Brian Tichy ( ; born August 18, 1968) is an American musician, best known as having been the drummer for
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...
,
Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Idol achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X ...
,
Foreigner,
Sass Jordan, and
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...
. He was the drummer of
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...
from 2010 to 2013. His surname means ''silent'' in Czech, Slovak and other
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages, also known as the Slavonic languages, are Indo-European languages spoken primarily by the Slavs, Slavic peoples and their descendants. They are thought to descend from a proto-language called Proto-Slavic language, Proto- ...
. In 2015, he became a full-time member of
Operation: Mindcrime and
The Dead Daisies.
Career
Tichy began playing drums at age eight and started playing guitar at age 12. His earliest influences include
Kiss
A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...
with
Peter Criss as his main influence,
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
,
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...
with
Nicko McBrain,
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...
,
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formativ ...
, and
Van Halen
Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1973. Credited with restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene, Van Halen was known for their energetic live performances and the virtuosity of their guit ...
Since attending
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...
from 1986 until 1990, Tichy has toured/recorded with a multitude of artists including
Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Idol achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X ...
,
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...
,
Seether
Seether are a South African Rock music, rock band founded in 1999 in Pretoria, Gauteng. The band originally performed under the name Saron Gas until 2002, when they moved to the United States and changed it to Seether to avoid confusion with ...
,
Velvet Revolver
Velvet Revolver was an American hard rock supergroup consisting of Guns N' Roses members Slash (lead guitar), Duff McKagan (bass, backing vocals) and Matt Sorum (drums, backing vocals), alongside Dave Kushner (rhythm guitar) formerly of pu ...
,
Foreigner,
Pride & Glory,
Glenn Hughes,
Sass Jordan,
Slash's Snakepit,
Randy Jackson's China Rain,
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...
and most recently
The Dead Daisies.
Ball
While Tichy has primarily toured and recorded with others playing drums, he has fronted his own band, Ball, in which he sings and plays guitar. Due to the demise of his record label (Time Bomb Recordings), Ball's ''American Aggression'' CD never was formally released. Ball did manage to release a CD, ''The Grand Human Disaster Scenario'' (only in Japan) in May 1999. This CD contains what were essentially the demos that led to the record deal with Time Bomb at the end of 1999. His increasing role as co-songwriter with
Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Idol achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X ...
that started at the end of 2003 limited his time to focus on Ball.
Billy Idol
The Idol/Tichy writing partnership sparked the recording of Billy Idol's first CD since 1993. ''
Devil's Playground'' (
Sanctuary Records
Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and is, as of 2013, a subsidiary of BMG Rights Management solely for reissues. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest ...
) was recorded in 2004 and contained 8 Idol/Tichy tracks. The CD was released in March 2005 and they toured for the remainder of the year.
While writing in 2006 for a follow-up Idol CD, Tichy and Idol recorded a Christmas album. This was done on their own, in Idol and Tichy's rehearsal studio with Tichy performing drums, guitar, and bass, as well as engineering and co-producing. ''
Happy Holidays'' by Idol was released in November 2006 through
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was r ...
and in Europe.
Foreigner
Tichy joined
Foreigner in 1998 and remained until 2000. He rejoined briefly in 2007 substituting for
Jason Bonham. He then returned from 2008 until 2010, recording the album ''
Can't Slow Down''. He returned for one show in summer 2011, substituting for Mark Schulman, who had recently lost his father. Tichy rejoined Foreigner for the month of August 2012 for live performances, replacing the departed Schulman once again.
Other projects
Tichy filled in for
Seether
Seether are a South African Rock music, rock band founded in 1999 in Pretoria, Gauteng. The band originally performed under the name Saron Gas until 2002, when they moved to the United States and changed it to Seether to avoid confusion with ...
drummer John Humphrey in April 2007, toured with
Foreigner through spring of 2009 (replacing Jason Bonham), and recently completed a multi-year involvement with Billy Idol. He has written music for television and film, and recorded with European female metal singer
Marya Roxx.
On September 25, 2010, Tichy organized, produced and played in the drummer tribute "Bonzo, The Groove Remains the Same", commemorating the 30th anniversary of the death of Led Zeppelin's
John Bonham
John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980) was an English musician who was the drummer of the rock band Led Zeppelin. Noted for his speed, power, fast single-footed kick drumming, distinctive sound, and feel for groove, John Bonh ...
. In 2011, Tichy formed S.U.N. (Something Unto Nothing) as guitarist, with vocalist
Sass Jordan, bassist Michael Devin, and drummer
Tommy Stewart. In 2014, Tichy joined 'Sweet & Lynch', featuring Michael Sweet, George Lynch and James Lomenzo. In 2018 Tichy replaced Shane Gaalaas as the support drummer for Japanese rock band
B'z, a band he had worked with previously as a session musician.
Whitesnake
Tichy was announced as the new drummer for
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...
on June 18, 2010. After several years of worldwide touring, Tichy quit Whitesnake on January 4, 2013, as he planned to focus more time on S.U.N.
Speed bag
Tichy became a
speed bag
A punching bag (or British English punchbag) is a sturdy bag designed to be repeatedly punched. A punching bag is usually cylindrical and filled with various materials of suitable hardness.
History
Punching bags have been used in martial arts ...
enthusiast while on tour with Foreigner and quickly got with some of the best speed baggers around to learn and increase his own skills. During the 2009–10 tour with Foreigner, Tichy hung several speed bag wall units inside the bands equipment truck and created the "Speed Bag Truck", hosting area speed bag enthusiasts from various areas when the band played in their town. Some of the best speed bag talent in the U.S. joined Tichy in the truck before concerts, punching away. Soon after, he began promoting his own punching skills via his
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
videos for both
physical fitness
Physical fitness is a state of health and well-being and, more specifically, the ability to perform aspects of Outline of sports, sports, occupations, and daily activities. Physical fitness is generally achieved through proper nutrition, modera ...
, and also as a musical instrument. He always planned to incorporate the speed bag into his drumkit, which was first unveiled during his appearance on "That Metal Show" on VH-1 classic, in April 2012, using a UBS1 freestanding floor frame from UBS1S Balazboxing. This is the first known inclusion of a speed bag by a professional drummer as a rhythm instrument in a major public appearance.
Discography and touring
;With Gene Simmons Band
* 2024: Touring South America & Europe
;With Something Unto Nothing
* 2013
;With
The Dead Daisies
* 2014: ''Face I Love''
* 2016: ''
Make Some Noise''
* 2022: ''Radiance''
;With
Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Idol achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X ...
* 2005: ''
Devil's Playground''
* 2006: ''
Happy Holidays'' Billy Idol Co-produced, recorded, engineered and mixed by Tichy and Idol. All
instruments performed by Tichy except keys by Derek Sherinian
* 2008: ''
The Very Best of Billy Idol: Idolize Yourself''
* Touring drummer since 2001; US, Europe, Canada
;With
Derek Sherinian
Derek Sherinian (born August 25, 1966) is an American keyboardist who has toured and recorded for Alice Cooper, Billy Idol, and Joe Bonamassa, among others. He was also a member of Dream Theater from 1994 to 1999, is the founder of Planet X (ban ...
* 2003: ''
Black Utopia''
* 2004: ''
Mythology
Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...
''
* 2006: ''
Blood of the Snake''
* 2009: ''
Molecular Heinosity''
;With
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Kenny Wayne Shepherd (born Kenneth Wayne Brobst; June 12, 1977) is an American guitarist. He has released several studio albums and experienced significant commercial success as a blues rock artist.
Early life
Shepherd was born in Shrevepo ...
* 2004: ''
The Place You're In''
;With Ball
* 1999: ''Grand Human Disaster Scenario'' (Japan only)
* 2000: ''American Aggression'' (Only available through BrianTichy.com)
* 2001: ''A Study in Persistence'' (Only available through BrianTichy.com)
* 2003: ''Bleed Defeat'' (Only available through BrianTichy.com)
;With
Gilby Clarke
Gilbert J. Clarke (born August 17, 1962) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is known for having a three-year tenure as the rhythm guitarist of Guns N' Roses, replacing Izzy Stradlin in 1991 during the Use Your ...
* 1998: ''
Rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds.
Types of polyisoprene ...
''
* 2002: ''
Swag''
* 2007: ''
Gilby Clarke
Gilbert J. Clarke (born August 17, 1962) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is known for having a three-year tenure as the rhythm guitarist of Guns N' Roses, replacing Izzy Stradlin in 1991 during the Use Your ...
''; Best Of
* Various years of touring US
;With
Vinnie Moore
* 1996: ''
Out of Nowhere''
* Toured '91 and '92, opened 10 shows for
Rush
;With Ana Sidel
* 2005: "A Solas..."
* (8 tracks) recorded
;With Nicklebag:
* 1996: ''12 Hits & a Bump''
* 1997: ''Mas Feedback''
* Japan and US touring
;With
Stevie Salas
Stevie Salas (born November 17, 1964) is an American guitarist, author, television host, music director, record producer, film composer, and former advisor of contemporary music at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Salas ...
* 1993: ''Presents: The Electric Pow Wow''
* 1994: ''Back From The Living''
* 1996: ''Anthology 1987–1994''
* 1997: ''Le Bootleg (Live In Paris)''
* 1997: ''Seoul Power''
* 1998: ''The Sometimes Almost Never Was''
* 2001: ''Shapeshifter (The Fall And Rise Of Stevie No Wonder)''
* Various years of touring Japan and Europe
;With
Pride & Glory
* 1994: ''
Pride & Glory''
* Toured US, Europe, Japan
;With
B'z
* 2000: "
Juice
Juice is a drink made from the extraction or Cold-pressed juice, pressing of the natural liquid contained in fruit and vegetables. It can also refer to liquids that are flavored with concentrate or other biological food sources, such as meat ...
"
* 2000: ''
Eleven''
* 2003: ''
Big Machine''
* 2019: ''
New Love''
* 2022: ''
Highway X
''Highway X'' is the twenty-second studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on August 10, 2022, and was their first album released after the COVID-19 pandemic started.
The album was released in three editions: A standard editio ...
''
;With
TMG
* 2004: ''
TMG I''
;With
Sass Jordan
* 1994: ''Rats'' and Summer Tour
;With
Tommy Shaw
Tommy Roland Shaw (born September 11, 1953) is an American singer and guitarist best known for his tenure in the rock band Styx (band), Styx as co-lead vocalist. In between his stints with Styx, he has played with other groups including Damn Yan ...
and
Jack Blades
Jack Martin Blades (born April 24, 1954) is an American rock musician. He has worked in the bands Rubicon (American band), Rubicon, Night Ranger (as bassist and one of the lead vocalists), and Damn Yankees (band), Damn Yankees (as one of the f ...
* 2007: Shaw/Blades: "Influences" (8 tracks) recorded in 2004
;With
Jack Blades
Jack Martin Blades (born April 24, 1954) is an American rock musician. He has worked in the bands Rubicon (American band), Rubicon, Night Ranger (as bassist and one of the lead vocalists), and Damn Yankees (band), Damn Yankees (as one of the f ...
* 2012: ''Rock 'N Roll Ride'' (4 tracks)
;With
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...
* 2011:
Forevermore
* 2013:
Made in Japan
;For MasterSource Music Catalog:
* Since 2000: Chief rock songwriter. MasterSource gets music placed in TV and movies. Tichy's include;
''
Law & Order
''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise.
''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...
'', ''
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', ''
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
''The 40-Year-Old Virgin'' is a 2005 American romantic comedy film directed by Judd Apatow (in his feature directorial debut), who produced the film with Clayton Townsend and Shauna Robertson. It features Steve Carell as the titular 40-y ...
'', ''
Supergroup'', ''
The Osbournes'', ''
Punk'd
''Punk'd'' is an American hidden camera–practical joke reality television series that first aired on MTV in 2003. It was created by Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, with Kutcher serving as producer and host. It bears a resemblance to both ...
'', ''
Pimp My Ride
''Pimp My Ride'' is a staged American television series produced by MTV and hosted by rapper Xzibit, which ran for six seasons on MTV from 2004 to 2007. In each episode, a car in poor condition is both restored and customized. The work on th ...
'', and countless others.
;Other projects
* 1991: Randy Jackson's China Rain – ''Bed of Nails''
* 1992: RawHead – ''Flounder''
* 1993: The Gallows Humor - "In Dying Need"
* 1994: The Gallows Humor - "What You Hear In The Dark" (Appears on 2 tracks: "Walking The Dogma" & "Mozart, Joyce and Sodomy")
* 1994: ''Guitar's Practicing Musicians, Vol. 3'' (Pride & Glory – "The Wizard")
* 1997: ''Return of the Comet – Tribute to Ace Frehley''; "Rip It Out", all instruments and vox...
* 1998: Taisuke – ''Heavy Pop''
* 1999: Shameless – ''Backstreet Anthems''
* 2000: Shameless – ''Queen 4 a Day''
* 2000: Stevie Rachelle – ''Since Sixty-Six''
* 2001: Sweet Emotion – ''The Songs of Aerosmith Tribute''
* 2004:
Richie Kotzen – ''Shapes of Things to Come'' (bonus track)
* 2005: Iron Maiden Tribute: ''Numbers from the Beast''; "Run to the Hills" with Michael Schenker and Tony Franklin
* 2006: The Beatles Tribute: ''Butchering the Beatles''; "
Tomorrow Never Knows
"Tomorrow Never Knows" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released in August 1966 as the final track on their album ''Revolver'', although it was the firs ...
" with Billy idol, Steve Stevens and Blasko
* 2006:
Marco Mendoza: ''Live for Tomorrow'' (3 tracks)
* 2007: ''Maarja'': Produced by Kevin Shirley (Zeppelin, Maiden) featuring Derek Sherinian, Paul Crook and Scott Metaxes
* 2009:
Ace Frehley
Paul Daniel "Ace" Frehley (, ; born April 27, 1951) is an American musician who was the original lead guitarist, occasional lead vocalist and founding member of the rock band Kiss (band), Kiss. He invented the persona of The Spaceman (a.k.a. ...
: ''
Anomaly'' – "
Fox on the Run"
* September 25, 2010: Produced ''Bonzo, The Groove Remains the Same'', first ever tribute to
John Bonham
John Henry Bonham (31 May 1948 – 25 September 1980) was an English musician who was the drummer of the rock band Led Zeppelin. Noted for his speed, power, fast single-footed kick drumming, distinctive sound, and feel for groove, John Bonh ...
, drummer of
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
.
* 2011:
Steven Tyler
Steven Victor Tallarico (born March 26, 1948), known professionally as Steven Tyler, is an American singer and songwriter. Tyler is best known as the lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the keyboards, h ...
– "
(It) Feels So Good"
* 2013: Steve Saluto: ''12''
* 2015
Lynch Mob-
Rebel
Other artists Tichy has toured with:
* 1995:
Slash's Snakepit (1995 World Tour)
* 1998–2000:
Foreigner
* 2000:
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...
(Ozzfest 2000)
* 2001:
Glenn Hughes
* 2005:
Velvet Revolver
Velvet Revolver was an American hard rock supergroup consisting of Guns N' Roses members Slash (lead guitar), Duff McKagan (bass, backing vocals) and Matt Sorum (drums, backing vocals), alongside Dave Kushner (rhythm guitar) formerly of pu ...
(three-week fill-in for Matt Sorum due to hand injury)
* 2006–07:
Foreigner (fill-in dates for current Foreigner drummer Jason Bonham)
* 2007:
Seether
Seether are a South African Rock music, rock band founded in 1999 in Pretoria, Gauteng. The band originally performed under the name Saron Gas until 2002, when they moved to the United States and changed it to Seether to avoid confusion with ...
(one-month fill-in for festivals)
* 2010:
The Guess Who
The Guess Who was a Canadian rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1965. The band found their greatest success in the late 1960s and early 1970s, under the leadership of singer/keyboardist Burton Cummings and guitarist Randy Bachman, wit ...
(fill-in)
* 2013:
Geoff Tate (fill-in)
* 2014:
Geoff Tate (fill-in)
References
External links
The official Brian Tichy websiteBrian Tichy interview for the Russian website about Whitesnake2012 Audio Interview with Brian Tichy from the Podcast "I'd Hit That"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tichy, Brian
1968 births
Living people
People from Denville Township, New Jersey
Foreigner (band) members
The Ozzy Osbourne Band members
American heavy metal drummers
Berklee College of Music alumni
Musicians from Morris County, New Jersey
The Dead Daisies members
20th-century American drummers
American male drummers
Whitesnake members
Pride and Glory (band) members
Operation: Mindcrime (band) members
Seether members
Tak Matsumoto Group members
Drummers from New Jersey