Tom Roady

Tom grew up in the St.Louis area and still loves to visit with old friends there on occasion. He played with Phil Driscoll in 1972-73 and through that connection met Charlie Chalmers, an original member of the Memphis Horns. Tom started doing recording at this time in Memphis and eventually Charlie suggested moving to Muscle Shoals to get more work...there he worked at the Fame recording studios working with artists like Mac Davis,Tom Jones,Candi Staton, and Paul Anka...then he was befriended by the the guys at Muscle Shoals Sound...through their efforts he got to record with a vast array of different artists form Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel to Mavis and Pops Staples to The Sanford Townsend Band...He had the joyous pleasure of working with Jerry Wexler on many different artists projects through the years...working with Jerry is still a personal and professional highlight for him. In 1978 he moved to Los Angeles while working on the road with Paul Anka. While living in L.A. he was in Don Randi and Quest , the house band at the Baked Potato in North Hollywood and still considers it one of the most fun gigs he ever has done. He also worked with The Fifth Dimension for about a year while living in Los Angeles. Tom has been a studio percussionist primarily for 34 years and for the last 25 years has resided in Nashville. He has a home studio, Big Bang Theory Studio and does quite a bit of recording out of there.. He is currently co-producing a young new artist, John Colombo, a young man with a very bright future. Tom has toured with many artists like James Taylor, John Denver Ricky Skaggs , The Fifth Dimension and Paul Anka. He has played on numerous R&B, Folk, Bluegrass, Jazz, Rock, and Country multi-platinum recordings, many of which have been nominated and won Grammy Awards,CMA Awards,and ACM Awards. The list of artists he has worked with is long and impressive. R&B artists such as Percy Sledge,Wilson Pickett, Mavis Staples,Pop Staples, Clarence Carter, Millie Jackson, Bobby Womack, Etta James, Delbert McClinton, Johnny Taylor, Don Covay, and Shemekia Copeland Rock and Pop acts such as Michael McDonald, Andy Gibb, The Sanford /Townsend Band, Art Garfunkel, Paul Simon, Pure Prairie League, Dr. Hook, Roy Orbison, Emmylou Harris, Bob Seger, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Kim Carnes, The Freddy Jones Band, Mac McAnally, Joan Baez, The Iguanas, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Steve Forbert, Paul Anka, Tom Jones, Donovan, Etc. Bluegrass and Americana artists like Ricky Skaggs, Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, New Grass Revival, The Grascals, Rhonda Vincent, Maura O'Conell, Sally Fingerett, Kathy Mattea, Nashville Mandolin Ensemble, Robert Lee Castleman, Ronnie Bowman, Mark Elliot, Kim McKlean, and Larry Cordle and Lonesome Standard Time And Country acts : The Dixie Chicks, Vince Gill, Kenny Chesney, Alabama, Brooks and Dunn,Martina McBride, Trisha Yearwood, Chris Ledoux, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Sara Evans, Tom T. Hall, Randy Travis,Trick Pony, Reba McEntire, Pam Tillis, Tanya Tucker, Hank Williams Jr., Dan SealsSuzy Bogguss, K.T.Oslin, Kenny Rogers, Lee Ann Womack, Chely Wright, Clay Walker, T.Graham Brown, Mark Chestnut, Randy Scruggs, Tracy Byrd, Bryan White, Steve Wariner ,Jo Dee Messina, Lonestar, Ricochet and Lee RoyParnell Tom has been very blessed to have played on many Christian /Gospel projects..Phil Driscoll, The Issacs, Russ Taff, Mark Lowry, and his good friend Will McFarlane In December of 2006 he played shows in London with the David Gest's All-Star Soul Spectacular..starring Peabo Bryson, Deniece Williams, Dorothy Moore, Billy Paul, Russell Thompkins Jr. and the New Stylistics, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Candi Staton, Carl Carlton, William Bell, Freda Payne, and Bonnie Tyler. Tom has done numerous percussion clinics and master classes and has performed many times at the annual Percussive Arts Society conventions. He endorses Toca Percussion, Paiste Cymbals and Effects,Regal Tip Sticks and Mallets,Evans Heads,DW Drums and Hardware,Shure Microphones ,Zendrum, the Mandala Drum and FXpansion He has a CD ZENDRUM: ONE TRIBE that has been critically reviewed and praised in magazines like Modern Drummer, Keyboard and Electronic Musician..His music has been played on the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Oxygen, The Playboy Channel, The Spice Channel, The Travel Channel , Braves Baseball, and International Cable broadcasts.