The internet is full of incredible feats of human ability, but it never ceases to amaze us when we see musicians overcome personal tragedy to continue with their passion. Jack Thomas is one such drummer, having lost his right arm in a workplace accident in 2015.
Whereas many people would understandably view the loss of a limb as putting a a terminal stop to their hobby or career - Jack carried on playing, and recently visited online drum educator Drumeo to record a cover of Slipknot’s Duality; a tricky song in its own right.
In the video above, you can watch Jack play through the song without compromise on a standard setup, where he makes some mind-blowingly tricky movements across the drum kit with his left arm.
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“About five years ago I was involved in a workplace accident that unfortunately resulted in the loss of my right arm.” Jack says in the video.
“I was working on a conveyer belt that tripped out, and before I even had a chance to fight for myself, my arm was severed. I had to go inside and get myself some help, which is where I was told ‘I’m sorry buddy, but your arm is gone.’”
“Hearing those words as a human being is not something you know how to react to. We’re supposed to get through our life with all of our limbs. Now, being a drummer, that’s kind of career-ending. You kind of need all of the limbs you have to play the instrument that you play. Now throw into the mix that I was only 17 years-old, and everything I’d worked for my entire life to that very moment was with the goal, passion and love of music.”
“That was it. I felt like my life was over…only for about four minutes. Because at that point I realised ‘I could let this overcome me. Or I can do whatever I can to overcome it, and come out of it as successful as I possibly can.”
“So right there, right then, I was patting on my chest trying to figure out the songs that were playing in my head and I knew that I could do this. We all go through hardships, we all go through the thing that is the worst thing that has ever happened to us. For me it was losing a limb. But regardless, everybody has their struggles, whether it be financial, work, even relationships. Whatever it might be, we all have those frustrations and struggles.”
To see more of Jack's drum covers, follow his YouTube channel.
