Studio Drummer – Foundations!

Miles Davis was once asked what were the raw essentials of having a great band. Miles replied, you have to have a great drummer. The interviewer then asked, what if you don’t have a great drummer? Miles replied,
YOU DON’T HAVE A BAND!

At e-studio-drummer we like to break down important aspects that are often overlooked. Often these aspects are overlooked to looked for different reasons. Inexperience is the first stumbling block. Trying to prematurely look ‘cool’ is often the biggest culprit. While sometimes this can work in your favor more often it’s an impediment.

YOU are the foundation of the music. Of course this works in concert with the rhythm section as well. But think of it as building a house. You are the framer. But first and foremost you are the creator of the foundation. The foundation is literally and figuratively the ‘bottom line’.
Very precise! In e-studio-drummer mentality, you are ‘framing a house’. Inches and fractions of inches matter, akin to the literal foundation and co-framer of a house.
If you alone, are out by an inch or less creating this foundation, by the time you get 2 stories up in the framing of a house you’ve got major problems.
For eg. If you screw up the measurement or the cut of an important structural beam, you’ve screwed up the house’s structure exponentially as the construction above this mistake continues! In our case, the ‘construction’ above us are the live band members and/or overdubs that are being added on top of the foundation you’re creating.

Of course we are human and not perfect. But we all continue to strive for more precision AND more creativity. Great creativity and fluidity is not that far off from plum lines, leveling and measuring.
But it all starts at this foundational level.

Give a lot of attention to note length. Discover and practice note duration. If you’re underpinning a large band for example and you have pauses and rests in the music you have to understand note length. I played brass for years before drums which was a great foundation for this aspect. Be aware of this very important aspect.

Being second nature with a click track or metronome is the bedrock of this. Burning note length into your head is not only when you’re playing and controlling a band large or small. It’s also when you’re resting for 2 beats, a bar or more. Learn how to perhaps mark enough time for the band members if necessary. If someone tends to rush or drag for example, mark time with perhaps a light hi hat to keep everyone on the same page

For starters, a physical aspect,

Thinking of our focus on foundation you have to have a solid throne. Have you ever observed a pianist and how they will meticulously adjust their throne/stool height and positioning so as to maximize their performance, endurance and musicality?
We have this very important foundational issue as well. When we have 4 limbs in motion often with a huge amount of physicality you have to have this obvious but so often overlooked piece of gear nailed.

ONCE YOU HAVE A VERY SOLID UNDERSTANDING OF THIS FOUNDATIONAL LEVEL YOU CAN START TO ‘MOVE’ ASPECTS OF THE INSTRUMENT WITH FULL INTENTION, AS IN ‘BACKBEATS’ETC

More discussion on this aspect coming from e-studio-drummer.com!

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Studio Drummer – Another example of a ‘time flip’

As another studio drummer addition to the last post here is another very clever ‘time flip’this time by The Eagles.
It’s very subtle but is such a clever songwriting twist that adds an element of interest. And I have more examples of this to come!

TAKE IT EASY by The Eagles;
Listen to this intro and there is something very interesting about it. Important thing to note in this instance. The ‘time’is all rooted in the guitars. There is no drum indication of where 2 and 4 is!

It can be interpreted as making sense musically in both of these examples… Until you hit the downbeat of verse 1!
For eg. Interpret the guitar intro as landing on beat 1 and listen through until the beginning of the verse. Do you hear the problem? You’re late entering the verse by an 1/8 note.

Then hear it the right way! The intro, correctly played is an 1/8 note push into beat one of the 8 bar song intro.

As an e-studio-drummer tip? Practice hearing this intro both ways for your own protection first and foremost.
Especially if you’ve heard the song for years, it’s a good thing to do!

Sounds intentional on Beat 1, drums are hitting downbeats and guitars are playing upbeats. But note how they don’t really (cleverly) indicate a real 2 and 4. So you continue on in peril.

Everything grooves perfectly. Until you come out of the intro an 1/8 beat late into the first verse!

Then here’s the same thing again!
Hear it this time as an 1/8 note push into beat one;

The track (and drum) pushes are an 1/8 note before beat 1 and the guitars are downbeats. It lands perfectly after 4 bars on beat one of the verse.

My Point is it’s deceptive how you can hear this intro BOTH ways as being very musical and intentional!

It’s a matter of a single 1/8 note of understanding! A single fraction that can turn the band upside down once you fill into the verse and you’re out of a job.

What I find interesting is the intentional aspect of this in the songwriting. I absolutely believe this is intentional to make the listener float somewhat and perhaps not be able to identify where the downbeat is but… once it lands it’s so simple, yet engaging.

More from e-studio-drummer.com

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Studio Drummer – Intro to Rock and Roll by Led Zeppelin

We all have names for this musical device, I call it “Time Flips” just as a general term that I use at e-studio-drummer.com.

In other words the initial down beat is not where you think it is! Having been one of the first online studio drummers, I’m happy to share my knowledge of the drumming trade with others. So let’s look at “Time Flips”…

One of the greatest examples of this is the great drum intro to Rock And Roll by John Bonham of Led Zeppelin.
The band, on first listen to the song Rock And Roll, gives the indication that the song is starting on beat 1 of bar 1. It has the feel and attitude of starting on beat one, when in fact, Bonham’s drum intro actually starts on the ‘3 And’ of the previous bar. I’ve included a click track count-in and example of this.
Most people as initially did I when I bought the album in the 70’s, heard this intro as Bar 1/Beat one. But check this out.
This is the wrong, it is NOT bar one beat one!

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Notice how the intro extends beyond the downbeat of the 4 bar phrase here. That is because we are not hearing it in the proper time context and no, it’s not an 11/8 bar! There’s a very simple way to hear this..

NOW!
This is the correct drum intro to the song starting on the ‘3 And’ of the previous bar. The drums start as a ‘3 And’ pick up to the down beat of the 4 bar drum phrase. You will hear how it aligns with the click track to then be a perfect 4 bar intro and the band falls in on bar 5 beat 1.

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Something interesting of note for all of us humans! See if you agree with this..

The mind hears this intro differently just by shifting the ‘time’ forward by a dotted quarter note as we’ve done here and yet the drum part is exactly the same. It’s exactly the same! I simply moved it in relation to the click count in

But here’s the dilemma!
If you’re setting up this song as the drummer and the band members are not focused and exactly on the same page and don’t understand this intro? MASSIVE Train wreck! Every band member has to be aware.

This is especially ingrained and true if you’ve been listening to, and playing this song incorrectly for years.

More studio-drummer info of this nature to follow!!

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Studio Drummer – Better Product than Ever!

Yes it’s been a while since I have posted here! But I have still been busy with the Online Studio Drummer website and have had many projects as well as many upgrades since my last post!
For 15 years I have had an excellent studio setup in my home and did well over a thousand tracks for different artists and producers around the world as far afield as Lebanon, Qatar and Moscow!

In 2018 I made the decision that it was time to upgrade to a permanent setup in a professional studio live room, while still utilizing my own gear, Class ‘A’ pre’s, microphones and converters. The professionally designed and treated acoustics of the live room is excellent and as well, the noise floor is extremely low!

In this day of Covid 19 you can get great performances, fully professional audio on every level at an amazing price in the privacy of your own studio with no physical contact BUT with as much interaction between you and myself as you require! I also recommend tremendous studio pro musicians who I fully endorse that also work online and are great people. Bringing you the performance, taste and sonics you require is their top priority!
Whatever happens in this crazy world music lives on at www.e-studio-drummer.com, original online studio drummer since 2004!

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Studio Drummer – Great New Studio Product

I have been working with great US producer, Sylvia Massy (Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Prince, Jonny Cash etc).  A great producer, communicator and does very fine work!

We are both excited about a new product that is going to make online session musicians very happy.  This platform is called Sessionwire.  www.sessionwire.com

This platform allow a person, say, myself to be tracking in my studio and for the producer, who is in NY city to be able to hear my take that I’m performing, in real time with full bandwidth audio.  2.  The other great thing is that there is video and speech communication at the very same time!  So imagine as a studio player you’re performing your track and the producer, artist and engineer can all see, evaluate and access your take, in full bandwidth stereo audio monitored through their own monitor system of which they are fully used to, another big bonus!

The listening party can stop, interject and generally produce in real time a player performing on the other side of the world with complete immediacy and efficiency, all the while hearing and evaluating professional audio.

It’s just a fabulous concept and a platform that we are very confident is going to go wide as far as adoption.   Have a look at the website and peruse the features.  Again I get nothing for this.  However I am excited about more quality artists being equipped with this tremendous tool…

Enjoy Online Studio Drummers and musicians of all stripes

 

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Studio Drummer – Common Thread Of Great Producers

Just worked again with one of the greats from LA and it struck me again…Robbie Buchanan, great keyboardist and a huge producer with a discography that is stunning to say the least.  What struck me is that a common thread with people that are great in the studio, with huge track records is they set a tone and create a great environment.  One that is harmonious with creating and not one based on ego and disruption.  The very best producers that I’ve worked with and for, all do this.  It’s not confrontational unless it has to be and there’s a situation where someone has to step in and correct it.  It’s an environment that allows players to access their creative powers and abilities at a potentially higher level.  The right amount of back pressure that access’s one’s own higher creative abilities.. I’ve worked now in the studio and live with Robbie and I really appreciate that about him.

Apparently Daniel Lanois is another such producer that ’tills the earth’ if you will, sets the environment and the tone of a session to allow the player’s and artists personality and artistry to flourish.  I’ve worked with the opposite of this from a producer’s chair… I’ll get into that story next time because it’s a prime example of the exact opposite!

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