announce that Pete and his big band will be presenting the Great Drum Show in central London in March ‘25. Location and show times will appear on the events page once the show is on sale.
SIMON SPILLETT BIG BAND, ‘DEAR TUBBY H’ LIMITED EDITION DOUBLE VINYL RELEASE!
SImon Spillett’s terrific, 5 star reviewed big band album will shortly be available as a limited edition double vinyl LP. We hope to have these available by early June. Advance orders will open when we have a definite delivery date. It’s looking like June 12th at the moment, so advance ordering will be open 14 days beforehand.
IMPORTANT: Only 300 copies are being pressed and orders from this website are only open to buyers in the UK. Overseas orders are of course welcome, but will only be available via EBay, and a link to the listing will be posted here when the records arrive.
BREAKING: 45 RPM 7” SINGLE RELEASE AHEAD OF SOLO ALBUM!
Jazz musicians releasing singles? Whatever next. The first release from Pete’s new album will be a digital single. Stay tuned for more details. Not only that, but the single ‘Hoops’/’Stuff Like That’ will be available as a special collectors’ edition 45 RPM 7” vinyl single. Stay tuned! ORDERS ARE NOW OPEN FOR THE LIMITED EDITION 45 RPM SINGLE, VISIT MY BANDCAMP PAGE FOR MORE INFO.
PETE CATER ON DRUMS VOLUME 1, ‘STICKINGS, DEXTERITY AND ORCHESTRATION’ NOW AVAILABLE AS A DIGITAL DOWNLOAD
This ground breaking book first published in 2020 is now available as a digital download for just £10. To order your copy click here
Youtube rebrand
The You Tube page has had a minor rebrand and is now called Pete Cater Jazz Drums. There are a few new uploads as well as lots of back catalogue drum tutorials and performances dating all the way back to 1980. View and subscribe here.
‘DEAR TUBBY H’, DEBUT RELEASE ON MISTER PC RECORDS
What’s worth having is worth waiting for, we finally got it out there and the response has been amazing. You can buy it from the store page or purchase a digital version at Bandcamp. Also keep a lookout for a limited edition double vinyl vinyl pressing.
GREAT DRUM SHOW DEBUT, SATURDAY APRIL 29TH, WINCHESTER
Thanks to our amazing audience for the ecstatic reaction to the premiere of The Great Drum Show on April 29th. Thanks also to the team at the ARC who made us very welcome and for whom nothing was too much trouble. The response to this ‘pilot’ performance exceeded my expectations by some distance so look out for further dates in the not too distant future.
It was great to be fronting a big band for the first time in several years, and I could not have wished for a better team of first rate musicians with whom I was proud to share the stage.
BREAKING: PETE’S FIRST SOLO ALBUM SINCE 2006 IS ON ITS WAY!
After the Simon Spillett/Tubby Hayes record the second release will be an all star 7 piece group featuring British jazz A-listers, Steve Fishwick, Mark Nightingale, Simon Allen, Vasilis Xenopoulos, Rob Barron and Alec Dankworth.
This record was totally unplanned and the session was put together at 24 hours notice due to illness of another artist., hence the working title ‘Out Of The Fire’. If you’ve ever seen the Ministry of Jazz group some of the repertoire will be slightly familiar. All the musicians gave stellar performances in the studio. This will of course be Pete’s first album as leader of anything other than a big band and we anticipate an early September release date.
BREAKING: BIG BAND MINUS DRUMS TUITION BOOK AND RECORDING
Also coming soon is the new book, ‘Pete Cater On Drums Volume 2; BIG BAND BOSS’. In which you will have the opportunity to play along with drumless recordings of the tracks from the Simon Spillett Big Band recording. Also included are all the drum charts and performance guidance notes.
GET IN CONTACT:PETECATERDRUMS@GMAIL.COM
CALL 07831 419958
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Pete has an artist affiliation with the runaway successful British Drum Company, and in 2018 visited China to perform and present a master class in Beijing as a guest of the local distributor.
https://www.britishdrumco.com/
Education was much to the fore in 2018 with the release of Pete’s instructional video, ‘On Drums’. Click on the store page for details of how to buy a copy. This was followed by the publication of Pete’s book ‘Stickings, Dexterity and Orchestration’ in January 2020.
Pete is also proudl to be associated with the Zildjian Company
https://zildjian.com/artists/pete-cater
as well as Remo drumheads and Vater sticks, brushes and accessories and of course the legendary Bill Sanders practice pads
https://www.practicedrumkits.co.uk
Pete was voted 5th in the jazz category in Rhythm magazine’s international readers poll in 2015. The only non American player to be nominated, and in good company here.
biography
Pete Cater has been involved with drums for his entire life. Movie footage exists of him hand drumming aged barely 12 months and the innate talent cannot be missed. His musical tastes matured similarly early, and courtesy of his Dad’s record collection he was, by age 5, already a devotee of Joe Morello, Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson.
Throughout these early years Pete never missed an opportunity to play. At this point he was going to work with his father and sitting in whenever possible. Playing with adult musicians proved to be invaluable experience, so that when Pete joined the Midlands Youth Jazz Orchestra aged 13 his playing had the maturity of an adult drummer (http://www.youtube.com/v/R3vFtBUtXNI), by 18 his prowess on the instrument was a clear indicator of what the future would hold (http://www.youtube.com/v/hCd1V7JFXlc) and at 19 he became by far the youngest member of the All Stars Big Band, an 18 piece made up of top players in his home city of Birmingham, England. The same year the first incarnation of the Pete Cater Big Band made its debut
Big band playing led to small groups and Pete began playing with mainstream jazz musicians of an earlier generation. During this period he got to perform with USA legends including Benny Carter, Barney Kessell, Harry “Sweets” Edison, Eddie Lockjaw Davis, Nat Pierce, Teddy Edwards, and many key figures from the UK, including Ronnie Scott, Dick Morrissey, Humphrey Lyttelton and John Dankworth.
Unfortunately this being the 1980s and the era of synth pop and electric drums, there was no tangible career path for a young jazz/swing/big band drummer in Pete’s hometown so he spent the next few years pursuing a nomadic existence working on cruise ships, resorts, theatres and one-night-stands. Jazz had to take second place for the time being.
In 1992, back in Birmingham briefly, Pete had occasion to play with Cuban trumpet virtuoso Arturo Sandoval. So impressed was Sandoval that he offered Pete dates in Europe later that year doing concerts paying homage to Clifford Brown.
“We played Leverkusen, Germany one day. Steve Smith was on before us, and Billy Cobham immediately afterwards. Luckily I don’t get scared easily”.
On his return from Europe Pete took what would turn out to be the most important gamble of his career to date, got off the road and settled in London. Once again jazz took a back seat and Pete rapidly became in demand across a broad spectrum of live and studio work.
“I was making good money and establishing myself in London, but music wasn’t much fun at that time”.
As time passed Pete began to work his way in to the London jazz scene. He took a virtually full time road gig with singer Elaine Delmar which established him as a “name” throughout the UK, and his stunning, virtuoso solos consistently brought the house down. Also at this time Pete toured with the legendary Charlie Byrd and the Buddy DeFranco/Terry Gibbs quintet.
By now Pete had played with just about every top big band on the London circuit and had strong opinions about repertoire and how big band music should be interpreted. The result of his vision was a gathering of 16 of the most outstanding young musicians in Great Britain at the time, and the Pete Cater Big Band made its debut on April 30th 1995. The band soon established a strong presence on the London jazz scene and began appearing all over the UK on the festival circuit.
(http://www.youtube.com/v/RkxyNgZ5OU0).
In 1997 Pete had to put the big band on hold for an extended tour of Japan with the Glenn Miller Orchestra, but immediately on his return to England work was concluded on the debut album “Playing With Fire” which helped to spread the word beyond UK shores and resulted in Pete being a shoo-in for Big Band of the Year in the British Jazz Awards 2000, and Critic’s Choice the following year.
This success brought Pete to the attention of Vocalion records, and the follow up album “Upswing” was recorded at the home of the Beatles, the legendary Abbey road studio 2 later that same year.
This was also one of the first CDs in the world to be recorded in the new 5.1 surround sound SACD format developed by Sony and Philips. The band has remained a popular attraction at UK jazz festivals ever since and its most recent album “The Right Time” (Vocalion) was released in 2006.
2024 marks the 29th year of the Pete Cater Big Band, an achievement that is practically unequalled for a band playing 100% instrumental jazz.
In 2002 Pete was elevated to the ranks of British jazz royalty when he was first choice to replace the late Ronnie Verrell (‘Animal’ from the Muppet Show) in the Best of British Jazz, an all-star sextet under the leadership of trombonist Don Lusher. Pete also appeared regularly with Don Lusher’s big band until Lusher passed away in 2006.
Also during this period Pete worked with electronica pioneer Matthew Herbert on the crossover album “Goodbye Swingtime”, which resulted in live performances all over the world, from the Shanghai Jazz Festival to the Hollywood Bowl. Pete taught jazz drums for many years at the renowned Drumtech academy in London. A drummer of rare versatility, Pete’s performance credits also include Tom Jones, Kid Creole and the Coconuts and Jamie Cullum.
More recently Pete has appeared in a number of concerts with the big band where the emphasis has been on re-examining the Buddy Rich repertoire, and the October 2007 London concert ‘The Man From Planet Jazz’ was an enormous success. (http://www.youtube.com/v/IlwXspyNVrc), and this show toured throughout the UK for over 10 years.
The concerts were received with tremendous enthusiasm by audiences.
Pete says,
“In all my years playing big band shows I’ve never known anything go down anywhere like as well as this show. The audience reaction has been quite amazing”.
Also, trendy dance music label Freestyle Records included a Pete Cater track on their newly released CD ‘Music For Jazz Dancers’.
Pete Cater continues to care passionately that big band music is sustainable and properly represented in the ever more diverse contemporary music scene.
Also active in education Pete is a former faculty member at the London Centre of Contemporary Music, has been a regular on the legendary Freddie Gee summer drum camp since 2013 and continues to appear at this and similar drum events throughout the UK and beyond as well as being an in demand private teacher.
pete cater
selected discography
DEAR TUBBY H The Simon Spillett Big Band (Mister PC)
PLAYING WITH FIRE The Pete Cater Big Band (Jazzizit)
UPSWING The Pete Cater Big Band (Vocalion)
THE RIGHT TIME The Pete Cater Big Band (Vocalion)
POINT BLANK Tony Kofi and the Organisation (Last Music Company)
SOUNDS OF THE GLENN MILLER ERA The Nick Ross Orchestra (Montpellier)
GOODBYE SWINGTIME Matthew Herbert (Accidental)
ABBEY ROAD SESSIONS The Best of British Jazz (Vocalion)
CTS SESSION Spike Robinson (Hep)
YOUNG LIONS, OLD TIGERS Spike Robinson and Derek Nash (Jazzizit)
SMILE Sheena Davies (Jazzizit)
LE DEFI (ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK) Matthew Herbert (Universal)
BABY IT’S COLD OUTSIDE (‘AT THE SPEAKEASY’ remix) Tom Jones and Cerys Matthews (Gut)
SALUTE THE SUN Kelvin Christiane (FMR)
THE WIND MACHINE Vasilis Xenopoulos (33 Records)
THE SPIKE ORCHESTRA Ghetto (Spike Productions)
INTRODUCING THE BONE SUPREMACY The Bone Supremacy (Lake)
OH WHAT A NIGHT Kid Creole & the Coconuts (Prism Leisure)
READ MY BLOG HERE https://petecater.blogspot.com/
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