Marching to a Different Drummer
My cousin, Richard Trosper, passed away last night. He was 41. Cancer...Rich was a free-spirited genius and a remarkable percussionist. I saw it in him when we were teen-agers. He lived in a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee then. He was already playing the drums, and to my thirteen year old mind he was already brilliant. He was turning me on to some cool music, stuff I just didn't have access to back in rural Indiana. Buddy Rich, Howling Wolf, Miles Davis, Bird, Duck Dunne... Years later, he took that passion for music that I saw in him as a boy, and as a man he made it come to life with his own, unique vision.
As the drummer for the Flipoff Pirates, Rich soared to new heights. A jam band reknowned through the music industry and the underground circuits, FOP counted people like Victor Jones, Dan Akroyd, and Billy Bob Thorton as fans. They were and are a tremendous band, a fusion of Frank Zappa and the Grateful Dead, with a bit of Bela Fleck and Bad Brains tossed in for good measure. Rich joined them in 2003 and really added to their already eclectic sound by incorporating his blend of Fusion, Rock, Jazz, and Indian Music to the mix.
So long Rich. I wish I'd have known you better. You will be missed.
posted by Bob Freeman at 3:06 PM
5 Comments:
41...too young. :( Such sad news, Bob. Here's to the memory of his music and may it always be with you, my friend.
Bob - thanks for your wonderful memorial to Rich Trosper. I am Rich's friend, married to his sister Violet Trosper. We really appreciate your kind and insightful thoughts about Rich - the best percussionist I ever heard on recorded music or witnessed live.
Rich Redfearn
I was good friends with Rich in high when his parents lived across the street from German town high the 1st time i met him he was in 10th grade maybe a friend brought me over to his house he had his drum kit set up on the patio near the pool He played about a 20 minute insane drums solo when he was thru he smashed his kit allover the patio LOL it was amazing(he was a huge Kieth Moon freak at this time) I use to spend hours on end listening to him play along to Who records and later on Rush records with his head phones on He could play anything Moon or Peart by age 15-16!! He was a monstrous drummer to say the least Rich was a unique individual and quite a character I'm sorry to hear he passed away at such a young age I hope he didnt suffer to much before he passed!! R.I.P Rich Trosper -- Marty Burke
Rick looks alot like his brother Herc in that picture... MB
I am deeply saddened to learn that Richard has passed on. Ironically, I decided to see what he was up to by means of a google search and I discovered this very sad news. Richard and I were at Germantown High School together. I was shocked to learn he passed. He and I were constantly playing music together. I was have a picture of us playing a gig together in 1982, we were juniors in High School. http://salcrocker.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/IMG_0589-e1441955008474.png.
God rest your soul my dear friend,
Sal
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