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Ian Paice, drummer
Photo: Frank Schwichtenberg, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Ian Paice: Deep Purple's drummer, decoded

Ian Paice has anchored Deep Purple since 1968. Pearl IP1465 signature snare, a Paiste 2002-series cymbal setup he's played since 1971, the canonical hard-rock drumming pioneer who defined what 70s hard-rock + heavy-metal drumming could be.

Deep Purple · reviewed by the Change Your Strings editorial team ·

Ian Paice (born June 29, 1948, Nottingham, England) has anchored Deep Purple since 1968, its only ever-present member across the band's 50+ year catalog. Pearl IP1465 signature snare; a Paiste 2002-series cymbal setup he's played since 1971. Defining hard-rock pioneer: 'Highway Star' (Machine Head, 1972) is one of the most-imitated rock drum performances; the long-form solo on Made in Japan (1972) is canonical. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Deep Purple (2016).

Sourcing5 citations · reviewed 2026-07-10· by Change Your Strings editorial team

Who Ian Paice is

Ian Anderson Paice, born June 29, 1948, in Nottingham, England, has anchored Deep Purple since 1968 and is the only continuous member of every Deep Purple lineup across the band's 50+ year catalog. He played in Whitesnake (1979-1982) during Deep Purple's hiatus and Paice Ashton Lord (1977) briefly with Tony Ashton + Jon Lord.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Deep Purple (2016).

Style signatures

Three things across the Deep Purple catalog you can identify as Paice's:

  1. Single-stroke roll velocity. The 'Highway Star' (Machine Head, 1972) drum break is canonical; Paice's hand speed defined what hard-rock drum solos could be.

  2. Composed long-form drum solos. 'The Mule' on Made in Japan (1972) runs 9+ minutes as a composed solo event with internal structure.

  3. Jazz-inflected hi-hat technique inside hard rock. The hi-hat work on 'Smoke on the Water' is the song's groove anchor; the technique draws on jazz vocabulary applied to hard-rock contexts.

Documented gear

  • Pearl IP1465 Ian Paice Signature Snare Drum. 14x6.5 inch chrome-plated steel SensiTone shell, SuperHoop II rims, stop-lock tension rods, Pearl's internal muffler. Pearl's own namesake signature model, built in direct collaboration with Paice. Full review at /gear/pearl-ian-paice-signature-snare.
  • Pearl shell pack. 24x14 bass drum, 10x8/12x8/13x9/14x10/15x10 rack toms, 16x16/18x16 floor toms, per Pearl's own artist page. Brand-level documented; no dedicated CYS gear page yet for this specific shell pack.
  • Paiste 2002-series cymbals. A 22-inch Ride, 22-inch Crash, 8-inch Splash, and 15-inch Sound Edge Hi-Hat, plus a discontinued 22-inch China and a special-order 24-inch Crash. Personal setup, not a namesake line; Paiste artist since June 1971. The 22-inch Ride now has a dedicated CYS gear page; the Crash, Splash, and Hi-Hat don't yet.

Related

The catalog. Deep Purple, In Rock (1970) through the band's continuous catalog. Plus Whitesnake (1979-1982).

Documented gear. Pearl IP1465 Ian Paice Signature Snare Drum, Paiste 2002 Ride 22-inch.

Drummer hub. Drummers index. Classic-rock peer on the same Paiste 2002 lineage: Paiste 2002 Classic 18-inch Crash. Same 2002 Ride, a generation later: Patrick Carney (The Black Keys).