Eddie Rubin

A drummer and composer most widely recognized for his performances and album recordings with artists Neil Diamond, Billie Holiday, Johnny Rivers, and many other rock and jazz artists. Eddie was born as Edward Donald Rubin in Ohio, and raised in Venice, Los Angeles, California. His passion and love of drumming began at the early age of 5, and would play rhythms in his parent's kitchen on pots and pans. Rubin would later join band class in junior high school and later would continue with band classes at Venice High School. He also played in rock bands he formed with friends beginning in junior high school, and began playing outside gigs while in high school. Eventually Rubin met and became a student of Freddie Gruber, a highly respected drum teacher and jazz drummer who performed with Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, and was close friends with legendary drummer Buddy Rich. After graduating Venice High School, Rubin entered college to study music. He took performing arts and musicianship courses at a local community college for a couple years and then quit, deciding he just wanted to go out and get whatever work he could find as a drummer. Before he found success in the music industry Rubin worked various jobs such as installing curtains in people's homes. Rubin's career as a drummer started with offers to play small gigs with bands at various local clubs. Gradually over the course of a few years he developed his reputation among local musicians and eventually within the music industry. Eddie Rubin's first big role was performing as a duo with Johnny Rivers on the Hollywood's Sunset Strip. Around 1962 Johnny Rivers had just moved to Los Angeles from Louisiana hoping to find success as a singer and songwriter. In 1963 Rivers was asked by Bill Gazzari, owner of the Sunset Strip club Gazzari's, to fill in for his house band who had left. Rivers had no band members nor was he prepared to play the type of music Gazzari wanted. Johnny Rivers previously got to know Eddie Rubin when he would visit other local Hollywood clubs to see him perform. So Rivers told Rubin Gazzari needs a band and the two decided to perform at Gazzari's as a duo. Without time to rehearse, they just started playing some songs off the top of their head and crowds started coming in to hear them. Eventually Eddie Rubin and Rivers got an offer to be the first performers on opening night at the Whisky a Go Go in West Hollywood, California drawing even larger crowds than they had at Gazzari's. It was here at the Whisky that Johnny Rivers recorded the album Johnny Rivers At the Whisky a Go Go. After the covers of "Memphis" and "Maybelline" on the album became hits, Rubin and Rivers appeared on the music variety TV show Shindig! (1964) to perform the two songs. Rubin's drumming career was eventually propelled upwards when he got an offer to become a part of singer and songwriter Neil Diamond's band in 1969. In 1970 Rubin recorded live with Diamond for the album "Gold: Live at the Troubadour," which was initially certified Gold by the RIAA and later went 2x platinum. After touring with Diamond around the world, Rubin took time off from drumming to pursue his side interest of photography. Eddie Rubin passed away in his home in Venice Beach, California on April 24, 2019, at age 79 from cardiac arrest. He had three children and had a lifelong love of animals and was a strong environmentalist.