Cozy Powell

Cozy Powell (Dec. 29, 1947 — April 5, 1998) was an English rock drummer who emerged in the early 1970s second iteration of the Jeff Beck Group. He headed the 1973 one-off Bedlam, then scored a UK solo hit with “Dance with the Devil,” followed with “Na Na Na” under the name Hammer. After a three-album run with Rainbow, Powell did 1980s stints with Whitesnake, Phenomena, ELP, and Black Sabbath. As a bandleader, he made the 1979–83 Polydor albums Over the Top, Tilt, and Octopuss, then returned with the 1992 Electrola disc The Drums Are Back.

Background

Cozy Powell was born Colin Trevor Flooks on December 29, 1947, in Cirencester, Gloucestershire. He took up drums at twelve in a school band and played with the Corals at local youth clubs. Powell adopted the nickname Cozy from American jazz drummer Cozy Cole and took his surname from the maiden name of his adoptive mother. He left school and worked in an office to finance his first Premier drum kit.

Powell joined the Sorcerers, a Birmingham vocal-harmony group that toured German nightclubs and cut a 1967 single of the Young Rascals number “Love Is a Beautiful Thing.” Back in England, they became Young Blood for the 1968 Pye single “Green Light.” He also partnered with guitarist Dave Ball and bassist Denny Ball in the Brummie trio Ideal Milk. They backed former Move bassist Ace Kefford in the Ace Kefford Stand, then regrouped as Big Bertha. The band issued the 1969 Atlantic single “The World’s an Apple” (b/w “Gravy Booby Jamm”) and toured Germany.

Birmingham club manager Phil Myatt recommended Powell to Peter Grant, who arranged a 1970 audition with guitarist Jeff Beck. Powell secured the position and accompanied Beck to Motown Studios in Detroit, where they taped unfinished instrumentals with the resident studio musicians, including bassist James Jamerson. Beck assembled a new quintet with singer Bobby Tench, bassist Clive Chaman, and keyboardist Max Middleton. The lineup made the 1971/72 Epic albums Rough and Ready and Jeff Beck Group (aka the “orange” album).

After the Beck lineup dissolved, Powell reunited with the Ball brothers and singer Frank Aiello in Beast, renamed after their 1973 Chrysalis album Bedlam, produced by Felix Pappalardi. The quartet toured the United States with Black Sabbath in early 1974 tour behind Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. Meanwhile, Powell worked as a session drummer for producer Mickie Most, whom he met during the Beck association. His credits included the 1973 albums Cosmic Wheels by Donovan and You and Me by Ten Years After keyboardist Chick Churchill, with guitarist Bernie Marsden.

During a CCS session, Most suggested a drum-led instrumental and devised the basic figure for the late-1973 RAK single “Dance with the Devil,” which peaked in February 1974 at No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart. Powell followed with “The Man in Black,” then formed Hammer with singer Aiello, Marsden, Chaman, and keyboardist Don Airey. In August 1974, they scored a No. 10 UK hit with “Na Na Na,” written by film composer John Cameron. After Hammer, Powell attempted a trio with guitarist Clem Clempson and bassist Greg Ridley, both of the just-disbanded Humble Pie, but the project collapsed when Clempson joined Colosseum II. Powell withdrew temporarily from music to pursue motor racing.

In September 1975, Ritchie Blackmore recruited Powell into Rainbow for the 1976 Polydor album Rising. The band followed with the 1977 concert set On Stage. During discussions with Rainbow management in November 1977, Polydor Japan international director Torio proposed a Powell solo album. Powell continued with Rainbow on the 1978 release Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll and the 1979 follow-up Down to Earth, which reunited him with Airey.

For the Polydor solo project, Powell recruited Airey and bassist Jack Bruce. Clempson and Marsden split tracks along with fellow guitarist Gary Moore while Airey rotated with former Beck sideman Max Middleton. Martin Birch produced and engineered the 1979 sessions at Central Sound Studios and the Town House in London for the instrumental album Over the Top.

Discography:

• Over the Top (1979)
• Tilt (1981)
• Octopuss (1983)
• The Drums Are Back (1992)
• Especially for You (1998)
• Edge of the World (2006 • Tipton, Entwistle & Powell, recorded 1996)

References and notes

• Classic Rock – April 1999. Early life, school years, Mickie Most association, Hammer, and Rainbow recruitment. (Profile)
• International Musician & Recording World – June 1980. Powell discusses early bands, Motown sessions, Rainbow, and his first solo album. (Interview)
• Cozy Powell interview – 1996. Firsthand account of Sorcerers, Youngblood, Beck, Most, Hammer, and Japanese album financing. (Geesin interview)
• All About Jazz – April 5, 2015. Documents Ideal Milk, Ace Kefford Stand, Big Bertha, and Bedlam chronology. (Ball biography)
• Cherry Red Records – Undated. Archival Bedlam documentation establishes earlier partnerships, recordings, and the 1974 breakup. (Anthology)
• Beat Instrumental – March 1974. Contemporary Powell interview documents Most sessions, Bedlam personnel, and “Dance with the Devil.” (Page 26)
• Official Charts – Undated. Confirms the UK peak and chart chronology of “Dance with the Devil.” (Chart history)
• Record World – October 13, 1979. Reports the November 1977 Japanese proposal, Polydor financing, and album personnel. (Page 130)
• Music Week – October 20, 1979. Contemporary Ariola advertisement confirms the album and participating musicians. (Page 45)
• MusicBrainz – Undated. Provides album personnel, track credits, production details, and studio information. (Release credits)