Jim McCarty

Jim McCarty
Jim McCarty Basingstoke 2008 By Marc Lacaze
Background information
Birth name	James Stanley McCarty
Born	(1943-07-25) 25 July 1943
Origin	Walton, Liverpool, England, United Kingdom
Genres	Blues rock, psychedelic rock, progressive rock, hard rock, folk rock
Instruments	Drums, Vocals, Guitar
Years active	1960s–present
Associated acts	The Yardbirds Renaissance Shoot (band) Illusion Pilgrim (band)

For the guitarist, see Jim McCarty (guitarist). For the author, see Jim McCarty (author).

James Stanley "Jim" McCarty (born 25 July 1943) is an English musician, best known as the drummer for The Yardbirds and Renaissance.

Early life

He was born at Walton Hospital in Liverpool, England, but his family moved to London when he was two years old. He attended Hampton School in Richmond upon Thames where Paul Samwell-Smith was a fellow pupil. When playing with the early Yardbirds, he worked as a stockbroker in London Stock Exchange.

The Yardbirds

Main article: The Yardbirds

Renaissance

Main article: Renaissance

Other bands

He has also played in the bands Shoot (on lead vocals), Illusion (as acoustic guitarist, with three other ex-members of Renaissance), Stairway and Pilgrim.

McCarty played in the Yardbirds reunion band Box of Frogs in the 1980s, and has been part of the Yardbirds' reformation since 1992. McCarty has also been a member of The British Invasion All-Stars, and his own Jim McCarty Band.

Discography

Most of McCarty's recordings have been issued under the names of the group he was in at the time, but two solo CDs have been issued under the name "James McCarty" -

• Out of the Dark (1994)
  • "Out of the Dark"
  • "We're Still Dreamers"
  • "Signs from an Age Gone By"
  • "Just a Breath Away"
  • "Just Breaking Through"
  • "What if Summer Never Came"
  • "Still You Don't Believe"
  • "Longing (Link)"
  • "Home is Where the Heart Is"
  • "Back to the Earth"

• Sitting on the Top of Time (2009) - co-produced by Ron Korb.
  • 1. The Outsider
  • 2. Blowing Through The Countryside
  • 3. Living From The Inside Out
  • 4. Hidden Nature
  • 5. For Eloise
  • 6. Temporary Life
  • 7. Near End Of May
  • 8. Hummingbird
  • 9. Calling Out To You
  • 10. Sitting On The Top Of Time
  • 11. Shangri-La

Innovative Influence

The Yardbirds, 1966. Clockwise from left: Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Keith Relf, Jim McCarty, and Chris Dreja.

McCarty is respected for the innovative drumming styles which he introduced into rock music, particularly psychedelic music during the 1960s. There are The Yardbirds songs, like "Train Kept A-Rollin'", when McCarty produces a train style beat, and songs like "Mister You’re a Better Man Than I" and "Shapes of Things" when he often changes tempo mid song and as well as produces a martial beat, such as the fast military gallop which drives the Shapes of Things solo. "I'm A Man" has what became known as a speed metal beat, "I'm Not Talking" has the strong back beat. Although not as flamboyant as his contemporaries Keith Moon and Mitch Mitchell, McCarty’s drumming influenced an entire generation of drummers to experiment beyond the normal rhythm patterns that were prevalent in early Rock 'n' Roll, and he is especially recognized for his early career innovations, many of which received extensive American and European airplay, such as "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" (a psychedelic rock highlight).

Bibliography

• Yardbirds (John Platt, Chris Dreja, Jim McCarty) Sidgwick & Jackson, 1983. ISBN 0-283-98982-3.
• Yardbirds : The Ultimate Rave-Up (Greg Russo) Crossfire Publications, 1997. ISBN 0-9648157-8-8.
• The Yardbirds (Alan Clayson) Backbeat Books, 2002. ISBN 0-87930-724-2

External links

• Jim McCarty at the Internet Movie Database
• Jim McCarty's website