Dino Danelli, drummer for the 1960's rock group The Young Rascals and later The Rascals, passed away on Thursday at the age of 78. Danelli's passing was announced by Rascals guitarist Gene Cornish though no cause of death was announced.
Danelli began his musical career as a jazz drummer working with Lionel Hampton while only in his teens before switching to rock 'n roll and forming The Young Rascals with Cornish, Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati. The Young Rascals/The Rascals would have a string of hits between 1966 and 1968 such as "Groovin'", "I've Been Lonely Too Long" and "How Can I Be Sure".
In 1972, Danelli and Cornish would leave The Rascals to form Bulldog recording two albums. Danelli would later collaborate with Mountain's Leslie West and Little Steven Van Zandt. In 2012, Van Zandt would engineer a reunion of The Rascals into a Broadway production called "Once Upon a Dream".
Danelli has been sorely overlooked in the pantheon of rock drummers. His exuberant style undoubtedly had an influence on Carmine Appice of Vanilla Fudge and Led Zeppelin's John Bonham as demonstrated by what he did behind the kit on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1967 when The Young Rascals performed their rendition of Smokey Robinson and The Miracles' "Mickey's Monkey". R.I.P.
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