Def Leppard drummer, Rick Allen, lost his left arm in a car crash in Sheffield, England on New Year's Eve 1984. During a recent appearance on The Greg Hill Show, Allen was asked if he thought he was done drumming after the accident.
Says Rick: "I did. I honestly thought that was it. When I finally realized that I'd actually lost my arm, when I came around in hospital, I really didn't wanna be here and I didn't want to see anybody. I think the only person I wanted to see was my brother and my parents, but I just wanted to disappear, I felt so self-conscious. And then a friend of mine, Mutt Lange, our producer, he came in to see me, and he just lifted me up, and he turned my attention to what I could do, whereas I was sort of obsessing on everything that I couldn't do, and he really helped me really dig in and find the power of the human spirit, and that's what kind of lifted me out of it."
On returning to drumming with one arm at the level that he does with Def Leppard, Rick adds: "When I look back now, I realize what that must look like from the outside. But I was very fortunate that all that information of having two arms was in my head, and it was almost like this natural thing. All the information that used to go to my left arm, kind of went to the rest of my limbs, so I was able to express myself, even though it was in a in a different way, but I was still able to emulate a lot of the things that I did prior to losing my arm."
Raven Drum Foundation - the organization founded by Rick Allen and singer-songwriter / healing arts practitioner Lauren Monroe - has announced its first benefit concert taking place in New York City.
Tomorrow, Thursday, March 14, at The Cutting Room, Allen and Monroe will perform a set of Monroe’s original music, followed by an All-Star Jam including musical luminaries such as Paul Shaffer and Will Lee (the World’s Most Dangerous Band), Peter Criss (KISS), Jim Keltner (Ringo Starr, John Lennon, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, The Traveling Wilburys), Eddie Brigati (The Rascals), Liberty DeVitto (Billy Joel), Duane Trucks (Widespread Panic), Shawn Pelton (Saturday Night Live Band), Corky Laing (Mountain), Christine Ohlman (Saturday Night Live Band), Simon Kirke (Bad Company), and more. Maria Milito of Q104.3 will emcee the show, with musical direction by Raven Drum Foundation board member Billy Amendola.
In addition to general admission tickets, VIP packages are available, allowing access to a reception including an artist meet & greet, silent auction, light bites, and complimentary beverages. Items in the auction will include original mixed media art by Allen and Monroe, Def Leppard summer tour tickets and meet & greet packages, a fire helmet signed by actor Steve Buscemi, and other autographed memorabilia from the participating artists.
Get tickets here; further details can be found here.
