Dennis Chambers
Background information
Born	Dennis Milton Chambers (1959-05-09)May 9, 1959 (age 66) Baltimore,Maryland, U.S.
Genres	Jazz,jazz fusion,funk,latin rock
Occupation	Musician
Instrument	Drums
Years active	1978–present
Labels	Sugar Hill
Website	dennischambers.com

Dennis Milton Chambers (born May 9, 1959) is an Americanjazz fusion andfunk drummer. He was inducted into theModern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2001.^[1]

Chambers was born on May 9, 1959,^[2] inBaltimore,Maryland, U.S. He began drumming at the age of four years, and was gigging inBaltimore-area nightclubs by the age of six when the bass player for a local jazz band called The Fingertips overheard his drumming while being stuck in traffic.^[3] He was recruited in 1981 by theSugar Hill Label to be their "house drummer." Chambers played on many Sugar Hill releases.^{[citation needed]} Contrary to popular belief, he did not play on "Rapper's Delight" which was revealed in an interview withDrumeo on August 16, 2017.^[4]

In an interview by Bonedo in 2011, Chambers was asked who some of his influences and favorite drummers were and he mentionedClyde Stubblefield,Al Jackson Jr.,Steve Gadd,Vinnie Colaiuta,Gary Husband,Jack Dejohnette,Billy Cobham,Buddy Rich,Elvin Jones,Roy Haynes, andTony Williams.

In 1978 (at 18 years old) Chambers joinedParliament/Funkadelic, and stayed with them until 1985.^[5] In 1986 he joined theJohn Scofield band. Since then he has played with most of the major figures injazz fusion music.^[6]

He has recorded and performed withTom Coster,John Scofield,George Duke,Victor Wooten,Brecker Brothers,Santana,Steely Dan,Jeff Berlin,Parliament/Funkadelic,John McLaughlin,Niacin,Mike Stern,CAB,Greg Howe, and many others.^[7]

He has toured extensively withCarlos Santana, and is a member of the jazz-rock trioNiacin.

In December 2004, Chambers was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music fromBerklee College of Music during the inauguration of former president Roger H. Brown.^[8]In 2013 Chambers recorded the albumGroove and More, produced byLino Nicolosi andPino Nicolosi, for the Italian companyNicolosi Productions, published by Soul Trade.

Chambers plays and endorsesPearl Drums, pedals, hardware & racks,Zildjian cymbals, drumsticks and general accessories,Latin Percussion,Ddrum electronics andEvans Drumheads.^[9][10][11]

• DennisChambers.com
• Drummerworld: Dennis Chambers
• Dennis Chambers Interview NAMM Oral History Library (2020)

• 1959 births
• Living people
• American jazz drummers
• American funk drummers
• American male drummers
• African-American drummers
• Jazz fusion drummers
• P-Funk members
• Santana (band) members
• 20th-century American drummers
• CAB (band) members
• American male jazz musicians
• Steps Ahead members
• Steely Dan members
• Drummers from Maryland

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• Articles with unsourced statements from April 2022