10 Hard Rock Musicians Who Outshined The Lead Singer

For as many classics as the band has under their belt, Blink-182 was never made up of the greatest musicians in their early years. Though Tom Delonge and Mark Hoppus did write some catchy tunes, their brand of pop punk was something any beginner guitarist could pick up fairly quickly. Once they drafted Travis Barker though, their playing went up to a whole different level.

Coming from the virtuosic school of drumming, every single track that Barker plays on takes the entire composition up a notch, whether he's laying down a smooth groove on "I Miss You" or a punk leaning track like "The Rock Show." Not only did Barker give the band's songs a jolt, but also helped whip the rest of the band into shape in terms of rhythmic structure and riff phrasing.

For songs that were bare-bones pop rock tracks, "All the Small Things" becomes much more exciting when you have Barker leading the charge from behind. Even when left to only a few essentials on the intro of "Always," Barker's stick work is some of the most impressive feats of musicianship he has pulled off. Barker has always been known as the quiet one in Blink, but when you have this many chops to show off, you don't really need to explain yourself.