Gareth Ashton from Buxton, UK has been a professional drummer for many years. In 2014 he debuted with his book 'Hanging Around Musicians: The Life and Times of an Adequate Drummer', an entertaining look back over how he made a career of serial obscurity.



After discovering the joys of punk as a teen in Chapel-en-le-Frith in 1977 by watching The Jam on Marc Bolan’s TV show Marc, he formed his own band The Ruin, complete with stage name Mal Nutrition. Within months Gareth was living the dream and touring the nation with punk rockers The Damned.



The 50-year-old went on to drum successfully all over the UK for more than two decades providing the beats for a bands playing everything from jazz funk to country and western.



Now retired, Gareth reflects on the lot of a semi-professional musician, a world away from the gilded lives of rock stars and their entourages.