Jamie Oldaker

Jamie Oldaker sat down in his living room in Tulsa, Oklahoma for his riveting and inspiring NAMM Oral History interview in December 2018. He opened up about his background in music and how his drive and passion led to a series of gigs, including the Silver Bullet Band and Eric Clapton. He recorded 11 albums with Eric, toured the world and played historic events such as Live Aid with the iconic guitarist. Jamie spoke honestly about the challenges of being a rock star and the difficulties of losing good friends and bandmates to drugs and alcohol abuse. He relayed some important lessons he learned, such as when JJ Cale urged him to laugh at life and not take things too seriously. Throughout his career, Jamie has inspired hundreds of drummers but is humble about his impact by saying, “I just wanted to do the best I could. That’s it.”