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Rick Buckler

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Rick Buckler
Rick Buckler performing in 2006 at the Islington Academy.
Rick Buckler performing in 2006 at the Islington Academy.
Background information
Birth namePaul Richard Buckler
Born (1955-12-06) 6 December 1955 (age 68)
Woking, England
Genres
Occupations
  • Drummer
  • percussionist
  • songwriter
  • producer
InstrumentDrums
Years active1972–1995, 2005–present
Labels
Websitewww.thejamfan.net,

Paul Richard Buckler (born 6 December 1955) is an English musician who is the former drummer of the Jam.

Early years

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Buckler was born in the town of Woking in the county of Surrey, England. He received his education at Sheerwater Secondary School, in Woking. Whilst there in the early 1970s, he joined other pupils in a newly formed band named the Jam.[2]

The Jam

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He was the drummer for the Jam from its formation in the early 1970s through to its break up in the early 1980s, during which time it became a critically acclaimed and commercially successful rock band with an original sound as part of the mod revival movement in England's music and fashion scenes of the period.[3]

Although the band's creative output came to be attributed primarily to its singer/guitarist Paul Weller, its rhythm section of Buckler and Bruce Foxton (bass guitar) were integral to its sound, and in retrospect Buckler felt that Weller had been given undue credit for the band's song catalogue to the detriment of its other members' contributions.[4]

The band broke up at the behest of Weller in 1982, and Buckler and Weller – apart from a brief greeting exchanged in passing at a chance meeting – have not spoken to one another since.[5]

Later career

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In 1983, Buckler set up a new band entitled Time UK, featuring himself on drums, Jimmy Edwards and Ray Simone, Danny Kustow, and the bassist Martin Gordon. Gordon's tenure was brief – he recorded demos and performed only one gig with the band before being replaced by Nick South. Time UK sold nearly 6,000 copies of their first single release "The Cabaret".[citation needed]

In the mid-1980s, Buckler briefly reunited with his former Jam bandmate Bruce Foxton, and with Jimmy Edwards they performed in a new band called Sharp, recording some new songs for the short-lived Unicorn record label. These recordings were subsequently reissued on a Time UK anthology release.

After Time UK broke up, Buckler moved into production, running a studio in Islington, working on the album Bound for Glory by the Highliners (which he also drummed for briefly in 1990). He was also involved in the production of the debut album of the Family Cat, Tell 'Em We're Surfin (1989).[6]

In the mid-1990s, Buckler abandoned professional music and went into business as an ad hoc carpenter, fashioning cabinets and 'distressed' furniture in Woking, Surrey.[7][5]

In November 2005, Buckler re-entered professional music when he set up a new band called the Gift, named after the final album release by the Jam, with Russell Hastings (lead vocals/guitar) and Dave Moore (Bass), with himself on drums, playing exclusively old material from the Jam's back catalogue. In 2007, Bruce Foxton joined as the bass-player (Moore moving to rhythm guitar and keyboards) and the new band began touring under the name of From the Jam. After four years of touring, Buckler quit From the Jam in September 2009, being replaced by Mark Brzezicki. Criticism of the new act from a distance by Paul Weller confirmed that it was not going to be a means of a reformation of the original band,[8] and Buckler felt that to continue performing with it without Weller, ran the risk of his and Foxton's finding themselves in the situation of becoming a Jam tribute band.[5]

In 2011, Buckler joined a short-lived new band named 'If' as its drummer, with Tim V from Sham 69 on vocals, and Ian Whitewood on 'second drums', Tony Feedback on guitar and Al Campbell on bass.

In July 2012, Buckler ceremonially unveiled an oak wood abstract art sculpture by Richard Heys, entitled "The Space Between", on the Guildford Road in Woking, commissioned at a cost of £45,000 by Woking Borough Council to commemorate the Jam in the band's home town.[9]

In 2013, Buckler moved into a management consultancy role for number of new musical acts, including singer-guitarist Sarah Jane, and the band the Brompton Mix.[10]

Buckler's autobiography, entitled That's Entertainment: My Life in The Jam, was published in 2015 by Omnibus Press.[11][12]

Personal life

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Buckler and his wife Lesley live in Woking, with two children, Jason (born 1986) and Holly (born 1993).[13] Since leaving the Jam he has authored several publications on the act's history.

Publications

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  • The Jam: Our Story (1994)
  • The Jam Unseen (2007)
  • That's Entertainment: My Life in the Jam (2015)
  • Dead Straight Guide to the Jam (2017)
  • The Start to '77 (2017)
  • This Day in Music's Guide to the Jam (2018)

References

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  1. ^ "Were The Jam the best punk band?". Wales Online. 16 February 2006. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  2. ^ "Break-up of The Jam was bitterest pill for Rick Buckler". Woking News and Mail. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  3. ^ The Jam: Sounds from the Street, by Graham Willmott (Pub. Reynolds & Hearn, 2003), ISBN 978-1903111666
  4. ^ Lyng, Eoghan (4 February 2019). "Catching Up With The Jam's Rick Buckler". Culturesonar.com.
  5. ^ a b c "Break-up of The Jam was bitterest pill for Rick Buckler". Woking News and Mail. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  6. ^ "Time for Truth – the Rick Buckler interview". Writewyattuk.com. 2 April 2015.
  7. ^ "Rick Buckler (The Jam) After They Were Famous (ITV 15th June 2002) - YouTube". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2 May 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  8. ^ "Terry talks to Rick Buckler - Part Two - YouTube". YouTube. Archived from the original on 5 May 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  9. ^ [1] [dead link‍]
  10. ^ "Rick Buckler (The Jam) talks about 'Mad, Bad and Dangerous'". YouTube. 29 March 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2014.
  11. ^ "Coming in 2015: Rick Buckler – Autobiography on Omnibus Press". Modculture.co.uk. 19 December 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  12. ^ Cole, Angela (3 March 2015). "Former drummer with The Jam, Rick Buckler, will be in Maidstone in June to promote his autobiography". Kentonline.co.uk. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  13. ^ "Former drummer with the Jam, Rick Buckler, took a whistle-stop tour of Sheppey to talk about his new book". Archived from the original on 16 March 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
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