Neal Morgan (born March 7, 1979) is an American drummer, arranger of drums and percussion, and singer-songwriter. Morgan is best known as the drummer for

Joanna Newsom Joanna Newsom (born January 18, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. After recording and self-releasing two EPs in 2002, Newsom signed to the independent label Drag City (record label), Drag City. Her debut album, ''The Milk-Eyed ...

and Bill Callahan, among other songwriters, and for five solo albums. The first three of Morgan's albums were composed of only his own drumming and singing. His 2009 debut album ''To The Breathing World'' and the 2011 LP ''In The Yard'' were self-releases distributed by Drag City. His third LP, the self-titled spoken album ''Neal Morgan,'' was released by Portland Oregon label Party Damage in 2014. On May 5, 2017 Morgan released his fourth full-length album, ''Sketchbook March 2015 - March 2016'' digitally, with a cassette release by Portland label Beacon Sound. The 24-song 85-minute ''PAW'', his fifth album, was released March 14, 2025 with a limited edition cassette and digital streaming on all platforms. It was the artist's first collection of pop songs and the first of his albums to feature collaborators (see
PAW lyrics & credits
. In a March 12, 2025 review, Portland's Willamette Week called the album "''One of the more intriguing collections of music to come out of Portland in recent memory"'' and noted that “''In terms of its ambition, PAW brings to mind Cindy Lee’s'' ''Diamond Jubilee”.'' The album was covered and/or playlisted upon its release by Brooklyn Vegan, Stereogum, NPR Music, Talkhouse, AU Review, among other music review outlets. Morgan began drumming for Joanna Newsom in 2006 for the touring cycle in support of her second album Ys. In a 2007 interview, Newsom said of Morgan "I am in awe of him...he elevates literally every musical project he touches." He arranged drums and percussion for the live performance of that material as well as arranging for songs from her debut release,

The Milk-Eyed Mender ''The Milk-Eyed Mender'' is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Joanna Newsom, released on March 23, 2004, by Drag City. Background Newsom wrote all the songs on the album except for "Three Little Babes", a traditional Appala ...

. Morgan contributed singing as well as performing his drum and percussion arrangements on Newsom's 2007 EP Joanna Newsom and the Ys Street Band. Morgan arranged and performed the drums and percussion on Newsom's third record, the triple album

Have One On Me ''Have One on Me'' is the third studio album by the American singer-songwriter Joanna Newsom, released on February 23, 2010, via Drag City (record label), Drag City. It is a triple album produced by Newsom and mixed by longtime collaborators Jim ...

, released in 2010, and accompanied Newsom in live performance for the tour cycle for that record, often opening shows with solo sets of drumming and singing. He arranged and performed drums and percussion for the songs ''Sapokanikan, Goose Eggs,'' and ''Waltz of the 101st Lightborne'' from Newsom's 2015 LP Divers. Morgan began drumming for Bill Callahan in 2009 at the tail end of Callahan's touring for his second self-titled album Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle. Morgan and Callahan performed as a duo for a tour of the Southern United States in late 2009 and a second tour of Spain, France and Portugal in 2010. Morgan arranged drums and percussion on Callahan's third self-titled record,

Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre originating in Judaism in the centuries following the Babylonian exile (597–587 BCE) but persisting in Christianity and Islam. In apocalypse, a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a ...

, released in 2011, and along with guitarist Matt Kinsey accompanied Callahan for the tour cycle in support of that album. He was featured in the 2012 Hanly Banks documentary ''Apocalypse,'' which followed a 2011 Bill Callahan tour in the United States. Morgan's second LP, ''In The Yard'', featured Philip Guston's painting ''Evidence,'' 1970 on the cover. Morgan has lectured on the painter Philip Guston since 2012. He gave four lectures on the west coast of the United States on the occasion of Guston's 100th birthday in June, 2013. Morgan arranged and performed drums and percussion with

Robin Pecknold Robin Noel Pecknold (born March 30, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter, who serves as the principal songwriter and vocalist for indie folk band Fleet Foxes, with whom he has recorded four studio albums. He is known for his distinct baritenor ...

and Morgan Henderson on the soundtrack for the documentary ''Birth Story: Ina May Gaskin & The Farm Wives'' in 2012. He arranged and performed and was the recording engineer for drums and percussion for Roy Harper's ''Man Or Myth,'' a September 23, 2013 release on Bella Union. On October 22, 2013, Morgan performed the song ''Corduroy'' from

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...

's album Vitalogy with

and Daniel Rossen on

Late Night With Jimmy Fallon ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of the '' Late Night'' franchise. Hosted by Jimmy Fallon,

, as a part of that show's "Pearl Jam Week". Morgan arranged and performed drums and percussion for composer Brocker Way's score of

The Battered Bastards of Baseball ''The Battered Bastards of Baseball'' is a 2014 in film, 2014 documentary film about the Portland Mavericks, a defunct Minor League Baseball, minor league baseball team in Portland, Oregon. They played five seasons in the Class A-Short Season Nor ...

, a Netflix Original Documentary released July 11, 2014. Along with

and Morgan Henderson, he arranged and performed drums for the score of ''A Nice Day For A Walk To The End,'' a film by Sean Pecknold and Matt Daniels, released July 2014. Morgan and

scored the Off-Broadway play ''Wyoming,'' which was written by Brian Watkins and directed by Danya Taymor. The play was presented at NYC's Theater For The New City from January 15–31, 2015. On May 18, 2016, while answering fan questions on his Instagram account, Pecknold announced that his band

Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes are an American indie folk band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 2006. The band currently consists of Robin Pecknold (vocals, guitar), Skyler Skjelset (guitar, mandolin, backing vocals), Casey Wescott (keyboards, mandolin, backin ...

was working on new material with Morgan as the drummer. In late 2017/early 2018, Morgan arranged and performed drums and percussion for composer Brocker Way's score of the 2018 Netflix documentary series ''Wild, Wild Country''. https://westernvinyl.com/shop/wv179 Morgan lives in Portland, OR and was born and raised in Nevada City, CA.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Neal 1979 births Living people Musicians from Portland, Oregon 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 21st-century American drummers 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians Drummers from Oregon