Vinnie Paul | |
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 Vinnie Paul in 2008 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Vincent Paul Abbott |
| Born | (1964-03-11)March 11, 1964 Abilene, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | June 22, 2018(2018-06-22) (aged 54) Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
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| Years active | 1976–2018 |
| Formerly of | |
| Relatives | Jerry Abbott (father) Dimebag Darrell (brother) |
Vincent Paul Abbott (March 11, 1964 – June 22, 2018) was an American musician best known for being the drummer and co-founder of theheavy metal bandPantera. He also co-foundedDamageplan in 2003 with his younger brother,"Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, and was a member ofHellyeah for 12 years from 2006 until his death in 2018.
Several rock media outlets have ranked Abbott as among the greatest metal drummers of all time.[1][2]
Vincent Paul Abbott was born inAbilene, Texas, on March 11, 1964. His parents wereJerry, acountry music songwriter and producer, and Carolyn Abbott. Abbott originally played thetuba after being assigned to it in school band class, but he was directed towards the drums by his father, who said there were no career prospects for a tuba player. His father bought him his first drum kit.[3]
Abbott citedPeter Criss,[4]Alex Van Halen andTommy Aldridge[5] as his biggest influences as a drummer.
Abbott formed the heavy metal bandPantera in 1981 with his brotherDarrell Abbott andTerry Glaze on guitars, bassist Tommy D. Bradford, and vocalist Donnie Hart. Upon Hart's departure, Terry Glaze assumed vocal duties. In the summer of 1982, Bradford left the band and was succeeded byRex Brown. The band released three albums with that lineup.
Pantera recruited vocalistPhil Anselmo in 1987 and releasedPower Metal (album) in 1988. By 1990, the band had been signed to Atco Records and releasedCowboys from Hell, which proved to be the band's turning point. Over the course of four more studio records, a live album anda greatest hits compilation, Anselmo and Pantera were nominated for fourbest metal performance Grammys for the songs "I'm Broken", "Suicide Note Pt. I", "Cemetery Gates", and "Revolution Is My Name".
In 2001, Anselmo decided to put Pantera on hold because ofback pain while he toured and recorded with his side projects. Pantera's official disbandment took place in 2003 for several reasons, but mainly because of the ongoing dispute between Anselmo and the Abbott brothers, although Rex Brown remained neutral. In the years to follow, animosity would stir up between Abbott and Anselmo although Anselmo had publicly announced that he wished for Abbott to forgive him and reform a friendship. However, Abbott stated that he was not interested in speaking to Anselmo.[6]
After the breakup of Pantera, the Abbott brothers formed the heavy metal bandDamageplan with former tattoo artistBob Zilla on bass and formerHalford guitaristPat Lachman on lead vocals. Damageplan recorded one album,New Found Power, which was released on February 10, 2004.[7] The song "Ashes to Ashes", a collaboration withAlice in Chains guitarist/vocalistJerry Cantrell, was not completed in time to be featured on the album,[8] but it was featured on the soundtrack to the 2004 filmThe Punisher, and was a bonus track on the Japanese version ofNew Found Power.[9][8]
On December 8, 2004, while on tour to support Damageplan's album, Darrell wasshot and killed along with three others by Nathan Gale at the Alrosa Villa inColumbus, Ohio.[10] Damageplan disbanded shortly thereafter. In a 2016 interview withLoudwire, Abbott revealed that there are five unreleased Damageplan tracks that were meant for the band's second album that was set to be released in 2005, but that those tracks have no vocals, only him and Darrell playing on them.[11] Abbott said that he didn't know what to do with those tracks, but he often thought about having some of Darrell's favorite singers likeRob Halford ofJudas Priest andChris Cornell ofSoundgarden to record vocals for the songs, but he didn't have time to do it because he was focused on his band Hellyeah.[11]
After the death of Darrell, Abbott formed Big Vin Records in February 2006 and releasedRebel Meets Rebel and a DVD,Dimevision, Volume 1. Abbott, along withCristina Scabbia (co-lead vocalist ofLacuna Coil), wrote a monthly question-and-answer column inRevolver. Abbott maintained endorsement deals withddrum,Sabian cymbals, andVic Firth drumsticks. He previously endorsedTama,Pearl drums, and Remo drumheads and hardware.
In June 2006, after an 18-month hiatus, Abbott was not sure if he would return to music, but eventually joined the heavy metalsupergroupHellyeah, which featured vocalistChad Gray and guitaristGreg Tribbett fromMudvayne, guitaristTom Maxwell fromNothingface, and bassistBob Zilla fromDamageplan, who was a replacement for original bassistJerry Montano. Abbott recorded six studio albums with the band. In May 2019, it was announced that Hellyeah would tour for the first time since Abbott's death to support the final album he recorded with the band,Welcome Home.Stone Sour drummerRoy Mayorga was chosen as Abbott's replacement.[12]
In 1995, he mixed the songs "Narcissiques anonymes" and "Nits" on Ego, the first album of a Quebec metal band called TSPC.
In November 2008, he handpicked several of his most memorable drum parts to demonstrate in a promotional video for the drum companyddrum: "Use My Third Arm", "Primal Concrete Sledge", "13 Steps to Nowhere", "Domination", and "Becoming".[13]In 2009, he started American Drummer Champions with the aide of friend and influence M. Ludowise, former Downset drummer.
In August 2013, Abbott was featured in a music video forBlack Label Society's cover of "Ain't No Sunshine", appearing alongside a horse-maskedZakk Wylde.[14] Wylde and Abbott were well known to be close friends, with Wylde also having been particularly close with Abbott's brother Darrell before his death in 2004.
For several years, Abbott had been trying to publish a cookbook calledDrumming up an Appetite with Vinnie Paul;[15][16] his girlfriend, Chelsey Yeager, initially mentioned potential for a posthumous release in 2020,[17] but it was only eventually released on March 11, 2025.[18]
On June 22, 2018, Abbott died at his Las Vegas home at the age of 54.[19][20] It was later revealed that Abbott had died from "dilatedcardiomyopathy andcoronary artery disease."[21] News of his death was initially released on the official Pantera Facebook page, stating his association with the bands Pantera, Damageplan, and Hellyeah, along with a statement requesting that the privacy of his family be respected.[19] Five days before his death, Abbott's final performance took place at The Vinyl at theHard Rock Hotel and Resort in Las Vegas.[22]
Following his death, tributes from all over the metal community began pouring in, including members ofBlack Sabbath,Guns N' Roses,Metallica,Megadeth,Alice in Chains,Lamb of God,Periphery,Slipknot,Avenged Sevenfold,the Acacia Strain,In Flames, and many others. He is buried beside his mother, Carolyn, and brother,Darrell, at Moore Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Arlington, Texas.[23][24] In late 2020, a protective fence was installed around the Abbott burial ground in an effort to stop vandalism; years earlier, following the defacing of his brother's grave, Abbott had remarked that the vandalism was "a real disrespectful thing".[25]
Abbott usedTama drums during theCowboys from Hell album and tour from 1990 until 1992.[26][27] On theVulgar Display of Power andFar Beyond Driven albums and tours respectively, he usedRemo drums.[28][29] Abbott endorsed Remo untilThe Great Southern Trendkill, when he changed his endorsement toPearl drums.[30] He endorsed Pearl from 1996 until 2008,[31][32] when he made his latest change toddrum.[33] Abbott usedSabian cymbals andVic Firth drumsticks throughout his career.[4] He played the drumsticks backwards, holding the tapered end of the sticks. The tapered ends were carved to give extra grip.[34] Abbott was also known for using triggeredsamplesmixed with live-miced drums during live shows.[35] Starting in 2010, he used addrum Vinnie Paul signature series drum kit, withEvans drum heads, drum hardware, ddrum andRoland electronics, and Danmar red wood beaters and kick pads.[36]
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