Alan Meyers, drummer of the one-hit wonder band Devo whose song "Whip It" made them famous in 1980 made them famous, has died after a battle with brain cancer. He was 58, according to The Associated Press.
Alan Myers died Monday in Los Angeles, where he lived, Devo spokesman Michael Pilmer said Wednesday.
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Alan Myers was the band’s drummer from 1976 to 1985 during Devo’s heyday. Devo was formed in Akron, Ohio, in the early 1970s by Mark Mothersbaugh and Gerald Casale, and introduced themselves to the world in 1977 by making a frenetic version of the Rolling Stones’ ”Satisfaction.”
Casale told The Associated Press on Wednesday that without Alan Myers, Devo never would have reached the heights it did with the song "Whip It," calling him the best drummer he has ever played with.
“We were mostly in basements and garages writing songs. It was Alan that brought everything to life,” Casale said. “That was the catalyst where everything clicked.”
He called Alan Myers “the human metronome.”
“People watching him thought we were using a drum machine,” Casale said. “Nobody had ever drummed like that.”
Casale described meeting and playing with Alan Myers for the first time in 1976. After their first session ended, Casale — who had been facing away from Myers — turned around to see the drummer standing on one leg with his eyes closed, practicing the meditative Chinese martial art of Tai Chi.
“I thought, ‘Man, this guy really is Devo. He fits right in,’” Casale said, adding that Tai Chi was one of the drummer’s greatest passions. “Some bands would be doing drugs and drinking. Alan would find quiet places backstage and do a full session of Tai Chi.”
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