A Zoom Hang with Neal Wilkinson featuring Rick Marotta

Marotta's ability to lay down the perfect groove, unburdened by ego and needless complexity, has enshrined his drumming on records by Aretha Franklin, Carly Simon, Steely Dan, James Taylor, Paul Simon, John Lennon, Hall & Oates, Stevie Nicks, Wynonna, Roy Orbison, Todd Rundgren, Roberta Flack, Peter Frampton, Quincy Jones, Jackson Browne, Waylon Jennings, Randy Newman, Kenny G., the Jacksons, Crosby, Stills & Nash, and many others. He has also worked extensively as a producer, music director, and film and television composer.  

Marotta's less-is-more attitude is all the more distinctive given that he came of musical age during the '70s, when showy drum work was the norm. "That's how I developed my attitude in the first place," he says. "When I wa coming up as a musician, there were a lot of truly great drummers like Neil Peart and Terry Bozzio, guys who played a lot of notes and did…