SPINAL TAP Drummer RIC PARNELL Dead At 70

Ric Parnell, who performed Mick Shrimpton, the drummer of SPINAL TAP within the mockumentary “This Is Spinal Faucet”, has died on the age of 70. Parnell was additionally a onetime member of ATOMIC ROOSTER, a Nineteen Seventies British arduous rock/progressive rock band which was led by extraordinary keyboardist Vincent Crane.

Ric performed drums on solo albums for RADIO BIRDMAN‘s Deniz Tek, who paid tribute to his good friend in a social media submit on Sunday (Could 1). He wrote: “Ric Parnell died early this morning.

“From day one, assembly him, I discovered him to be partaking, heat, and delightfully humorous. We hit it off as buddies instantly. He had a cheerful spirit that made you’re feeling good, simply being round him.

“Ric‘s wonderful historical past within the music world is well-known. I had the nice success to work with Ric on three albums. Studio time was informal, enjoyable, and scattered with tales and humor. Ric by no means really ready for a session, however would give you the beat and the association on the spot. He would say ‘How does this subsequent music go?’ I would play it to him on a guitar, and he’d give it some thought for a minute. Then he would say ‘Proper! Received one thing.’ Then he would nail it in a single or two takes, and it was as good because it will get.

“Ric was one in every of a form. He lives on in his music, and in our hearts.”

Parnell massive break got here in 1984 when he performed the function of Mick Shrimpton in “This Is Spinal Faucet”. His character was one in every of an extended line of unlucky drummers who all perish from freak accidents, his personal destiny being spontaneous combustion.

In a 2007 interview with Missoulian, he stated about how he landed the function: “The primary query they requested was, ‘What do you concentrate on a film that is going to tear your profession aside?’ I stated, ‘It is best to have made this film about 10 years in the past.’ They then requested me what different bands I would been in, and I stated, ‘Nicely, I used to be in a band referred to as ATOMIC ROOSTER.’ They checked out one another and stated, ‘Yep, that is it, you are our man.'”

In line with Wikipedia, Parnell remained with SPINAL TAP when it grew to become a working band, recording a soundtrack album and selling the movie with reside exhibits and a 1984 look on “Saturday Evening Stay”. The character of Mick Shrimpton having died in “This Is Spinal Faucet”, Parnell assumed the function of his “twin brother” drummer Ric Shrimpton for the group’s appearances subsequent to the movie. This continued by the band’s 1992 reunion album “Break Like The Wind” and the related live performance tour. Parnell was not part of more moderen SPINAL TAP exercise.