Rex Brown on Vinnie Paul: ‘Everybody Wanted to Play Like Him’

2018-07-10

Story by Cat Badra

Rex Brown of Pantera shares his heartfelt thoughts on the late Vinnie Paul

Pantera bass player Rex Brown was undeniably close to late Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul, and Brown has posted a full statement paying homage to his band mate. In the note, which is published via Rolling Stone, Brown states that Paul “was the original for his generation” and “changed the game” for metal drummers.

“He was the original for his generation, a generation that’s still going,” Brown states. “Everybody wanted to play like him. People always thought those were sampled tracks — they were not. Period.”

Also in the message, Brown remembers his first time meeting Paul and his brother, the late “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott, in high school. The guys hit it off right away and shared a mutual love for metal and rock music. Paul and Dimebag asked Brown to join Pantera in the early-’80s, and later, lead singer Phil Anselmo came into the fold.

“I don’t think there’ll ever be chemistry like what the four of us shared again,” Brown says in the note. “I’ve been so blessed in so many ways by having them in my life.”

Pantera called it quits in 2003. One year later, Dimebag was murdered on the stage during a Damageplan show in Columbus, Ohio. Paul joined his latest band, Hellyeah, in 2006.

“The best way to honor Vinnie is to celebrate his life,” Brown explains. “He approached drumming, and friendship, with his own brand of perfection. We must remember the great times we shared with him.”

“Rest in peace, Vinnie, and give Dime a big ole’ fashioned Texas style hug from all of us,” he adds. “You made an incredible mark on the world and you were taken from us way too soon.”

Paul passed away on June 22 at the age of 54.

Cat Badra
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