Simon Phillips: Toto + session drummer, decoded

Simon Phillips drummed in Toto from 1992 to 2014 and has built a five-decade session + jazz-fusion career. Tama signature kit, Zildjian cymbals, Pro-Mark signature drumstick. The rock-fusion drumming canon's most-recorded session player.

Toto / Session · reviewed by the Change Your Strings editorial team · 2026-07-09

Simon Phillips (born February 6, 1957, London, England) drummed in Toto from 1992 (replacing Jeff Porcaro after Porcaro's death) through 2014 and has built a five-decade session + jazz-fusion career across hundreds of records (Mike Oldfield, Pete Townshend, Jeff Beck, Judas Priest, and many more). Tama signature kit (including his Monarch Signature Snare, SP1465), Zildjian cymbals, Pro-Mark signature stick. His solo project Protocol has been active since 1989. The rock-fusion drumming canon's most-recorded session player after Steve Gadd.

What Simon Phillips plays

Pro-Mark · Sticks
Simon Phillips Signature 707 (TX707W)
Buy on Amazon Review →

At a glance

Role

Drummer

Also known as

Simon Phillips

Active

1969–present

Based

Phoenix, Arizona (later years); London origin

Genres

Affiliations

Toto (drummer, 1992–2014)
Session drummer (Mike Oldfield, Pete Townshend, Jeff Beck, Judas Priest, hundreds of credits)
Protocol (Phillips solo project, 1989–present)
The Who (touring drummer, 1989 reunion tour)
Tama Drums signature kit endorsement, including his "Monarch" Signature Snare (SP1465, 14x6.5in)
Zildjian cymbal endorsement; favorite cymbal is a 24in Avedis Swish Knocker picked at the factory in 1979
Pro-Mark Simon Phillips signature drumstick (SKU TX707W, a 37-year endorsement by his own account)

Notable credits

Toto, Absolutely Live (1993)
Toto, Mindfields (1999)
Toto, Through the Looking Glass (2002)
Mike Oldfield, Crises (1983)
Pete Townshend, Empty Glass (1980)
Judas Priest, Sin After Sin (1977)
Jeff Beck, There & Back (1980)

Sourcing6 citations · reviewed 2026-07-09· by Change Your Strings editorial team

Who Simon Phillips is

Simon Phillips, born February 6, 1957, in London, England, drummed in Toto from 1992 (replacing Jeff Porcaro after Porcaro's August 1992 death) through 2014. His session career across hundreds of records (Mike Oldfield, Pete Townshend, Jeff Beck, Judas Priest, The Who 1989 reunion, and many more) makes him one of the most-recorded rock drummers of the late 20th century.

His solo project Protocol has been active since 1989 and is his primary outlet since leaving Toto in 2014.

Style signatures

Three things across his Toto + session + Protocol catalogs you can identify as Phillips's:

Open-handed technique. Left hand on hi-hat, right hand on snare; the technique lets him execute complex patterns without crossing arms.
Double-bass embedded in funk + fusion. The kick work is pyrotechnic but tasteful; the approach inherits from Billy Cobham via the broader fusion lineage.
Tom-led arrangement-pivot fills. Long-form jazz-fusion + prog arrangements; the Protocol catalog is the canonical document.

Documented gear

Pro-Mark Simon Phillips Signature 707 (SKU TX707W). Hickory, 16.25 inches, .551 inch diameter, long taper, large round wood tip. A real, 37-year Pro-Mark endorsement by Phillips's own account, not the similarly-named Vic Firth "SSP" (that stick belongs to Scott Phillips of Creed). Full review at /gear/promark-simon-phillips-signature.
Tama "Monarch" Signature Snare (SP1465). 14x6.5 inches, part of his Starclassic Bubinga/Maple kit. Confirmed on Tama's own artist page; no dedicated CYS gear page yet for this specific snare.
Zildjian cymbals. His own stated favorite, per his Zildjian artist bio, is a 24 inch Avedis Swish Knocker picked out at the Zildjian factory in 1979, alongside an Armand-family Ride, Hats, and Crash setup. Brand-level documented; no dedicated CYS gear page yet for the Armand line.

The catalog. Toto, Absolutely Live (1993) through Live in Poland (2014). Plus hundreds of session credits + the Protocol catalog (1989-present).

Documented gear. Pro-Mark Simon Phillips Signature 707 (SKU TX707W).

Drummer hub. Drummers index. Session canon parallel: Steve Gadd (Steely Dan / session), Vinnie Colaiuta (session / Sting).

Frequently asked questions

What's Simon Phillips's drumming style?

Studio-precise rock-fusion pocket with double-bass + ambidextrous open-handed technique. Three identifiable signatures: (1) Open-handed technique (left hand on hi-hat, right hand on snare for left-foot hi-hat work) that lets him execute complex patterns without crossing arms. (2) Double-bass technique embedded inside funk + fusion contexts; the kick work is pyrotechnic but tasteful. (3) Tom-led arrangement-pivot fills across long-form jazz-fusion + prog arrangements; the Protocol catalog is the canonical document of this approach.

Why did Phillips replace Jeff Porcaro in Toto?

Porcaro completed the drum tracks for Kingdom of Desire before he died in August 1992, during rehearsals for the tour promoting that album. Phillips, already a Toto associate, joined for the Kingdom of Desire tour; his own Pro-Mark bio calls it a '21 year collaboration.' He recorded with the band from 1993's Absolutely Live through 2014's Live in Poland, then left in 2014 to focus on Protocol and session work. Keith Carlock became his official replacement that year; Shannon Forrest filled in for part of the 2014 North American tour.

What's Protocol?

Phillips's solo jazz-fusion project, active since 1989. Protocol records (Protocol, 1989; Out of the Blue, 1999; Protocol II, 2013; and the current ongoing Protocol series) feature rotating fusion musicians + Phillips's drum compositions. The project gives Phillips an outlet for the jazz-fusion vocabulary that Toto's pop-rock context didn't fully accommodate.

Did Phillips play with The Who?

Yes. Phillips drummed on The Who's 1989 reunion tour, the band's first major tour after Keith Moon's 1978 death. Phillips's session reputation made him the obvious choice; Pete Townshend had worked with Phillips on Empty Glass (1980) and other solo records. The Who reunion tour was a one-off; Zak Starkey (Ringo Starr's son) became The Who's primary touring drummer from 1996 onward.

Does Phillips have a signature drumstick?

Yes, from Pro-Mark, not Vic Firth. The Pro-Mark Simon Phillips Signature 707 (SKU TX707W) is a hickory stick, 16.25 inches long, .551 inch diameter, with a long taper and a large round wood tip. Pro-Mark's own artist page quotes Phillips directly: "For the past 37 years, I've used ProMark drumsticks." Vic Firth's catalog does include a similarly-coded "SSP" model, but that one belongs to Scott Phillips of Creed, a different drummer entirely.

What kit does Phillips play?

Tama, including his own "Monarch" Signature Snare (SP1465, 14x6.5 inches), confirmed on Tama's own artist page. Configurations are famously elaborate: 24 inch double bass drums, multiple rack + floor toms, a 20-inch gong bass drum, and a second smaller snare (SP125). Phillips's kit setups have appeared in Modern Drummer features as benchmarks for studio-rock kit design. Zildjian cymbals throughout; his own Zildjian bio names a 24 inch Avedis Swish Knocker, picked out at the factory in 1979, as his favorite, alongside an Armand-family Ride, Hats, and Crash setup.

Who Simon Phillips is

Style signatures

Documented gear

Related