The Elton John drummer …
Best-known as the drummer in Elton John’s early-’70s backing band, Nigel Olsson was born February 10, 1949, in the small Cheshire (now Merseyside) town of Wallasey, England. As a teenager, he lived in Sunderland, where he sang lead in a group called the Fireflies and took up the drums when their regular drummer quit.
At 17, he and good friend Mick Grabham successfully auditioned for the psychedelic pop band Plastic Penny, which released two albums from 1968-1969 and scored a hit with “Everything I Am” before disbanding. Olsson subsequently joined the Spencer Davis Group, which was reeling from the defection of frontman Stevie Winwood; the gig was short-lived as Davis broke up the band before the end of 1969, but Olsson met bassist Dee Murray, who would become his favorite rhythm section partner.
Looking for work, Olsson filled the drum slot in Uriah Heep for part of the 1970 debut album Very ‘eavy, Very ‘umble, but soon left to concentrate on session work. He and Murray had been playing with Elton John on the young singer/songwriter’s demos and they both joined his touring group in the spring of 1970. Olsson played on most of John’s early-’70s classics, including Honky Chateau, Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, and Captain Fantastic & the Brown Dirt Cowboy. After the latter was released in the spring of 1975, John sought to shake up his backing band by replacing both Olsson and Murray.
Olsson had released a solo album in 1971 called Nigel Olsson’s Drum Orchestra and Chorus and in the wake of his departure from John’s group, he cut a self-titled album for John’s Rocket label. Another eponymous effort followed for Columbia in 1978 and after a switch to Bang, Olsson scored a hit single in 1979 with “Dancin’ Shoes” (from the album Nigel). 1980 saw the release of a follow-up LP, Changing Tides, as well as Olsson’s membership in the Tremblers, a group uniting Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits fame with the Captain & Tennille’s Daryl Dragon. Also that year, Olsson and Murray were invited to rejoin John’s touring band, where they remained until 1984.
Despite extensive session work throughout the ’70s, Olsson was far less active in that area during the ’80s, spending more time on writing and producing. In 1991, he and ex-John guitarist Davey Johnstone formed the group Warpipes, which released the album Holes in the Heavens the following year before breaking up when their label went bankrupt. Olsson spent much of the ’90s away from music, aside from the occasional recording session, but in 2000 he rejoined John’s band once again and the following year he released a sequel to his debut, Nigel Olsson’s Drum Orchestra and Chorus Vol. 2: Move the Universe.
Words from allmusic.com. More information about Nigel Olsson at his official website.
Selected Discography
Move The Universe
Sony Music 2001
Tracks: Move The Universe, Take A Chance, Naked Without You, If I Was Love, Would I Lie To You, Building A Bird, When I'm Dead An' Gone, Say You Feel The Same, How Many Times, Trader, Goin' Down & If I Was Love (Reprise).
Musicians on the Move The Universe album: Nigel Olsson, Davey Johnstone, John Mahon, Guy Babylon, Fred Mandel, Bob Birch, Martin Tillman, Craig Eastman, Jimmy Z, Gigi Worth, Billy Trudel, Kathy Brown Babylon, Reggie Burrell, Miyakawa, Ken Stacy, Windy Wagner, Kai Olsson & Christian Vierra.
A Golden Classic Edition
Collectables Records 1997
Tracks: A Little Bit Of Soap, You Know I'll Always Love You, Dancin' Shoes, Part Of The Chosen Few, Say Goodbye To Hollywood, All It Takes, Thinking Of You, Living In A Fantasy, Cassey Blue & Au Revoir.
Musicians on the Nigel album: Nigel Olsson, Thom Fowle, Richie Zito, Ronn Price, Jay Graydon, Eddie Patterson, Richie Rising, James Stroud, Mike Baird, Ray Cooper, David Foster, Alan Feingold, Paul Schaffer, Paul Davis, Michael Boddicker, Ray Ranson, David Wintour, Don Barrett, Joe Chemay, Marilyn Scott, Stephanie Spruill, Bruce Johnston, Curt Becher, Jimmy Hass, Jon Joyce, Rhonda Riveria & Brenda Russell.
Changing Tides
Bang Records 1980
Tracks: Saturday Night, Fool Me Again, Only A Matter Of Time, If You Don’t Want Me To, That’s How Long, Showdown, Should We Carry On, Trapeze & If This Is Love.
Musicians on the Changing Tides album: Nigel Olsson, Kenny Mims, Richie Zito, Don Barrett, Dee Murray, Russell Ferrante, James Stroud, Elton John, Jo Ann Harris & Marilyn Scott.
Nigel
Bang Records 1979
Tracks : A Little Bit Of Soap, You Know I'll Always Love You, Dancin' Shoes, Part Of The Chosen Few, Say Goodbye To Hollywood, All It Takes, Thinking Of You, Living In A Fantasy, Cassey Blue & Au Revoir.
Musicians on the Nigel album: Nigel Olsson, Thom Fowle, Richie Zito, Ronn Price, Jay Graydon, Eddie Patterson, Richie Rising, James Stroud, Mike Baird, Ray Cooper, David Foster, Alan Feingold, Paul Schaffer, Paul Davis, Michael Boddicker, Ray Ranson, David Wintour, Don Barrett, Joe Chemay, Marilyn Scott, Stephanie Spruill, Bruce Johnston, Curt Becher, Jimmy Hass, Jon Joyce, Rhonda Riveria & Brenda Russell.
Nigel Olsson
CBS Records 1978
Tracks: Rainy Day, You Know I´ll Always Love You, Say Goodbye To Hollywood, Part Of The Chosen Few, Please Don´t Tease, All It Takes, Living In A Fantasy, Right Or Wrong, Cassey Blue & Au Revoir.
Musicians on the Nigel Olsson album: Nigel Olsson and others.
Nigel Olsson
Rocket Records 1975
Tracks: Something Lacking In Me, Don't Break A Heart, Tides, Only One Woman, Get It Up For Love, Songs I Sing. When You Close Your Eyes, Girl We've Got To Keep On, A Girl Like You, Give Me Something To Believe In, Just Another Lie & Can't You See.
Musicians on the Nigel Olsson album: Nigel Olsson and others.