the uk’s best-selling Drum Magazine

Summer
2014 | 232

t o n y

w i l l i a m s
A s h i s s e m i n a l a l b u m L i f e T i m e h i t s 5 0 , w e c e l e b r at e t h e
jazz revolutionary

Ia n Robert ‘Sput’ Lee

Matt h e w s Searight K e r s l ak e
K a s a b i a n Sn a rky P u pp y Ur i a h He ep
 Cover image: Mosaic images / Corbis
Hello!
Rubbish at football, world champions at drums…
We touched on the thriving British drum scene back in the May issue (Rhythm 228), but I feel
compelled to revisit the subject after what has been a string of brilliant festivals that demonstrate the
UK is a dominant force in drums. First up, the Rhythm team headed to Download festival in the
Midlands. Despite the behemoth American headliners, the rest of the bill was healthily peppered with
Brits bringing it behind the drums. Matt Nicholls killed it with Bring Me The Horizon, Sikth made their
return with the mighty Dan Foord on drums, Jen Ledger rocked it with Skillet and the awesome Ben
Thatcher picked up plenty of new fans with Royal Blood.
A fortnight later at Glastonbury the line-up was certainly flying the flag for the Brits. Ian Matthews was the glue that held
Kasabian’s mighty headline set together (read about Ian’s preparations for the slot on page 42), leaving Lars’ calamitous
performance with Metallica in the dust. Elsewhere we had Jupp with Elbow, Beanie with Rudimental, John Jenkins (Lily Allen),
Joe Clegg (Ellie Goulding) and Cherisse Osei (Bryan Ferry) amongst many, many others, all playing with passion and
professionalism. A week later at Sonisphere, and Leo Crabtree was having the time of his life with The Prodigy and the
inimitable Nicko McBrain rocked Knebworth to its core with Iron Maiden. You get the picture, but when you look at the
strength of this country’s percussive offering it shows that we have a scene to be proud of. England may have left the World
Cup early, but with our stick wielding brothers and sisters continuing to achieve great things, the future looks bright indeed.

playlist
Pumping on
our stereo...
Marmozets
Chris Barnes, Editor captivate you
We’ve had a sneak listen to Yorkshire
Chris.Barnes@futurenet.com math-rock tykes Marmozets’ new album.
Drummer Josh killed it at Download, and on
Twitter Facebook record they’re just as brilliant.
@RhythmMagazine /RhythmMagazine
royal blood
royal blood
Equal parts Muse, Crooked Vultures

This month’s experts
ajay naik
Ajay is CEO of brand new
Leicester-based music school the
British Centre for Music Enterprise (BCME),
and he knows a thing or two about the
music business, and the business of music.
In his new column starting on page 89 this
month, Ajay aims to help equip you with
the knowledge you need to succeed.
jake stacey
Jake has reviewed drum gear for
a variety of publications and has
spent much of the last 16 years gigging in
the UK. This month, Jake’s back on the
Rhythm team and lending his expert
opinion on all things gear to reviews of
snares by Guru and Angel. Find out what
he though of these drums from page 100.
rob monk
Rhythm snapper Rob has been
photographing the great and the
good of the music scene for “too many
years more than I care to remember”. This
month Rob photographed Monty Python
drummer Allan Cox and rock legend Lee
Kerslake (Ozzy and Uriah Heep). See his
fine work from pages 50 and 70.
and Queens Of The Stone Age, this Brit duo
make an ungodly noise, with pounds of groove.
‘Little Monster’ and ‘Come On Over’ are just a
taster of this contender for album of the year.
Lower than atlantis
lower than atlantis
We’ve heard early mixes and it’s a
belter. Poppier than earlier albums but with
Eddy Thrower’s incendiary beats going full
force. You can hear ‘Here We Go’ online now.

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk summer 2014 | 3

Contents Issue 232 August 2014

42
Ian Matthews
Kasabian

Regulars
06 beat
All the latest news and hot gear,
plus tips, classic sounds and more
28
Tony Williams
18 introducing Fifty years since the release of Life
New bands and drummers you need to
have on your radar this month
Time, we celebrate the life and work
of the jazz drumming revolutionary
20 reviews
New stuff from Ginger Baker, Levon Helm,
Gaslight Anthem, Clem Burke and more
110 ask geoff
Your kit conundrums solved by our resident
gear guru

Allan Cox ‘sput’

50 62
70 Monty Python Searight
Snarky Puppy

Lee Kerslake
Uriah Heep

Want to subscribe to Rhythm?

Become a Rhythm subscriber and get an Evans
and ProMark goody bag, plus save 27%. 81 lessons
95
Head to page 78 for details. gear
www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk reviews

4 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Highlights

9Thewelcome back 12 top five tips

People | Music | Gear Neil Cowley Trio and
Evan Jenkins return
Skillet’s Jen Ledger on
singing and drumming

“I think Brothers and Turn Blue are my

favourites, drum-wise. I like really,
really smooth cymbals and the way
those ’50s Gretsch kits’ toms sound”

6 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

18 introducing
New drummers and bands
you need on your radar
When two
bag one
Black Keys turn the Billboard chart blue
■■Patrick Carney,
drummer with world-
conquering blues-rockers
The Black Keys, is well
known for his no-bulls**t
approach, which raises the
hackles of those stars with
a looser grip on reality.
So when eighth album,
Turn Blue, topped the US
charts, it follows that he
eschewed the coke and
Cristal approach for
something more down
to earth.
“I went out with some friends and then
my mum and dad came to town,” the
drummer tells Rhythm. “So I spent the
weekend chilling out with my folks, which
was fun.”
Describing his family as “hesitantly
supportive” of his risky career choice, it was
actually Carney’s PhD-wielding grandfather
who advised him to drop-out of college and
take music seriously.
“His advice was to play music for a year
or two and see what happened and if we
couldn’t figure it out then we would go back
to school,” explains the drummer. “So we
Patrick in action were both motivated to make things work
with The Black Keys and, luckily, we did.”
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
Black Keys’ Patrick
Carney and Dan Auerbach
Turn Blue is something of an unlikely
Number One contender. Recorded between
Sunset Studios in Los Angeles and their
Nashville base, it’s the Keys’ most expansive,
unrestrained offering yet.
“I think it’s a mixture of the last three
records – Attack And Release, Brothers and
El Camino – but I think it’s a move forward as
3, 2, 1...
well,” says the sticksman. “We were writing
“We wanted
Number One
songs that I think are melodic, but musically because Brothers
are more complicated than the went Number
arrangements on anything we’ve done Three and El
previously. I don’t really know how I would Camino went
Number Two.
describe Turn Blue, but I think, in a way, it’s
Then we thought
our most complete album.”
Fans of Brothers will be pleased to hear
the Michael
Jackson record
there’s a return to those gorgeous drum was coming out
tones, thanks primarily to a ’50s Gretsch the same week,
so we thought
Round Badge and ’50s Zildjian K cymbals.
“I think, of all the records we’ve made, that we were
doomed. We
Brothers and Turn Blue are my favourites, would have been
drum-wise,” he ponders. “I like really, really happy wherever it
smooth cymbals and I really like the way charted, but it
that those ’50s Gretsch kits’ toms sound.” was more like an
Judging by Turn Blue’s early sales he’ll OCD thing!”
soon be able to add a fair few more vintage
kits to his collection. Reassuringly for the
rest of us bottom-feeders, though, he
remains appreciative.
“We felt successful when we sold-out the
Beachland Tavern in Cleveland and that
holds about 150 people,” recalls Patrick,
with an air of disbelief. “We both couldn’t
imagine anything more than that. So,
yeah, having a Number One record, it’s a
big deal.”
Summer 2014 | 7
Beat! People | Music | Gear
Benny Horowitz on
stage with Gaslight
Anthem
Benny’s Back
Gaslight Anthem return with album five
■■“One of the hardest
things about being in a
band for me is being at
home and not being
required to do anything. I
grew up working my ass
off so I’m not good with
free time. It’s incredibly
dangerous for me.”
Luckily for Benny Horowitz, when it comes to
free time, he’s going to be living off scraps
for the next year or two, as Gaslight Anthem
release new album Get Hurt on 18 August.
It’s a record that sees the New Jersey
foursome take a sidestep away from their
tried and trusted blue collar rock as they
embrace new tones and sounds. From the
fuzzy, gruff opening riff of ‘Stay Vicious’, fans
will hear that this is a different Gaslight, and
Benny admits this new sound was formed
8 | Summer 2014
out of a collective band decision. “The idea
to branch out was certainly conscious. We
started putting songs together in a different
way and maybe we’d mess about with
structures compared to how we’d usually do
things. But at the same time you need to be
able to grow, adapt and get better as a
musician to be able to pull that stuff off.”
He’s quick to add though that a new
sound doesn’t necessarily mean a whole
new approach to his beats. “I’m not a
drummer that is all-consumed with the
technical aspect of what I’m doing. I am
overly consumed with whether I am
contributing to the song in the right way.
With a band like this, everything from the
kick drum pattern to a cymbal to a fill is
completely based on what is necessary for
the song and where something feels like it
needs something and I can’t get that full
idea without the vocal melody.”
One area where Benny was eager to
experiment was his kit sound, armed as he
was with his Dark Force kit as well as a
Benny’s smattering of Slingerlands and Gretschs
dotted around the iconic Blackbird Studio in
Beats Nashville where the record was worked on.
“‘Stay Vicious’,
the first track, is a
“As far as drum sounds go, my biggest
blast because I
issue with [2012 album] Handwritten was
that I thought it was a little bit even. I like the
get to play some
fun, big beats. I sound of the record but it sounds the way it
always enjoy that. sounds from track one to track 10.
I’m really excited
about the song
Something we wanted to do on this record
was make sure each song had a different
‘Underneath The
feeling, I wanted them to be produced
Ground’. I get to
just catch this differently. That involved a lot of messing
really nice rhythm around with drums. We did a lot of switching
and groove in out kits and made use of this incredible echo
that song.” chamber that they have at Blackbird. They
have this crazy 6ft x 6ft room with a
20ft-high adjustable ceiling. You can bring it
up and down for how long of a reverb you
want. Playing with the sounds in that room
was fun. As a drummer setting up the kit in
there and playing Led Zeppelin beats was
one of the coolest things.”
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 Evan Jenkins: “I’m
probably not the

Evan Jenkins
go-to pop drummer”

Neil Cowley Trio

Jazz ace returns with bold new album
How are you hoping new album Touch
And Flee will be received?
“This album is a new direction for us so
there’s a bit of anticipation as to how it will
go down – very well, I hope! It’s a more
complete record, this one; an important part
of making it was that there was a common
thread in there. I think Neil is looking a bit
deeper. He’s got a strong family now and
that’s coming out in the writing. When you
get five albums down the track, I think you
have the right to make the sort of records
you want to make. In the beginning you’re a
bit worried you’ve got to please people, so
there’s a tendency to think about that when
you’re writing. We tried to make an album
tune, sometimes they’re more together than
others! Drum part wise, sometimes I play
what he’s put on the demo because it’s a
really nice part. He’s a very rhythmic piano
player, I think a lot of the great piano players
have that rhythm side of their playing really
down, although he’ll often turn up with a
part that requires three arms or something!
Initially the base comes from him but I’m in a
lucky situation where he gives me carte
blanche to expand on things rhythmically.”
What kit were you using in the studio?
“I was using old drums; I’m a big fan of Crash Of Doom. I used some old K hats from
vintage drums so I used two kits mainly. I’ve
got a 1965 Ludwig Super Classic. I used
Out now the ’50s as well.”

that was a little bit of a journey, so I think
that’s what we’ve done. It was a slow
process, we originally scrapped a lot of tunes
we had for it but we got it right. I think
there’s a nice flow to it.”
How does the recording process work
with Neil? Does he always lead?
“He definitely leads it because he’s such a
strong writer. He brings along sketches of a
those on about half of the record. I’ve got an
early ’60s Rogers Holiday kit which is more
jazz-sized as you’d know – 20", 12", 14" – so I
used that on a few tracks. I added a
marching bass drum to some of the tracks as
well. I’m now trying to configure it into my
kit, which is a bit of a nightmare! Ride
cymbal wise I used a combination of an
old ’50s Zildjian I’ve got and a 22"
Constantinople. I also got a Zildjian Oriental
Any other plans in the works?
“There’s an album I’m making with a band
called Jawbone and that’s very blues-based.
Then another project called King Of The
Touch and Flee, South Seas, that’s another crazy line-up, it’s
Neil Cowley Trio concertina, guitar and drums! I’ve always
played on the underground scene. I like
playing with musicians I like, and I like
playing interesting music. I’m probably not
the go-to pop drummer shall we say!”

this month at rhythmmagazine.co.uk

Highlights from the online home of the UK’s best-selling drum magazine

Pretty Reckless
Rhythm caught up with Jamie Perkins at
Download festival, and he tells all about
drumming for the Taylor Momsen-fronted
rockers. The sticksman talks about
recording the band’s new album, playing
to huge crowds and more.

Arin Ilejay
The Avenged Sevenfold man is a hero to Jen Ledger Kenny Aronoff
millions, but who are his drum idols? Lars, Skillet’s singing powerhouse drummer It’s fair to say session drummer to the
Ringo, The Rev and more make the cut as took time out ahead of a recent UK stars Kenny Aronoff has had his fair
he picks out his nine biggest inspirations. show to share a few tips on how to put share of gigs. But which was his best?
on a great show. Which was nice of her. Head to our website to find out.

Plus Chad Smith’s surprise visit to the Institute, the greatest drumming performances of Download 2014 and more
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 9
Beat! People | Music | Gear

Drummer’s tool Kit

INTER-DEPENDENCE
Grooves to get in unison to…

A
your tutor
Gareth Dylan Smith
garethdylansmith@yahoo.com
Rhythm - 2 3 2
s drummers we often have ■
to coordinate two, three or ■
all four of our limbs to play
various parts of the kit at the this creates.
same time. Each time we play, we remind
our bodies and minds that drumming is
really about inter-dependence of our hands,
feet, arms and legs, rather than about limb
independence as it’s frequently and
misleadingly called. It is worth paying
attention to getting things to sound at
Gareth Dylan Smith's Drummers' Toolkit
exactly (rather than approximately) the
same time, so that you can be certain of
achieving the big, punchy, ‘fat’ sound that
This is perhaps an especially helpful skill
at higher speeds, where discrepancies in
accuracy can start to sound like intentionally
separate notes. In this issue I demonstrate a
couple of grooves and one easy (but highly
effective!) fill you can use to help focus on
drumming in unison with yourself.

01 Four-on-the-floor,
Rhythm
Ex 1
-232 forGareth
the maximum
Dylan dance-ability in your groove!
Smith's Drummers' Toolkit
Rhythm -232 Gareth Dylan Smith's Drummers' Toolkit

Ex 1 ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
÷ 44 .. œ œœ œ œœ œœ ..
¿ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿œœ ¿ œ¿ œ¿ ¿
Ex 1

4 ¿ œœ¿¿ ¿ œœ¿¿ ¿
.
÷ 4 . ¿œ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ ..
÷ 244 .. œ
Ex œœ œ œ
œ œ œœ œ œœ ..
02 Texas Shuffle (swung quavers), playing loudly and quietly at the same time.
¿ œ¿ œ¿ œ¿ œ¿ œ¿ œ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ(¿) œ¿ œ(¿) (œœ¿) (œ¿) œ¿ œ(¿)
Ex 2
÷ 4 .
Ex 24 . ( )
œ œ ..
œ¿ (¿) Œ¿ (¿) (œ¿) (¿) Œ¿ (¿) (œ)
œ(œ¿¿) œ(¿¿) Œœ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ Œœ¿ ¿
÷ 44 .. (œœ¿) (œ¿) œ¿ (œ¿) (œœ¿) (œ¿) œ¿ (œ¿) ¿ (œ¿) (œœ¿) (œ¿) (œ¿) ..
÷ 44 .. (œœ) (œ) Œœ (œ) (œœ) (œ) œŒ (œ) (œœ) (œ) Œœ (œ) (œœ) (œ) œŒ¿ (œ) ..
Ex 3
Œ Œ Œ Œ
÷ 344 Fill œœand crescendo (getting
03
Ex œœ gradually louder),
œœ playing snareœœ drum and floorœœtom. œœ œœ œœ
Ex 3
÷ 44 œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ
4
÷ 4 œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ

MusicRadar’s
Drum Expo is
Drum Expo returns
back this August
musicradar.com’s two-day drum extravaganza is on its way
■■After a hugely successful 2013 show,
Rhythm’s sister website for musicians,
MusicRadar, is putting on the 2014 Drum
Expo this summer.
The ultimate two-day online drum event
will take place on 20 and 21 August and will
feature some of the biggest gear and tuition
brands in the world, the Drum Expo 2014 will
be celebrating all that is great about the
modern drummer.
This online exhibition will centre around a
series of ‘virtual booths’ in which companies
will be showcasing in-depth video demos of
cool products.
From the second that it all gets underway
on 20 August, drummers will have all kinds
of incredible content at their finger tips. It
doesn’t matter if you’re in Rio or Rotherham,
Barcelona or Basildon, you’ll be able to
attend free artist masterclasses courtesy of
Rhythm as well as seminars and lessons for
all levels of playing. The Drum Expo will also
feature video interviews, Q&As and more
with some of your favourite players.
Finally, expect plenty of Drum Expo ■
2014 competitions, discounts, and offers,
including a flash sale on Rhythm issues ■
and a one-off Expo subscription deal. The
Expo goes live on 20th August at www.
musicradar.com.

10 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 ‘Up The BrackeT’
The LiberTines
Gary Powell remembers recording The Libertines’ hit
Where did you record the track?
“We recorded at Rak Studios, which was
originally owned by Mickie Most. I met
Mickie on our first day recording, which
was our first foray into a professional
recording studio. As usual I was the first
into the studio by a good few hours. We
were supposed to be in for 10, which I was
with all of my gear. I sat in the studio TV
room waiting for people to turn up and that’s
when I met Mickie. We sat watching an old
film and he was talking about how he
started the studio and I fell asleep on his
shoulder. I woke up having dribbled down
his shoulder. I was so embarrassed.”
What process did you go through to
get your drum sound on the record?
“I already had a drum sound. I’d been
figuring it out and the only thing we
concentrated on in the studio was getting
whatever ring out of my kit. I used a 13"
Drummers...
Too late to unload?
Too late to insure?
*£100 excess applies to computer equipment. Allianz Musical Insurance is a trading name of Allianz Insurance plc.
Yamaha snare and I wanted a resonant
popping sound. In hindsight I wish I’d used a
different one because we ended up with all
kinds of dampening techniques to take the
ring off, so we lost the true feel of the drum.”
What set-up were you using then?
“I was using a Yamaha Stage Custom kit. I
didn’t have a kit prior to ‘Up The Bracket’
“Back then we played a lot more
because music was the only thing we
had, so coming up with stuff was fun”
because I was penniless, but when we signed
to Rough Trade they put some money aside
for us to buy instruments. They put aside
£2,000 for me. So I bought the cheapest kit
possible and saved the rest for booze and
rent! That’s the kit I ended up touring with. I
got the A Custom series because I thought
Album:
Up The BrackeT
YeAr: 2002
Vinnie Colaiuta was a god. Then the way the
cymbals were set-up was Steve Gadd.”
How long did it take for you to come
up with the part for ‘Up The Bracket’?
“No time at all. Back then we played a lot
more because music was the only thing
we had so playing and coming up with stuff
was a lot more organic and fun. Now that’s
been convoluted with other peoples’
opinions and money – lest we forget the
other distractions that are apparent with our
band – and I’m sure it’d be more of a hard
slog to come up with anything as organic
and simple. I could be wrong, I guess we’ll
just have to wait and see…”
If you really love your
instrument make
sure it’s covered.
Insurance can include theft
from an unattended vehicle
from just £32 a year
Terms and conditions apply.*
0800 980 6697
www.allianzmusic.co.uk
Allianz Musical Insurance
Beat! People | Music | Gear
Spend a lot of time practising
Meinl’s new Pure singing and playing, advises
hats and crashes Jen Ledger, but do it where no
one can hear you…

Pure Meinl
Pure range gets hats and crashes my top 5 tips on…
■■Hot on the heels of the rapturously-received ride series of the
same name, Meinl has unveiled a brand new line-up of Byzance
singing while
drumming
Vintage Pure hi-hats and crashes.
Hand-hammered in Meinl’s Turkish factory, these B20 bronze
metals are available as 14" and 15" hats and 18" and 20" crashes.
Of these new additions, Meinl’s international artist relations
manager Norbert Saemann said: “As soon as we released our
Vintage Pure Rides we immediately got the feedback from our
By Jen Ledger (Skillet)
artists and drummers around the world telling us their demand
Practise in private
for matching crashes and hi-hats. Those new models will
complement that series perfectly and will surely find many fans. 1 “Spend a lot of time where no one can
They are the next level of dry, so to speak, and are really hear you practise! For me, I had to spend a
inspiring for any drummer.” lot of time learning what limb goes with
Meinl recommends that these deliciously dry cymbals are best what syllable and I had room mates at the
suited to jazz, soul, funk, r’n’b and pop. According to the time and they could hear me figuring it out,
cymbal-maker, players can expect raw, earthy tones should they wailing downstairs. It’s embarrassing. Try to
add these metals to their collection. do it in private if you can!”
Rhythm awarded Meinl’s Pure rides a stellar four-star review
Rise to the
back in our June issue. Keep your eyes peeled for reviews of
these new models coming soon. 2 challenge
For more details take a look at www.meinlcymbals.com. “I’m like, ‘This is too high for me!’ and John’s
[Cooper, Skillet frontman] like, ‘Too bad,

SUBSCRIBE!
you’re gonna learn. So I go to my basement
and – exactly why no one should hear me
trying to get these parts – I practise singing
parts that are way to high for me. Eventually
my voice has gotten a little bit stronger 4 “IHave fun with it
just have fun up there. I really enjoy
through the challenges and I’ve been able to playing with my whole body and feeling the

TO the print edition and get an

do things that I couldn’t do a few years ago.”
Be comfortable
Evans snare head, pro-mark 3 with the mic
sticks & posters
“My sound guy and my tour manager tried
to push me to do those little in-ear mics that
come across your face, and I just felt like a
■■  Save 27% and pay just £12.99 Britney Spears wannabe and I refused to do
every three months it. They also tried those mics that come
■■  Delivery to your door across your head. But because I move so
at no extra cost much, the whole thing wobbles so I could
■■  Get your copy up to a week never find it! The simple mic on the left is
before it hits the shops the only thing I don’t break, or I don’t feel
stupid. Sometimes I have a hard time getting
Full details on p78 fills on the bottom tom and still keeping my
Offer expires August 30th 2014 face to the left but no one will notice!”
music, and I don’t want to get locked up by,
‘The mic’s got to be over here.’”
5 Try not to
overcomplicate
“When we’re writing for the record I’ll just
think of drums, this last record Rise I pushed
myself and did more interesting fills and
tried to be a bit more creative. I push myself
with the drums first, then I figure it all out
later. Then I go and lay down the vocals
separately, and then I’m like, oh my gosh I
have to figure out how to do these both at
the same time, why did I push myself on the
drums because now I have to do harder
drum parts with harder singing!”

12 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

Beat! People | Music | Gear

DRUM KIT
Hot New Gear On The Rhythm Radar

Premier Modern
Classic series
From £1,980 | www.premier-percussion.com
■■Premier has long been a flaming beacon in the British drum ■

modern
world. With more than 90 years’ experience in leading the way on ■
this side of the pond it is amazing that the company continues to
come up with stunning new drums and designs like the beauties
found within their ONE range.
Here though, Premier has moved forward by taking a look to the
love!
past. This new Modern Classic series harks back to the snare range of
the same name that Premier launched in 2001.
These kits have been designed and crafted by Premier’s drum ■
guru Keith Keough in conjunction with Brit drumming don Steve
White and are available in three configurations – the Bebop 18, ■
Bebop 20 and Concert Master 22. Here we have the Bebop 20 and
Concert Master 22.
There are two finishes available, and as you can see here we ■
have both. The Concert Master kit sports the eye-catching birds-eye
maple while the Bebop is the stylish natural mahogany. Pretty damn
gorgeous on both fronts, right? If you like the look of them you might
want to act quickly, as these kits are being produced on a limited run.
We’ll have a full review of both kits for you next month.

Shells
These stunning shells are
birch-mahogany. The toms are
4.5mm, eight-ply, while the
bass drums are 6mm, 11-ply

Want more?
The range also includes
snare drums, available
separately
Lugs
Premier has plumped for these
suitably stylish low-mass solid
brass tube lugs

14 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Price
The Bebop 18 kit can be yours
for £1,980. The 20" version
costs £2,100, while the Concert
Master 22 comes in at £2,200

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 15

Beat! People | Music | Gear

Aerodrums
£100 www.aerodrums.com
■■Drummers and non-drummers alike love indulging in a spot of air
drumming, but what if you could get the sound of a real kit while
flailing your arms around in thin air? Aerodrums is an air drumming
instrument that runs through your computer and recognises your
movements through a high-speed camera. You even get a choice of
kit sounds for your air drums. The supplied Natural Drum Kit library
includes Yamaha and Pearl snares, Gretsch kicks, Zildjian and UFIP
cymbals and plenty more.

Another ‘drummer forgets

kit’ joke, or Aerodrums!

Sabian HHX OMNI

From £378 www.sabian.com
■■Jojo Mayer has proven himself time and again as a drumming
innovator, be it for his technically jaw-dropping playing or his
lovingly-crafted Sonor Perfect Balance bass pedal. And now he’s ■
back with another innovation in the form of this latest Sabian HHX
OMNI cymbal. Darker in tone than the AAX OMNI series, these rides
are available in 19" and 22" models and feature jumbo HHX
hammering. According to Mayer they’re perfect for any setting, ■
from acoustic jazz to high-voltage rock’n’roll.

Cymbomute
From £7 www.cymbomute.com
■■Did the prospect of silent practice suggested by the
Aerodrums pique your interest? Well this will be right
down your street as well. Cymbomute is, as the name
suggests, an ingenious bit of kit that allows you to play
your cymbals at hugely reduced volume. Cymbomutes
fit around the edge of your metals and are held in by
their own tension. According to its makers, this means
that you can practise quietly without compromising
on feel. Sounds good to us.

Scymtek Jingles
From $240 (Approx £140) scymtek.com
■■The latest from Brian Spaun’s drumming stable, the Jingle
Crashes are available for Scymtek’s Vented series. The
specially-designed percussion pieces fit snugly into the
holes found in the company’s Vented cymbals. Once
attached using a Hex key the jingles add a whole new sound
to your cymbal rig. The holes are the same size as standard
rivets, opening up even more possibilities for your sound.

16 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

Beat! People | Music | Gear
MARMOZETS
Hard-hitting melodic hardcore with jazz licks!
T
hey may be named after cute tiny
monkeys, but the West Yorkshire
five-piece, whose set, frankly,
topped all others we witnessed at
this year’s Download, pack a
monstrous punch.
Their live show is a riot of energy, with Josh
McIntyre’s kit antics at the very heart of the
movement onstage. Or, offstage in the case of a
recent Bristol gig we witnessed where he moved his
“I have sometimes got used to counting stuff,
weird counts, but actually when we do it it’s just in
our blood. I close my eyes and play. It’s just feel”
entire kit into the crowd… “Every show for us is
different,” says Josh. “Some bands it works for them
where they have all these steps and these moves and
they all jump together and clap together, but for us
we’re not seals, we don’t perform for people… we do
perform, but it’s just us, it’s real.”
Singer Becca’s voice goes from convincing
hardcore screaming to Hayley Williams-like (with
18 | Summer 2014
their sound consequently crossing into Paramore
territory), but there’s hardcore riffs and math-rock
rhythms aplenty. Do the band’s more challenging
moments require much counting from Josh?
“I have sometimes got used to counting stuff like
‘1-2-3-4-5-1-2…’, like when you do some weird counts,
but actually when we do it it’s just in our blood, I just
close my eyes and play. It’s just feel.” On the subject
of their ‘math-rock’ label, Josh adds, “I think the
more music expands the more people try putting
labels on it, like if there’s like one little different beat
in a band compared to another band they’ll be like,
‘Oh no, that’s not math rock, that’s math reggae
rock.’ No, dude, just cut it out, it’s just frickin’ rock!”
Sounds like: Shellac, Paramore, Silverfish Key kit: Gretsch Catalina kit: 12", 16", 24" kick; 14"x6½" Gretsch brass
snare; Zildjian cymbals Download: ‘Why Do You Hate Me?’ Go to: www.marmozets.co.uk
© loganaxphotos
Marmozets with
drummer Josh McIntyre
(second from right)
Marmozets are a family affair – guitarist Jack and
bassist Will are brothers; Josh, Becca and guitarist
Sam are also siblings. “I think it’s a massive bonus,”
says Josh of the pros and cons of being in a band
with family. “Me, Bec and Sam, we’ve all grown up
with each other since school, so we’re so flat-out
connected. Every family, every friend has arguments
or whatever but because we know each other inside
out and we’re all so honest with each other, we just
just laugh it off and go, ‘Hey, yeah, you were an idiot,
or I was an idiot, and it’s cool, let’s go write a song!’”
On his influences, Josh reveals: “My mum was a
Christian so I grew up with gospel which is cool, plus
the normal ones like Nirvana, Big Black – all those
guys. And I also like jazz as well from my granddad,
so I used to listen to all this music from Justin
Timberlake to Slipknot. I’m all about feel and groove,
I’m not that bothered about playing the fastest beat
or showing off, for me it’s about the groove, and I
think it’s also shaped because of my rock world –
hard hitting, but with some jazz licks.”
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
the ghost wolves
A howling good time from the Lone Star state

H
usband and wife duo
Carley and Jonathan Wolf
dub their raucous, raw
music ‘stomp and roll’.
Carley howls and plays guitar while
Jonathan batters the drums. “I started
playing drums in marching bands at
school,” says Jonathan, whose
influences range from rock’n’roll
legend Earl Palmer to New Orleans
The couple started gigging as The
Ghost Wolves in 2011, recording their
debut album, Man, Woman, Beast.
While playing in a duo means there’s
plenty of room for drums, Jonathan
says, “It’s not an excuse to over-play. I
do my best to serve the songs. That
said, the great part about being a duo
is when things do get a bit wild you
aren’t stepping on anyone’s toes if you

“Being a duo, when things do get a bit wild

you aren’t stepping on anyone’s toes if you
want to lay into a couple of rad fills”
master Johnny Vidacovich to rockers want to lay into a couple of rad fills.”
Jon Theodore, Tre Cool and Dave The stripped-down format gives
Grohl. “Lately I’ve been hugely them the space to be creative. “We
inspired by Daru Jones, who plays in rehearse a lot but we always leave
Jack White’s band,” he says. “It’s so pockets of time in our show where
important to check out lots of different we’re going to make something up on
kinds of players in a variety of styles.” the spot. It keeps things interesting.”

Sounds like: The White Stripes, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Deap Vally The Ghost Wolves’ Carley
Download: ‘Dangerous Moves’ Go to: www.theghostwolves.com and Jonathan Wolf

Samoans with Sky Valley Mistress’s

drummer Chris Rouse Maxwell Harvey
William Newsome II

Samoans Sky Valley

Math-rockers from the land of song
■■Cardiff’s Samoans started life as a
math-core band but when frontman
Daniel Barnett was laid up while
recovering from a broken back in
2012, he started working on a new,
more melodic approach to his vocals.
The result has opened up their sound
and while Dan can still wail on tracks
like ‘A Thousand Knives, A Thousand
Wives’, he shows his introspective side
in songs like ‘Apia’. Drummer Chris
Rouse displays an equally impressive
range, from a full-on onslaught to
wide, uncluttered soundscapes.
Mistress
Low down and dirty blues rock
■■Dripping attitude and playing
blues-drenched rock’n’roll, Sky Valley
Mistress, with drummer Maxwell
Harvey William Newsome III, released
their debut EP in 2013 and played
Download. Now they’re re-recording
the material with a newly-added bass
player – even as their sound remains
defiantly stripped down, fuzzy and
dirtier than a ghetto dumpster.

Sounds like: Deftones, Mogwai, Reuben Sounds like: Alabama Shakes, Royal Blood, The Dead Weather
Download: ‘Dancing On The Sea Lion’ Go to: www.facebook.com/samoans Download: ‘Dirty Blonde Blues’ Go to: www.facebook.com/skyvalleymistress

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 19

Beat! People | Music | Gear

Beware of Mr Baker,
Davide De Angeli
but embrace his How To Reach Your
music warmly Drum Sound
DVD

Sound advice indeed…

Italian drummer Davide
wants to help you get the
sound you desire on your
drums. A noble cause, for
sure. His delivery is
wide-eyed and energetic, but Davide’s
advice is authoritative and right on the
money. You’ll find lots of valuable
information imparted on everything
from what to take to gigs by way of
drum tools and spares, to where best
to hit your drums and how to tune to
the sound you want, to a detailed
explanation of the differences in shell
type and what that means for your
sound. Now and again he jumps on
the kit to demonstrate what he’s
talking about, but if we had one gripe
it’s that for much of the 82 minutes he
appears to be sat in a cupboard, which
visually isn’t all that engaging. (CBu)

Extras: N/A

Ginger Baker
Go to: vimeo.com/ondemand/
yourdrumsound

MIKE ELLIS
A Drummer’s Tale ME/LP V1
CD

CD Drummer’s labour of love

Wonderful retrospective of old grumpy’s best work
As he turns 75, we’ve got to give it up
for the dangerous Mr Baker – this
superb career-spanning anthology,
produced with fans’ support via
PledgeMusic, reminds us what a true
drumming great he is.
There’s his work with Cream for
starters. Here for your delectation are ‘Sunshine Of Your
Love’, ‘White Room’, ‘What A Bringdown’, his brilliant ‘Toad’
solo and the bonkers ‘Pressed Rat And Warthog’. With
Clapton and Steve Winwood he formed Blind Faith, and here
we have ‘I Can’t Find My Way Home’ and the 15-minute jam
‘Do What You Like’ that closes out their one, classic album.
From his time with the Graham Bond Organization comes
‘Camels And Elephants’. In the ’90s he worked with Masters
Of Reality on the included tunes ‘Ants In The Kitchen’, and
‘TUSA’, about how to make a cup of tea. Then check out his
groove on the very psychedelic ‘Mad Jack’ with the Baker
Gurvitz Army, and his incredible playing with Fela Kuti –
funky as hell and right on the money on ‘Ye Ye De Smell’.
Baker’s love affair with African rhythms started much earlier
of course, and his soulful, groovy, African-inspired Airforce
tracks ‘Early In The Morning’ and ‘Doin’ It’ are also a very
welcome inclusion here. There’s small-group jazz too of
course, with his recent Jazz Confusion track ‘Why?’ as well as
his work with DJQ20 on the tracks ‘Coward Of The County’
and ‘Jesus Loves Me’.
Ginger’s contribution to music and specifically the drums
is so much larger than life. This is perhaps the first time all
of these great songs have been collected, and it’s a true
treat for music fans, drummers or otherwise. (CBu)
Download: ‘Do What You Like’
Go to: www.gingerbaker.com
Drummer and drum
tech to the stars
(Gavin Harrison, Billy
Cobham, Thomas
Lang etc) Mike Ellis
has put together an album that mixes
rock, industrial dance and cinematic
themes – including a 10 minute tribute
to Barry Gray, who penned the themes
to Gerry Anderson’s Thunderbirds and
Stingray. On ‘No Harm In Funky’, he
lets loose with a deep pocket disco
funk groove; ‘Hard And Fast’ has deep,
industrial beats; ‘Bring It Down’ has
gothic metal grandeur; ‘Fame Whore’
has a Duran Duran feel to it, Mike’s
drumming brash but tight. A bold and
enjoyably eclectic album. (CBu)
Download: ‘No Harm In Funky’
Go to: www.hotfootproductions.co.uk

20 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Classic Albums featuring…
Steve Gadd
1 Aja 2 One Trick Pony 3 The Leprechaun
(1977) Steely Dan (1980) Paul Simon (1976) Chick Corea
The Dan had their His finest moment Return To Forever
pick of top players for Simon may be fusioneer’s
and on this album ‘50 Ways’, but this Grammy-winning
alone they used album’s full of Gadd jazz classic with
Marotta, Keltner, goodness. Steve’s Gadd on incredible
Purdie… Gadd’s only on one track, four-stick, Mozambique groove on form. Where his session work
‘Aja’ but all the classic licks are ‘Late In The Evening’ is one that all subtly enlivened many a pop
here; his ratamacue, sublime drummers aspire to be able to play, recording, here he was at his most
cross-stick, incredible use of while the live ‘One Trick Pony’ complex and technically brilliant.
dynamics, half-time feel… never shows Gadd and Simon’s team of His use of linear jazz-funk grooves
mind the quantity, feel the width. top-notch sessioneers at their best. is quite incredible.
Key Track: ‘Aja’ Key Track: ‘Late In The Evening’ Key Track: ‘Lenore’

The Levon Helm Band
Midnight Ramble Sessions 3
CD
Levon’s superb swansong
The Midnight Ramble Sessions
were one of the late, great Band
drummer’s final musical projects.
The idea was to create something
of a musical event influenced by
the travelling shows Levon remembered as a boy,
that took in all the music emerging in America’s
South back then – bluegrass, gospel, country,
rock’n’roll, soul and jazz. So Levon gathered
together some of the finest musicians he could and
the result is a fantastically eclectic and feel-good
run through tunes that evoke the smokey bars of
Southern America from New Orleans to Mississippi.
Levon and his friends recorded live in his barn in
Woodstock, NY, and there’s a real party feel to it all.
This volume sees Elvis Costello and New Orleans
R&B legend Allen Toussaint teaming up on
Toussaint’s ‘A Certain Girl’, there’s folk standard
‘Stagger Lee’, Dylan’s ‘Simple Twist Of Fate’ and
Sam Cooke’s ‘Ain’t That Good News’. Black Crowes’
Chris Robinson sings on ‘Shake Your Money Maker’
and Levon lends his rich southern tones to Al
Green’s ‘Take Me To The River’, ‘The Same Thing’
and ‘Drivin’ Wheel’, while the drumming
throughout drives the tunes with swing and
panache – as you’d expect, it’s a masterclass in
blues-rock and soul drumming. (CBu)
Download: ‘Shake Your Money Maker’
Go to: www.levonhelm.com

Gaslight Anthem The Empty Hearts

Get Hurt the empty Hearts
CD CD

Benny’s boys take a left turn Clem Burke’s rock’n’roll supergroup

As fantastic as Gaslight Anthem’s
four previous albums were, there
was a suggestion of stagnation
beginning to seep in by the time
we got to the end of 2012’s
Handwritten. On album five, Benny Horowitz and
co return with an immediate, and surprisingly
rocky, return to fine form. Opener ‘Stay Vicious’
raises an eyebrow or two as it blasts out sounding
like Brian Fallon fronting the Black Keys after a
particularly brutal night on the town. It’s a vibe that
runs throughout the record, with more riffing than
we’re used to from Gaslight, although that does
mean that Horowitz’s playing is kept simple and
steady for much of the album. That’s not to say
that what he does play isn’t impressive, ‘1000
Years’ benefits from a wedge-thick groove, while
the neat hat work and vice-tight fills of ‘Red Violins’
are the record’s drumming highlight. (RC)
Clem Burke, as we know, is a
good-old-fashioned rock’n’roller at
heart. So, if Blondie’s latest output
may be a little too electronic-y for
some, Clem fans can rejoice at his
contribution to this supergroup. Besides Clem, the
Empty Hearts are The Cars’ Elliott Easton, Wally
Palmar of The Romantics and Andy Babiuk
(Chesterfield Kings), with Ian McLagen (The Faces)
guesting on keys. So, of course, there’s Faces-style
rock’n’boogie (‘I Don’t Want Your Love’ and ‘Drop
Me Off At Home’); Kinks and Who-style ’60s rock,
with Clem channelling Moonie wherever possible
(‘Soul Deep’, ‘I See No Way Out’); there’s flashes of
The Beatles, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty too. It’s
amazingly fresh considering it’s made by veteran
rockers consciously borrowing heavily from the
music they love – but then it’s that love of the
music that makes it sound like they mean it. (CBu)

Download: ‘Red Violins’ Download: ‘Soul Deep’

Go to: www.thegaslightanthem.com Go to: www.facebook.com/Theemptyheartsband

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
Beat! People | Music | Gear
make money playing drums
Being
different
Want to work as a drummer? Craig Blundell
can help. This month: making an impression…
T
here are so many facets to being
different and standing out that I
could fill this wonderful magazine
with content and still have space
for more. In this issue I’m going to look at
three simple things that I’ve changed
personally and, hopefully, these may start to
help you stand out from the crowd
It seems that daily, I get added on social
media by people that are self-titled ‘Session
Drummers’. The phrase goes back nearly
100 years to when record companies had
their own in-house bands that churned out
record after record. The modern session
musician really came to prominence in the
’60s with Booker T and the MGs who were
the house band at Stax records. In the ’80s
you had the members of Toto, each of them
a session musician working the LA circuit
and then deciding to form a band. The truth
is, those days are gone now and the session
musician spending their life in a studio
recording is a bit of a thing of the past, as
are the sessions and the title.
The standard of the players that did these
jobs day in, day out was quite frankly in a
Calling yourself ‘session drummer’ won’t
impress the fixers. It’s now a massively
diluted phrase that doesn’t hold any clout
different league. They could literally play
anything in the studio and there are still
musicians out there that ‘get the call’ that
can and still do. I was calling myself a session
drummer when I was doing a gig in a local
pub with two different bands then going to
deliver fruit and veg the next day. It was on
my business card and I played in about three
or four bands at the time. In my head that’s
what I was but in reality, I wasn’t even close.
If you play in a couple of bands or you do
gigs with different people from time to time,
you are not a session drummer. It won’t
impress the ‘fixers’ and sadly for the most
part, you are thrown in a stereotype with
thousands of others calling themselves the
same. It’s now a massively diluted phrase
that doesn’t hold any clout any more.
When it comes to getting a job, getting
work in this industry relies on so many
different facets, as you’ll see as this series
22 | Summer 2014
progresses. Even down to what you call
yourself, it can be a fickle place. What are
you? An educator? Musician? Clinician?
Producer? Session drummer? Teacher? Or
the whole lot? If you are, can you back it up?
Tread carefully; each comes with its own set
of stereotypes and each will come with
demands that may catch you out if you’re
not ready or experienced enough. There is
nothing wrong with saying, “I’m a drummer.”
You’ll be surprised how rare that is!
So let’s look at the first introduction. It
could be on the phone or it could be a CV.
This is where a lot of people get it so badly
wrong, including myself for years. Nowadays,
most jobs are on recommendations but
sometimes you might need to submit a CV.
This could be to a drum company, producer,
record company or a fixer. These guys still
get a LOT of emails and letters each week
asking to be on their database or people
wanting endorsements. In fact the volume is
staggering. And when I say ‘guys’ its
invariably one person that deals with A&R
and for the most part they are stretched.
Keep your CV short; write bullets that get
straight to the point of who you HAVE
worked with – don’t include tenuous
brackets with the sound engineers’ previous
credits or who the producer on the album
has produced, it’s irrelevant to what YOU do
as a musician. Be honest and try to impress
in the first few lines, there is no need to drag
it out, even if it’s a telephone conversation.
Remember, everyone has to start with
hardly any credits to their name. Just be nice
and friendly; you’ll be surprised how far that
goes. These people want to work with happy,
talented and easy-going people; credits for
the most part aren’t always relevant.
We live in an age where social media is
king. Now I say this with my feet firmly
rooted to the floor. I realised my profile was
starting to grow when my Facebook page
started getting a few more likes from people
in different countries and when it got up to
the maximum amount I changed it to an
If you have an artist profile
on Facebook, use it as a
brand and think about what
you want to portray
artist profile. It was then that I realised I had
to change my thoughts from talking about
what I have for breakfast and ‘animals do
the funniest things’ to content that was
relevant to the message I wanted to deliver. I
your tutor realised I had an interactive community of
people that liked my work and it was a bit of
craig blundell
craig@craigblundell.net a shock to the system how much it continues
Craig is one of the UK’s to grow, especially when I travel abroad. I
most well-respected have to be extremely careful what I post on
clinicians, and is an there. A lot of people aren’t. I’m a normal
in-demand and busy
drummer who also
human being; I have thoughts, rants and
makes his own music videos that make me upset but that stays off
as Dr oKtopUs. my artist profile and ultimately off of the
Internet. You have to be professional with
everything you do. If you love Facebook,
Twitter and want to have a laugh or share
silly videos then do it on another profile. If
you have an artist profile, use it as a brand,
think about the message you want to put
across and take it seriously.
The truth is, most future employers DO
check social media and one thing you post
or say may undo your amazing drumming
video, and that’s that.
The internet can connect you to all parts
of the globe in seconds, as can an email.
Make sure you think it through and get it
right. Just like at a Jam night, you never
know who’s watching… .
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
Beat! People | Music | Gear

inbox what’s
wh nging yo
banging
at’s ba ur
your
drum
drum this month…
this month…
Write The Grateful Dead’s Sta
Letterr
in &
Mickey Hart

win!
The writer of the Star
Letter each month
wins an Evans Level
360 drum head and
Pro-Mark sticks

© Redferns / Getty Images

Where next?
Hey! Firstly, I would just like to say that I’ve your
been reading your drum magazine since I
was nine years old. And as a 16-year-old
aspiring drummer I’ve found that there have
tweets origins of
rhythm
@Rhythm
been some awesome top tips and advice Magazine has
sections which are completely relevant to blessed Sheel & us
with a 4-page
me. I’ve been playing for just over seven feature
Hi guys, great mag as usual. Being an avid drummer and reader
years now and I think it’s fair to say I’ve @Badrabbits of books about drummers and drumming, I recently read a
caught the ‘bug’. I spend a large amout of
my time checking out clips on YouTube,
Great article copy of [Grateful Dead drummer] Mickey Hart’s Drumming At
in @Rhythm
practising and listening to various types of Magazine about
The Edge Of Magic about the origins of percussion, in which he
music (from Foo Fighters to Gogo Penguin or The Heroes of Big states that only the context separates the striking of two flints to
Band. Thanks
Dinosaur Jr to Joe Bonamassa... you name
@petecaterdrums
make a spearhead from the whacking of two sticks to make a
it!) and of course being inspired by the
& @ralphsalmins, rhythm. Also that some of the earliest drums were fashioned from
interviews in your magazine. With the perfect reading
drums, I am due to take my Grade 8 for a rockabilly human skulls and played in caves to amplify their acoustic
Rockschool exam in just over a week’s time. I guy :) properties – fascinating!
@Glennydrums
also play in an experimental two-piece who Reading about the origins of rhythm reminded me of when I was
write and perform our own original songs. Just seen
Sheel from
on holiday in Tobago in the Caribbean, one night after drinking
Check us out!!! [http://soundcloud.com/
bearstheband] We have performed in a @BadRabbits Rum Punch with the locals I called it a night and went to my beach
in @Rhythm
couple of Bristol venues at The Fleece Magazine.
shack which was also on the edge of the forest. I tried to sleep but
and The Exchange, taking part in unsigned Everyone needs to the jungle sounds and heat were keeping me awake so I decided to
band nights. go and get a copy!!
@Thomas_Guffick relax, listen more intently to what I was hearing; there were
Anyway, I really want to play the drums
for a living when I’m older. But, I’m writing Last month in
crickets that were sounding like a closed hi-hat, other insects like
in order to hopefuly seek some advice. @Rhythm shakers and birds/animals sounding like wood blocks etc –
Magazine I had my
When I leave sixth form at 18, is it my best
first feature. This
basically to me it was like a drummer playing kit and percussion
option to go to a contemporary music month my dad that only needed a melody added to make a song!
college like BIMM or ACM or would it be @ChrisSlade
more valuable to myself to get out there Drums has one! I wonder if the sounds of nature also inspired early humans to
straight away at 18 and try to find myself Snap it up! come up with instruments to mimic these sounds they were
@IAmJackSlade
an agent and try to make it as a session hearing as well as providing the source to build them?
drummer? And if so, how would I go about @Rhythm
Magazine Ray Brodrick, Romford
doing that? Any words of wisdom would be
@cleggdrums
much appreciated. smashed it out of
Jacob Hughes via email the park, great
Some excellent points well made, Ray. Drumming is about so much
player more than just playing a percussion instrument, and nature has surely
Hi Jacob. It’s great that you have caught @nicksdrums played a part in man’s compulsion to create rhythm. Mickey Hart’s
the drumming bug and are hoping to book is certainly fascinating – his delving into the folkloric origins of
make a career of it. The first thing I will percussion, alongside some very groovy explorations of the more
say – and please don’t be deterred by spiritual side of rhythm, make it a worthwhile read if you’re looking
this – is that it’s an incredibly tough
industry to make a living from and you
for something different on the subject of drums. (CBu)
need to give it serious commitment to

24 | summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

Get in touch
email rhythm@futurenet.com
Twitter
@RhythmMagazine
Facebook
/RhythmMagazine
Or send it the old way: The Editor, Rhythm Magazine,
30 Monmouth Street, Bath, Somerset BA1 2BW
make an impact. Before choosing a path
you need to decide exactly what type of
drummer you want to be. You
mentioned sessions, so that’s recording
and/or playing live for other artists.
How much studio experience do you
have? Do you play regularly live with
professional musicians? Can you play to
a click, or work with electronics? If the
answer to any of these is ‘not really’,
then you’re not yet ready to tackle the
demands of the modern session
drummer role and you have areas to
work on.
If, on the other hand, you would
rather be part of a more traditional
band, then you are looking at a
completely different and even more
competitive route into the industry
which involves having great, well-
recorded songs, an amazing live act, a
decent following and many other
Whichever route you take, school or going
it alone, neither is a fast track to the top,
and determination, hard-earned talent
and experience will be your biggest allies
elements that can’t be summed up in a
simple soundbite here.
Don’t forget that being a professional
musician doesn’t just come down to
decent playing either. Getting ahead in
the industry is all about knowing and
impressing the right people and being a
great person to work with. You will also
need to be able to manage your time
wisely, know your gear inside and out,
manage your income, understand and
be able to fill out a tax return etc.
As for whether you should go it alone
(forget finding an agent – just another
person to take a cut of your earnings) or
sign up to one of the many excellent
music colleges the UK has to offer, it
really depends. At 16 I doubt you can
honestly say you have all the skills
listed above. These can be learned
independently, but a music college
can provide an excellent foundation
in the music business and give you an
overview of the skills you will need.
Plus, it’s a great opportunity to meet
other musicians.
Whichever route you take, neither
is a fast track to the top, and
determination, hard-earned talent
and experience will be your biggest
allies. Good luck! (CB)
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
this month on facebook*
We asked: What was the best drum performance you saw at Glastonbury?
Ben Underwood: “Clem weird kit set up though!” Ben O’Hare: “Matt Johnson playing
Burke was magnificent. And the dude Si Rawle: “Daru Jones with Jack White.” for St Vincent. Amazing player. Ian
out of Royal Blood.” Michael Conway: “The drummers for Matthews, not a huge Kasabian
Neal Cannell: “Clem Burke is class. Robert Plant and De La Soul.” fan, but I love how he goes about
And Jack White’s drummer, bloody Darren Catterall: “Lars played well.” his work!”
* Join the discussion at Facebook.com/RhythmMagazine
Keep getting better new generation of drummers.
Idly flicking
Chris [Barnes], loved your editorial After reading the article last night I
through my
comments in the June issue. I think you hit favourite listened to a lot of Bunnymen material.
the nail on the head. Like you, I was stuck in magazine Wonderful stuff. It occurred to me what a
my comfort zone. Playing the pads and @Rhythm great sound Pete de Freitas had and also
expanding my repertoire is essential for me Magazine and such impeccable timing. Steve Jansen would
found my book
to get better. Rhythm magazine is a great reviewed in there. be another talented drummer from this
teacher. Especially the video examples! Very nice surprise. period with such a gift. I’ve often wondered
I’ve read all the drum mags at one time or @MATTDEAN which drums and cymbals Pete used as they
another, but Rhythm is much better at DRUMMER sounded so great. If Chris has any ideas I’d
fostering expanded playing ideas. Thanks to Superb instalment love to know.
you. Continued success! of Make Money Mark Clarke, Birmingham
Chris Tomlins Playing Drums by
@craigblundell in
this month’s Thanks for the feedback! As a huge
praise for @Rhythm Bunnymen fan I felt Pete’s work should
De Freitas Magazine. Great continue to be recognised, his
I was overjoyed to see the excellent and honest advice & contribution to the band and their
practical help.
thoughtful feature on Pete De Freitas in the @drumting
enduring music was absolutely massive.
August Edition of Rhythm. As an up-and- I must admit though I hit a wall when it
coming young drummer in 1984, I learned My ideal plan for came to identifying Pete’s gear; his
today, to read
how to play the kit by watching recordings of @Rhythm tech/friend/Bunnymen keyboardist
Pete playing with the Bunnymen. A truly Magazine from Jake Brockman sadly passed away – also
cover to cover in a motorcycle accident – some years
#drumgeek
#readingfor
ago so set-up details were thin on the
ground. Could any other readers shed
pleasure
@BizeeDrumGeek any light on Pete’s set-up? – (CBu)
Really rad to be in
the list of 8 best
ROYAL PERFORMANCE
Thanks for the Royal Blood playalong last
drummers at
@DownloadFest month – I saw them at Download and was
from @Rhythm blown away by Ben Thatcher and how they
Magazine....
great musical player and, as Chris Burke Thanks so much
get all that sound out of just two of them!
correctly observes, one of the world’s best you guys. STOKED! Mike P, Derby
and perhaps most unsung of drumming @JoshMarmozets
heroes who is much missed. A great feature Big fans of the Blood here. Catch our
which I hope introduces Pete’s playing to a interview with Ben next issue! – (CBu)
Ben Thatcher with Royal
Blood was a drumming
highlight of both Download
and Glastonbury
summer 2014 | 25
 competition

Win!
a Natal cajon
worth £99

C
ajons have enjoyed an incredible resurgence
in the last few years, with drummers with
all kinds of gigs eager to add one to their
arsenal. The cajon has long been a staple of the
set-up of any percussionist worth their salt, but now
kit drummers have been turned on to the merits of
these versatile instruments. Perfect for acoustic
performances or perhaps backing up a laid-back
jazz gig, cajons have a million and one uses to the
modern sticksman. Now you can have one as well,
as we have this beauty from Natal to give away. This
this 30x30x48cm traditional cajon features is made
from birch and features a dark red and black finish,
fully adjustable snare wires, high-grip tops, heavy
duty rubber feet and a stunning birch frontplate.

Natal is a
city in which
country?
A) Brazil
B) Belarus
C) Belgium

How To Enter
All you have to do to stand a chance of
winning these very special prizes is head to
www.futurecompetitions.com/natal and
answer the simple question above.

Terms & conditions

Under 18s must obtain parental consent to enter this competition. Answers must be received between 29/07/14 and
25/08/14. The winner will be selected at random from all correct entries received between the relevant dates and will be
sent the prize free of charge. Winners will be notified within 28 days of the closing date and will be required to supply
details of UK delivery address. By entering this competition you consent to us using your personal details to send you
information about products and services of Future which may be of interest to you. For full terms and conditions visit
www.futurenet.com/ futureonline/competitionrules.asp

26 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 cover feature
Tony Williams
© Condé Nast Archive/Corbis

28 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 t o n y

w i l l i a m s
In honour of the 50th anniversary of Life Time, Rhythm

c e l e b r at e s t h e l i f e a n d p i o n e e r i n g d ru m m i n g o f To n y

W i ll i a m s , t h r o u g h t h e w o r d s o f h i s f r i e n d s

Words: Davi d We st p hotos : pre ss

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 29

cover feature
Tony Williams
“ I ’ ll t e ll y o u w h a t i t
wa s l i k e p l ay i n g w i t h
T o n y, e v e r y t i m e y o u
p l ay e d w i t h h i m h e
would do something
a m a z i n g t h at wo u l d
m a k e yo u r jaw d r o p ”
W a l l a c e R o n e y
t
ony Williams was just 17 when he
joined Miles Davis’ band. The
trumpeter’s reputation was already
titanic with a body of work that
included vital albums like Miles
Ahead, Birth Of The Cool and Kind
Of Blue, then a teenager came
along and changed everything.
Williams was born in Chicago,
12 December, 1945 and grew up in Boston. His
father Tillmon played saxophone and, after being
introduced to the drums at school, by the age of nine
Tony was sitting in on his dad’s gigs playing hit dance
tunes. He studied drumming with Alan Dawson and
possessed an uncanny ability to absorb everything
he heard – Dawson recalled Tony coming in shortly
after the Dave Brubeck Quartet released Time Out
to announce that he could now play in 5/4 before
performing Joe Morello’s ‘Take Five’ solo from
memory. His talent drew the attention of Sam Rivers,
who invited him to join the Boston Improvisational
Ensemble, an experience that fed the drummer’s
interest in moving beyond fixed, traditional formats.
The youngster frequently sat in with bands that came
through Boston – Max Roach joked that he was going
to have to stop letting the kid sit in as he was going
to take his job. This led to him being spotted by
Jackie McLean, who invited Williams to New York,
where he cut albums with McLean, Kenny Dorham
and Herbie Hancock. Then in 1963, he joined Davis’s
new quintet. His impact was profound. He might
have been a teenager, but he was fearless.
“[Certain] drummers scare a lot of musicians,”
said Miles Davis in a 1968 interview. “Like Tony – a lot
of musicians can’t play with him because they’re
used to playing on the first beat and he accents on
the second and third beats if you’re in 4/4 time.
30 | Summer 2014
Sometimes he might accent on any beat. And he
might play 5/4 time for a while, and you’ve got to
have that. You’ve got to know about rhythms and the
feel of different rhythms in order to play with him,
because he might haul off and do anything
rhythmically. If you don’t have any knowledge of time
and different time changes, he’ll lose you.”
Out To Lunch
Williams was instantly in demand in New York,
displaying a versatility and maturity far beyond his
years. His musical vocabulary was remarkable – he
showed his fluency in bebop and hard bop with his
early albums with Davis but was right at home on the
cutting edge with Eric Dolphy’s influential avant-
garde album Out To Lunch. “He just simply turned
around the art of jazz drumming in that one album,
completely revolutionised it, I thought,” says Cream
and Lifetime bassist Jack Bruce. “I don’t think I was
alone in thinking that at the time.”
Where Davis typically played a set of standards
live – documented on albums like Four & More and
Miles In Berlin – the influence of the avant-garde was
tangible in his studio sessions like 1965’s E.S.P. and
1967’s Miles Smiles. But Williams was ahead of Davis
in that regard. “He was shaping the music,” says
Cindy Blackman Santana. “He was changing the
mood, the colour, the direction, he was adding
incredible dynamics. It’s amazing to study him, to
listen to what he did and figure out why he did it
where he did it in the music. At first you just listen to
this incredible barrage of skill and masterfulness, but
when you realise what he was doing musically over a
song and what he was doing weaving in and out of
somebody’s solo, it’s mindboggling. So inspiring.”
August 1964 saw Williams cut his first album as a
leader. Life Time features five original compositions
by the drummer that were conceptually influenced
by Dolphy, rather than Davis, and in many ways
provided a thematic sequel to Out To Lunch. In ‘Two
Pieces Of One: Green’, Williams’ ride cymbal work is
extraordinary as he switches meters from phrase to
phrase without ever losing track of the time, dancing
around Sam Rivers’ melodic explorations on the
saxophone. One of his trademarks was playing all
four beats of the bar with his left foot in the hi-hat,
heard on ‘Freedom Jazz Dance’ from Miles Smiles.
This allowed him to free up his ride cymbal from
keeping the time, so Williams could improvise with
his right hand and react to whatever was happening
in the moment and play phrases against the time
with the instrument that in bebop and hard bop
convention was at the heart of timekeeping.
Spring (1965) kept to the avant-garde style. In the
same period he recorded Herbie Hancock’s classics
Maiden Voyage and Empyrean Isles, and some of
Davis’ most daring work in Nefertiti and Filles De
Kilimanjaro, but the drummer was restless. Life
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
© Mosaic Images/CORBIS
cover feature
Tony Williams
Time and Spring may have explored the avant-garde
but they were still in the tradition of acoustic jazz
and Williams wanted to break out into something
completely new. He wouldn’t release another album
as bandleader until 1969 but when The Tony Williams
Lifetime unleashed Emergency! they shook jazz to its
very core even as the drummer’s relationship with
Davis broke down irrevocably.
Plug In,
Freak Out
In the space of five years, Williams had gone from a
teenage prodigy in Boston to a major jazz star, but
his musical horizons were wide and he was a big fan
of Cream and The Jimi Hendrix Experience. “Tony
loved jazz but he had a real affinity for rock’n’roll
music and R&B, which I did,” says jazz bass virtuoso
Stanley Clarke. “Anybody that grows up at any point
is going to be influenced by
whatever the music is. That’s why it
really cracks me up, especially
during the time when [trumpeter
Wynton] Marsalis came on the “Even in 1991 Tony
scene, a lot of those musicians were
w a s s t i ll h o l d i n g
acting like they never heard an
Earth, Wind & Fire record. They
were lying. It was for business. They
put suits and ties on and go, ‘I’m a
purist jazz musician,’ and it’s
bulls**t. We were all influenced by
Jimi Hendrix. There is not a person
that’s a good musician who was not
influenced by Jimi Hendrix.”
“Jimi was revolutionary,” says
Lenny White. “I’ve talked to a lot of you again.’ I think
English guitar players, at the time
when Jimi came over there
everybody wanted to break his
hands. He played stuff that nobody
else could play. We didn’t want to do
that with Tony but he put everybody when Miles died…”
in the shed, back in the practice
room to get to that level. I think
Tony really wanted to reach for
something different.”
Williams was on the lookout for a
guitarist who could handle the intricacies of jazz but
still play with the power and excitement that Hendrix
brought to the instrument and he found his man in
British player John McLaughlin. While Miles Davis is
often singled out as the starting point for the birth of
jazz-rock from his albums In A Silent Way and Bitches
Brew featuring McLaughlin, it wasn’t Davis that
brought McLaughlin to New York. It was Williams,
with a little help from Jack Bruce.
“Obviously I knew John McLaughlin, he had been
invited to join Tony when I was making an album of
mine called Things We Like,” says Bruce. “It was
meant to be a trio album but John said he needed to
raise some funds to get out to play with Tony. I said,
‘Well, why don’t you play on my record and that will
enable you to get out there?’ It suddenly became a
quartet album.”
“I first heard Tony play in 1964-5 on the Miles
In Europe recording,” says John McLaughlin. “He
blew me away, and even more so when I found
out he was even younger than me. He was 18! I’ve
32 | Summer 2014
always been sensitive to drummers, and Tony was
just unbelievable. In my opinion, Tony changed
drumming forever. He was a one-man revolution. Not
only did he bring an entirely new concept to drums,
but he made everyone around him play differently.
Listen to how Miles plays with Tony on this recording.
Miles is soaring. He loves Tony.”
The Tony Williams Lifetime left acoustic jazz
behind in favour of a ground-breaking collision
between rock and jazz. The sparseness of Life Time
and Spring was replaced by a maelstrom of music
with Williams playing like a man possessed and
matched at every ferocious step by McLaughlin on
guitar and Larry Young on keys. “To me, it all started
with Tony,” says Stanley Clarke. “Before the record
came out he was playing that stuff, they were playing
clubs, and I think everybody including Miles heard it.
Everyone was influenced by that. I know many
o n t o t h a t , ‘ I ’ ll
n e v e r p l ay w i t h
t h at h u rt h i m
Wa l l a c e R o n e y
© Mosaic Images/CORBIS
people attribute jazz-rock music to Mahavishnu
Orchestra or Return To Forever or even Miles Davis
but to me and those who know, Tony Williams was
the guy who actually started that form of music.”
“I attribute Tony Williams as the guy who really
created fusion,” concurs Lenny White. “Lifetime was
basically a traditional organ trio that was on steroids.
When we heard that music, everything changed in
terms of drummers because there were new things
that Tony brought to the drum nomenclature that
were not there before. To play his hi-hat on all four
beats, which he had done with Miles but not at the
level of breaking it into a so-called rock groove that
hadn’t been heard before. He brought a new mindset
to playing drums.”
McLaughlin describes playing with Williams as,
“Liberating. With Tony you had to play, and you had
to play with him. Some drummers are content to let
the soloist play ‘over’ the drummer,
but with Tony it was constant
communication. Tony had really big
ears, he heard everything and
responded spontaneously. He was
also provocative in the sense that he
‘made’ you play outside the box.
Truly amazing.”
I’ll Never
P l ay W i t h
You Again
It seems Davis was impressed with
the new direction. “Tony told me
that from ’68 to February ’69 they
were playing at a place called Count
Basie’s, and he said everybody was
coming up to hear the band, from
Jimi Hendrix to Marvin Gaye,” says
Wallace Roney. “One day Miles came
and heard the band and Miles came
every night after that.” Davis wanted
to record with the trio, which led to
a disagreement with Williams. “Tony
said, if you call it Miles Davis
Presents The Tony Williams Lifetime
we can do that. Miles said, no, I can’t
do that. So Tony said, I’d like to keep
this, I’ve got something special here. Miles said, okay,
will you still play with the band? We’ve got a record
date tomorrow. Tony said sure. The record was In A
Silent Way.”
Since Williams wanted to keep Lifetime from being
absorbed into Davis’ band, he asked the trumpeter
not to use McLaughlin and Young on the record date,
but Davis went behind his back. “So Tony said the
next day they’re in the studio and there’s John and
Larry, the very thing he asked Miles not to do. He was
pissed,” says Wallace. “That’s why on the record he’s
playing simple like that. People think he was doing
that for the music; he said, ‘I was doing that because
I was mad.’ At the very end, he told Miles, ‘I’ll never
play with you again.’ He meant it. He never did.”
“I don’t know if Tony was angry, but he wasn’t too
happy about it,” says McLaughlin. “For the record,
Miles didn’t ask me to join his band until six or seven
months later, after we’d recorded Bitches Brew. Miles
wanted me for his recordings, and to do concerts
with him when I wasn’t playing with Tony. It was
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
cover feature
Tony Williams

perfect for me, but it’s true, I saw subsequently that

© Mosaic Images/CORBIS
Tony wasn’t happy with Miles ‘borrowing’ me since I
came to New York at his invitation and not Miles’.”

Turn It Over
T u r n s I t Up
The next step in the development of Lifetime was the
addition of Jack Bruce on bass, who was fresh out of
Cream and just starting a solo career. “I was playing
at the Fillmore East with my own band, it was the
opening night of a very big tour all across the
States,” says Jack. “Tony came down with John
McLaughlin. John introduced me to Tony and Tony
half-jokingly said, ‘Do you want to join my band?’ I
just said, ‘Yes.’ I kind of auditioned for the gig. He
handed me a written chart for ‘Vuelta Abajo’ I think it
was, and we just played it. He was amazed that I
could sight read it and play it, which is something I
can do having studied at college. He assumed I was
just this rock bassist who wouldn’t be able to do that
but it wasn’t difficult for me to sight-read it. So then I
joined up with the band.”
Now a quartet, Lifetime released the explosive
Turn It Over in 1970, but despite the incendiary
chemistry between the musicians, it was not a
smooth-running operation. “I found it a tremendous
honour to play with Tony and we became very good
friends during that time we were playing together,”
says Bruce. “It was a very difficult period because his
management were, to say the least, pretty useless. I
would go out to New York at my own expense and sit
around for weeks waiting for a gig that very often
didn’t happen. I got very tired of that and it was
proving economically rather stupid, but it was mostly
just a waste of time. I didn’t want to be sitting around
at that point in my life. I wanted to be playing. I got
fed up so I got my people to put together a European
tour which we did and which was actually quite Says Cindy Blackman Santana of
successful in its own way. One problem was that a lot Tony’s work with Miles Davis:
of people knew me from Cream so were kind of “He was shaping the music. He
was changing the mood, the
expecting a Cream-type band. When they got colour, the direction”
Lifetime it was a bit of a shock for some of them.”
Many critics of the period reacted negatively to
Williams’ new jazz-rock. “I think a lot of it was fear dangerously it would appear, but you’re not actually
because the band was so good and so powerful that driving dangerously, you’re driving safely because
the critics didn’t know what to make of it. They were the car is built to be that accurate and precise. There T h e H o ly G r a i l
pinned against the wall by this tremendous sound. I was something like that in his playing. He seemed to
think quite a few of them got it wrong, but then when be right on the edge a lot of the time but it was all
S t a n l e y Cl a r k e h a s a s a c r e d
don’t they?” says Bruce, who believes that the studio very controlled, there was never any question of him set of Tony’s drums
recordings were unable to do the band justice. “We losing it. If he was pushing the beat or the meter a
never actually managed to get on tape what the certain way, you just knew it was going to be right,
band had because of the equipment and techniques but he would certainly take it out.” Tony’s drums from The Joy Of Flying now reside at bass
we were using,” he says. “We were playing as loud as For Bruce, the other bonus about being in Lifetime player Stanley Clarke’s house. “What’s funny is every
a rock band, but as many notes as a jazz band, so the was working with Larry Young. “I could say he was drummer that I know, all my good friends, have asked me,
equipment hadn’t really caught up with us yet. There the finest musician I ever worked with,” he says. “He ‘Send me the drumset because you know Tony actually
was a lot of distortion and a lot of difficulty in was a genius in the sense that he just was music wanted me to have those!’” says Clarke. “When Tony died I
recording because Tony wanted to record like a rock when he played. It wasn’t like, ‘play this, play that’, he think Dennis Chambers was the first guy to call me, ‘Hey
band. For instance Cream did that, we played very couldn’t read music or anything, it didn’t really man, what about that drumset?’ ‘I don’t know, man, what
loud in the studio in order to achieve something you matter, but I’ve heard and seen him do things that about it? It’s sitting where it needs to be sitting.’ Now I’m
felt as well as heard. I think Tony wanted to do that I’ve never experienced before or since. He played wondering what to do with it. I was talking to Ron Carter
but he had jazz people recording the band and I what you should have written, if you know what I and Ron gave me a lot of insight, he says, ‘Tony would
think he should have had rock people, possibly.” mean, so he didn’t need to read music.” really be upset if it wasn’t played,’ so I’m in the process of
However, the celebrated bassist is unequivocal in Turn It Over marked John McLaughlin’s last album getting it in playing shape and then putting it in my home
his estimation of the drummer’s abilities: “There was with Lifetime. At the time, Williams and McLaughlin studio. Then people can come by and play that drumset.
something very precise about his playing. If you’ve had been meeting with Al Kooper, formerly of It’s a great-sounding set.”
ever driven a really good Ferrari, there’s something Blood, Sweat & Tears and now the A&R man at
about the precision of that so you can drive very Columbia Records, who was interested in signing

34 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

cover feature
Tony Williams
© Jazzsign/Lebrecht Music & Arts/Corbis
One of Tony’s trademarks
was playing all four beats of
the bar with his left foot on
the hi-hat which freed up his
ride from keeping time
the band – but with conditions. “One day they had a
meeting with Al Kooper,” says Wallace Roney
recalling a conversation with Williams, “and Al
Kooper said, ‘We want to sign you but we want to call
the band Lifetime, not The Tony Williams’ Lifetime.’
Tony got pissed, he said, ‘I see what you’re trying to
do, you’re trying to sell the white boy in the band.
You’re trying to make the white boy the leader. This
is MY f**king band.’ He kicked Al Kooper out. There
was still a deal on the table and the next thing he
knew John was talking to Al Kooper and that’s how
Mahavishnu Orchestra was born. Tony felt betrayed.
That’s how that segment of Lifetime ended.”
Asked about the circumstances around the
break-up of the original Lifetime, Jack Bruce says, “It
wasn’t really my decision. I think it was more John.
© Jazzsign/Lebrecht Music & Arts/Corbis
We all got very fed up waiting for something to
happen. Nothing ever happened and I think John was
probably approached by certain people saying, ‘Why
don’t you bring the concept and do it without Tony,’
basically. I do know that Tony was very hurt for a
long time about that. I don’t blame him because that
whole idea and a lot of the material was Tony and
then suddenly it was the Mahavishnu Orchestra. It
was hard for Tony, I believe. At one point he said to
me he was considering asking Miles if he could
re-join. I don’t think he ever asked him. But I do think
that Tony was quite bitter about the fact that he
came up with all of that and ended up with nothing
of it. He probably thought there was an element of
racism in there and he probably was right.”
However, unlike the situation with Miles Davis
where they never played together again, Williams
36 | Summer 2014
and McLaughlin continued to make music with
Williams appearing on McLaughlin’s 1979 album
Electric Guitarist and the two of them joining forces
with Jaco Pastorius in The Trio Of Doom that same
year. As a side note, the live recordings of The Trio Of
Doom feature Williams inventing the blast beat on
the track ‘Dark Prince’. For his part McLaughlin is
quick to give the drummer credit, calling Williams
“personally, critically important” in the creation of
jazz-rock. “The great thing about Lifetime, in addition
to playing with Tony, was that Tony encouraged me
constantly to write music for the band,” says
McLaughlin. “It was very different with Miles. Miles
would always be looking for a guitar riff, especially if
it was funky or like on the recording Jack Johnson,
very much in a rhythm and blues vein. I can say quite
categorically that most of the preparatory work for
the Mahavishnu Orchestra was done in Lifetime. I
can also say categorically that Tony was always
ahead of the field, a true pioneer in jazz-rock fusion.”
Rock Star
in waiting
With differing personnel, Williams released two more
albums – Ego in 1971 and The Old Bum’s Rush in
1972, before launching The New Tony Williams
Lifetime with Believe It in 1975. At the same time, he
was playing on records with Herbie Hancock, Stanley
Clarke and Stan Getz. In the second half of the 1970s
many jazz musicians were interested in funk and
R&B, influences that can be heard on Hancock’s 1979
release Sunlight, with Williams on drums, and
increasingly on Williams’ own releases, most
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
“ T h e ba n d wa s
so good and so
p ow e r f u l t h at t h e
critics didn’t know
w h a t t o m a k e o f i t.
They were pinned
a g a i n s t t h e w a ll … ”
J a c k B r u c e
prominently Million Dollar Legs in 1976. At the same
time he joined up with his former bandmates from
Miles Davis’ group – Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Ron
Carter, plus Freddie Hubbard and then Wallace
Roney taking Davis’ spot – in V.S.O.P. to prove they
still had their jazz chops. However Roney says
Williams was emotionally fragile after the trials and
tribulations of the Lifetime years. “On The Old Bum’s
Rush, that intro he plays on ‘Boodang’, man, every
drummer I know thinks that is the craziest intro they
ever heard,” says Roney. “After …Bum’s Rush he was
off the scene for a couple of years, he thought he
was blacklisted. He said that all of a sudden he
couldn’t get a job, nobody would hire him. Tony was
a brilliant man but because of what happened with
Lifetime, it messed with him so bad that he had to
start seeing a psychiatrist. He used to say to me he
couldn’t be on the road longer than three weeks
because he had to see his psychiatrist. We thought
he was joking but when we did the V.S.O.P. tour we
were on the road for six months. One day, after three
weeks, he just lost it and he started going off. I
stepped back to calm him down and that’s when he
started telling me that people didn’t really love him,
they just liked what he could do and then he told me,
‘You know I was blackballed? They told John
[McLaughlin] not to mention me. They told Jackie
[McLean] not to say anything about me.’”
Asked if he thinks Williams was insecure, Roney
replies, “Let me put it like this, I don’t think he was
insecure but of course with all his confidence he had
humility. If you look at what happened to him, he
single-handedly created what is now called fusion
and when he created it the critics blasted him
because they thought he was selling out. When
fusion became famous, Billy Cobham got all the
credit that they wouldn’t give Tony.”
“I think Tony had a mission,” says Jack Bruce. “Like
Miles, he wanted to be a rock star. That’s what he
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
wanted. I think that’s why he sang a lot as well, why
© Getty Images
he wanted to be a singer, it was all part of wanting to
be a rock star, or wanting to be a black rock star, if
you like, the ultimate version of that being Jimi,
certainly at the time. I think Miles wanted to be a
rock star too. He had his Wah-wah pedal, so I guess
there was something in that. We all want to be a rock
star, except if you’re a rock star.”
“Why wouldn’t he want to be a rock star?” says
Lenny White. “I don’t look at it that way. I look at the
The Next
fact that he wanted to have acclaim for his prowess G e n e r at i o n
and what he was capable of doing. People get lauded Antonio Sanchez on
for playing three chords and singing songs and Tony’s legacy
here’s a guy that elevated drumming to a level that
nobody else will achieve, and he wanted to get the
same acclaim, that’s all.”
In 1978 Tony released The Joy Of Flying without “The first time I heard Tony Williams is equivalent to the
the Lifetime tag, an album that showed the full range first time I heard Neil Peart or Stewart Copeland and John
of his influences. The line-up included Jan Hammer Bonham in the sense that he completely changed my
on keys, rock guitarist Ronnie Montrose, jazz guitar whole way of thinking as I was listening to him,” says Pat
master George Benson and Stanley Clarke on bass. Metheny drummer Antonio Sanchez. “When I saw him live,
Clarke and Williams had first recorded together on it was probably the first time that I saw a drummer and
Stan Getz’s 1972 album Captain Marvel and shared a thought, ‘Okay, that’s what somebody that was born to do
disregard for jazz puritanism. “My record collection that looks like when they’re playing.’ It was so masterful,
was Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Jimi Hendrix, Cream so at ease doing this incredibly swinging and hard stuff, it
– I wasn’t a big Beatles fan until later – James Brown, was like a blueprint for me to try to emulate and imitate.
Led Zeppelin. That was normal,” says Clarke. “Tony Even when he was 17, 18, playing with Miles, he would just
recognised that in me and we didn’t dress like jazz drive the band. So much authority and assertiveness and
musicians – whatever that meant – we didn’t wear a to me that’s what a drummer should be, always
suit and tie. We had big afros and long hair and we commanding but sensitive to what’s going on, very
wore bell bottoms and chains around our necks and assertive and never tentative, and exciting. Tony had all
smoked pot and all that stuff. Some of the most fun those qualities built into him.”
I’ve had making a record was with Tony. That was a
great rhythm section, Tony Williams, Jan Hammer,
Billy Connors and myself, that was a great time, I
can’t tell you how much fun I had on that record and
Tony was so helpful and so professional.”
After The Joy Of Flying, Williams wouldn’t
release another solo album until 1985 but in
Summer 2014 | 37
cover feature
Tony Williams

the intervening gap he cut albums with Sonny

Rollins, Herbie Hancock, The Great Jazz Trio, Chet Wallace Roney: “To be a
Baker and even played on Yoko Ono’s Starpeace. Tony Williams, you must
understand every part of
His return as bandleader, 1985’s Foreign Intrigue, the music that was before
saw him add electronic drums to his sound. “He you… and then you must
was experimenting with it, I think because he didn’t understand rhythm”
want to lose touch with what he innovated, called
jazz-rock or fusion even though we were playing
straight ahead,” says Wallace Roney who played on
the record. “I really don’t think the electronic drums
fit and I didn’t feel he fully utilised it, because he
didn’t need to. Everything he needed to do, he
could do on a drum, he just wanted to make a
connection like, ‘I haven’t given up.’ That’s what
I believe that was.”
After Miles Davis died in 1991, Williams, Hancock,
Shorter, Carter and Roney recorded A Tribute To
Miles in homage to the trumpeter. Davis’ death
seemed to bring an end to the bitterness Williams
felt to his former mentor. Says Roney: “Miles was
putting together the concert that he was going to do
in Paris and he said to me, ‘How come Tony won’t
play with me anymore?’ Man, Miles was hurt. I made
up a little lie, I told him, ‘Well, I think Tony can’t do it
because he has some previous things already
booked.’ Miles said, ‘Yeah, yeah, that’s right.’ Miles
wanted to believe that but even in 1991, Tony was
still holding on to that, ‘I’ll never play with you again.’
I think that hurt him when Miles died because he
didn’t think the game would end that quick.”

l if e t i m e ’ s L e g a c y
In the ’90s Williams continued recording new
material while still working as a sideman but his
remarkable career came to an abrupt end. In 1997
Williams died of a heart attack while recovering

from an operation. He was 51. His final album,
Young At Heart, was released posthumously the
following year.
Asked if there will ever be another drummer like
him, Wallace Roney replies, “To be a Tony Williams,
you must understand every part of the music that
was before you. You must understand Chick Webb,
Baby Dodds, Max, Art Blakey, Lex Humphries, Buddy
Rich, Louis Bellson, Gene Krupa. That’s what Tony
had and then you must understand rhythm. These
young drummers can play licks but they don’t
understand rhythm. They don’t understand what you
can play against a quarter note, how to subdivide it
and how to subdivide the subdivide. Can you play
five against the quarter note? Can you take that five
and accent every other beat? Can you make triplets
out of it? When you marry the understanding of
rhythm with the understanding of music and then
have, last but not least, amazing drumming
technique then you’re close to being Tony Williams. I
think that era is gone. But hopefully talking about it
might inspire somebody and they’ll start to think
about it and do it in whatever music they play, be it
jazz, gospel, country, rap, whatever it is.”
Jack Bruce and Cindy Blackman Santana have
worked to keep Tony’s music in the public eye with
their band Spectrum Road. “That has been
marvellous. We haven’t stopped doing it. Two
summers ago was the last tour we’ve done and that
was great fun. I think it’s important to all of us to try
to keep his spirit alive and his name around because
© Getty Images
people do forget very easily,” says Bruce. Asked
about playing with Cindy, he replies, “Sometimes
when I’m playing with Spectrum Road, she just hits a T h e H e a d h u nt e r
groove and sound and it’s very, very close to Tony M i k e Cl a r k o n T o n y ’ s p l a y i n g
and then you turn around and look and there’s this
supermodel sitting there. It’s a bit off-putting.”
“This music, it’s got all the things that, to me,
“I think he was one of the most brilliant drummers of our
make music exciting,” says Cindy Blackman Santana.
time and he changed everything for everybody forever,”
“It’s got edge, it’s got heart, it’s full of feeling and
says Headhunters drummer Mike Clark. “He took the
soul. It’s got incredible intellect, it’s got mystery, it’s
language that went before him with Philly and Max and Art
got the history of the music, it’s got forward thinking-
and he divided it amongst different limbs. He changed
ness, it has everything that I like. Tony’s concept is so
which instrument you played on. He changed the way you
big and so open that it just leaves a lot of room to
looked at the hi-hat. He played fives and sevens against
morph the music and take it to different places. That
the time. He came up with astounding drumming
is so inviting when you want to create because you
technique playing single-stroke roll blasts around the kit
need a palette like that.”
but in time and musical. He came up with a fire dance ride
Tantalisingly, there is the prospect of an
pattern I’d never heard before. He asked me to come to his
unreleased Lifetime recording, unearthed by Bruce
house one time and play for him and he had that yellow
while moving house. “I’ve always been looking for
drumset,” says Clark. “I couldn’t help but try to play like
this live recording I did of Lifetime, which I could
him because it sounded so much like him. He went, ‘No,
never find, at the Fairfield Hall, Croydon, and I found
no, man. Don’t play my stuff. Play that funky stuff you
it yesterday,” he says. “I haven’t got the equipment
played with Herbie.’ I did and he cleaned up the front room
to listen to it, I’m all digital now. I recorded it on a
and kitchen and afterwards went, ‘Okay, stop. I needed
Revox, so I’ve got to get it transferred. It might be
some inspiration to clean this place up.’”
something of value, because there was very little of
Lifetime live that was listenable. I’ve got my fingers
crossed. If it’s of any quality at all it will be good.”

38 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

cover feature
Tony Williams

S t y l e a n a l y s i s

P l a y L i k e T o n y !
G e t a l i t t l E f l a i r w i t h o u r T o n y W i l l i a m s p l ay i n g s t y l e g u i d e

W
hen Tony Williams joined Miles expressing his ideas as his mastery of rudiments having a wider dynamic range and Tony had the
Davis’s band aged just 17, the jazz appears impeccable with singles, doubles and flams ability to control that like no other drummer.
music world was stunned that played at speeds and with a dynamic range that His impact on the world of drumming has been
such a young drummer could must have left respected contemporaries stunned, profound, as so many of today’s top players will
play with such authority and but he also introduced and developed new level of attest, though sadly a lot of younger players are only
maturity. However the thing that hand/foot and linear mastery that continues to aware of his contribution second-hand from
struck most drummers was Tony’s virtuosity; he influence drummers today. contemporary drummers’ licks and interviews, and
could play frighteningly fast tempos with apparent One final captivating ingredient was added as the with the internet as a resource this is a shame.
ease, he had ferocious single strokes but he also had musically experimental ’60s fused jazz and rock and The examples below are a selection of motifs used
a seemingly bottomless vocabulary that, whilst born Tony began playing bigger drums and heavier sticks by Tony that should offer a flavour of his
from the greats before him such as Max Roach, was and with an increasing power and physicality inventiveness and mastery, although it was really all
so incredibly inventive that he sounded like no one normally associated with rock drummers. However about the way in which he was able to move
else before or since. his finesse and musicality meant that this was about between these ideas that would transcend mere licks
Undoubtedly his flawless technique was helpful in so much more than simply playing loud, it was about and chops and prove his undoubted virtuosity.
Rhythm - 2 3 2 Pete Riley's
TONY WILLIAMS
Rhythm - 2 3 2 E x Riley's
Pete a m p l e 1 : T h e B l u s h - d a a n d e x pa n d e d i d e a s
Ex 1 TONY WILLIAMS
Rhythm - 2 3 2 3 Pete Riley's 5:4 6
Ex 1 TONY WILLIAMS
÷ œœ
Rhythm - 2 3 2 œ œ
3
œ
Pete Riley's
TONY WILLIAMS
œœ œ5:4
œ œ
œ
œœ œ œ 6 œ
œ œ
Ex 1
R/L R R L R/L R R L R/L R R L
÷ 1 œœ - 2 3 2 œ 3 Pete
Rhythm
Ex 2
œ Riley'sœ
TONY WILLIAMS
œœ œ 5:4œ œ œ œœ œ œ 6 œ œ œ
÷ R/Lœœ E x aRœ m3p l eRœ 2 : Do œL u b l e - sR/Lœœt o p sRœ w i t h5:4
5:4œ t w oœL n o tœ e s o R/L
R nœ œ t hR
œe b aœRs s66 dœLr u mœ œ
Ex 2
÷ 1 R/L
œœ œœ Rœ 3 œœR œLœ R/L œœ œœ
R œœR
5:4
5:4
œœL œ R/Lœœ œœR œœR 66 œœL œ œ
Ex 2
÷ 3 R/L
Ex
œœ œœ Rœ œ
R
œ œLœ R/L œœ Rœœ œœR
5:4 œœL œ
R/L œœ œœR œœR 6 œœL œ œ
Ex 2 3
6
÷
Ex 3 œ
œ
R/L œ
œ R 6
œR L
œ R/L œ
œ R œ
œ œ
5:4
œR
œL
œ R/L œ
œ œ œœR 6 œœL ¿¿ œ
œ
R
œ
÷ œœ œ œœ œœ 6 œ œ œœ E xœ a m œœp l e œœ3 : Oœœ tœœh6 eœ r 5:4
Ex 2
œœdœœ o u bœ l e - sœœœt o p i dœœ e a sœœ3 œœ 6 œœ œ œ œ
Ex 3
œ œ œ 3
¿¿
œ œ
÷ 3 œ œ œœ œ 6 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 6 œ œ
Ex 4 œœ œœ œ œœ œ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œ œ
3 ¿¿ œ
÷ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 3
6 œ œ
œ œ
œ 6 œ
œ œ 5:4
3 ¿
Ex 4
œ œ œ œ¿ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ ¿ œ3œ 5:4 œ
¿¿œœ œœ
œ
÷ œ œ œ 6œ œœ œ œ 3 œ œ œ œ 6
œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ
Ex 4
¿Rœ ¿œ
œL3 Exœ a m p l eœ 4 : ¿RD i s p œœ l aœL c e dœœ Sœœw i s s tœœœœr i p l e t¿R m o tœLi f 5:4 œœ ¿œœ œœ
÷
Ex 4 œ œ
œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ
Ex 5
¿R œ œL3 œ œ3
œ ¿R L
œ
œ
6 œ
œ
œ > ¿R œ œL 5:4 5:4
œ
œ
÷ 4 ¿
Ex 5 œ 3 œ ¿ œ œ œ ¿ œz z
œz œœz œœ
Ex œ œ œ œ œL œ 6 œœ œ œœ œ
÷ Rœœ œ œL3
3
œœ3 R
œ >œRœ œL 5:4œœ œœ œœ
Ex 5 ¿
÷ Rœœ œ.3 RœL œL œœ.3 œL ¿Rœ œL œL Rœ 6 œL . œ . > ¿Rœz œLz 5:4 R
œz
œL
z
œœ.
Ex 5 œ œ œ œ œ œz z
œz œz
œ 3 œ
÷ Rœ œ.3 RœL L œ. E x aL m p l eRœ 5 : œLO tLh Rœe r 6 sœLi g n aœ. t u rœ. e i d >eRœza s œLz 5:4 œ
R œL .
z œ
÷ Rœ œ. Rœ œL œ.3 œL
Ex 5
R œL Rœ 6 œL œ. œ. > œ
R œL œ
R œLz
3
œ 5:4
œ.
÷ œ œ Rœ œL œ. œL
R . R
œ œL Rœ œL œ. œ. œz œLz Rœz œLz
R
œ
.

R . R L . L R L R L . . R L R L .

40 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

Interview
Ian Matthews

ian
Matthews
Kasabian
 Ahead of Kasabian’s triumphant
Glastonbury headlining slot, Ian
Matthews discussed overcoming
nerves, playing with total
conviction, and why jazz is like
murdering someone very quietly
Words: David West photos: Will Ireland
W
hen Rhythm meets Ian Matthews,
Kasabian are hard at work in a
cavernous West London rehearsal
studio where the band is busy
putting the finishing touches to
their imminent headlining set at
Glastonbury. But there are no signs of any
nerves about their first time topping the bill.
Everyone exudes optimism and confidence
as they run the show from top to bottom
and, despite the fact that the only audience
that day is a collection of roadies, production
crew and management, Ian has a smile on
his face from first note to last. There’s a lot
to smile about – Kasabian’s new album,
48:13, topped the UK album charts in June,
and the upcoming Glastonbury slot would
fulfil a lifelong dream for the drummer who
has painstakingly worked his way up the
festival’s stages over the course of 20 years.
“Being from Bristol, I did my first gig at
Glasto in ’94 and managed to get in almost
every year, playing the Jazz Stage or the
Avalon stage or the Jazz Lounge which I
don’t think is there any more,” says Ian. “In
fact one year I played the Hunt Saboteurs
tent at two in the morning having dragged a
drum kit up to play on a small square not
much bigger than a table with a couple of
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
guys from a Bristol band called The
Moonflowers. There was a stream running
through the middle of the tent, bales of hay
with these stereotypical hippie people, there
was this woman dressed in all tie-dye with
dreadlocks with a baby, and there was this
woman on a bicycle. She was wrapped in a
Baco-foil mini-dress and she was hooked up
to the lights and the PA, so the more she
cycled the brighter and louder we were.”
This time Ian and Kasabian will be
bringing a little more production power than
a girl on a bicycle. “When you get invited to
play Glastonbury, you’re being invited in the
first place because Mr Eavis knows you’re
going to put on a show,” says Ian. “That’s the
whole reason you’re there. We’ve played the
main stage twice as a penultimate band;
once before Bruce Springsteen and then
with the Arctic Monkeys. Back in 2004 we
played the other stage; we were the first
band on. It’s an incredible curve to get to this
point 10 years later, headlining the main
stage. That’s absolutely awesome.”
Are you nervous about your first
Glastonbury headlining show?
“The first time I was told by the manager
that we were going to play that main
Summer 2014 | 43
Interview
Ian Matthews
stage with the Arctic Monkeys, I can’t
describe how excited I was. As time passed
leading up to it, I put it to the back of my
mind and then on the coach journey to the
site I became so nervous. I don’t really get
nervous, I think it’s a bit negative to get
nervous, but I got the nerves and I came out
in hives on my face in the afternoon, red
blotches. When we went on stage I might as
well have been walking off a cliff. Usually, if
you are feeling nervous it dissipates in the
first tune, it’s gone. We were halfway
through ‘Empire’, this forceful tune, and I
was on the drum kit thinking, ‘What happens
if my arms stop?’ And it ruined the
experience for me. If anything that gig
taught me about nerve management. I
remind myself I’m only there because
Kasabian want me there because of the way
I play; Kasabian are only there because of
the way Kasabian play and the people want
them there, and not to be frightened, to be
“We were halfway through
‘Empire’, this forceful tune, and
I was on the drum kit thinking,
‘What happens if my arms stop?’”
yourself. One of the biggest learning curves
was that first Glasto moment because I’d
built it up in my head. When we came back
and did the Bruce Springsteen support, it
was like, ‘I’m having you! I’m going to go on
stage and rip the s**t out of it.’ To have a
third time, to headline, I’m so looking
forward to it. It’s going to be fun now.”
Have you added more production?
“Kasabian’s music is intricate but it’s also got
big beats, big anthems. Tom [Meighan,
singer] does not mess around when he’s on
stage; he’s one tour de force of a frontman,
so whether we’re playing a small club or a
giant stage there is a presence in the music
and in the personnel on stage. I’m proud of
that and I think we’re a powerful band. We’ve
always had this idea that if you’re going to
play a stage, you fill that stage, and if people
are going to come and see a show, you give
them a show. We’ve never ever cut corners
44 | Summer 2014
on the show. If it means not making any
money, we won’t make any money. Ever
since our first arena tour, we’ve always
thought, how about the guy at the back?
You’ve got to think of the best way to convey
the songs and move the entire audience, so
we’ve always enjoyed putting on a big show.
We could have gone on with a few lights,
bang it out, make a few quid, great. In this
case with Glastonbury and our Leicester
show the week before, the people have
given us the opportunity to play these shows
and we’re going to do something special as
far as we can. We’ve got an ingenious design
which is actually very simple. It’s about
turning the stage into a white box, so it looks
a bit like an iPhone, beautiful, perfect
simplicity to create a function. Technology
has moved on. Five, six, seven years ago if
people had lasers it meant they had a team
of people coming with these huge boxes to
put a few lasers up. Now, they’re tiny little
boxes so we’ve got, I don’t know how many,
down there. The back is all LED screens so
technology has given us the means to put on
bigger, more dramatic shows.”
Does the size of the venue and crowd
change the way you play?
“We’ve just done Ireland and Scotland as a
warm up leg as part of our rehearsals to set
us up for these big gigs, and we played in
Derry to 600 people and it was amazing. It
was like wow, they were right there, it was
like being in a bear pit and it was hot, it was
33 degrees when we came off, and the
humidity! You could see the water running
down the walls. It was incredible. So I guess
there is going to be some deep psychological
change in mindset on a massive stage to
playing a place like that but I can personally
say I push just as much there as I would at a
festival or a big arena or stadium. We all do.
It’s exciting music to play.”
Ian: “Since our first arena
tour, we've always
thought, ‘What about the
guy at the back?’”
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 Ian in action
with Kasabian
The studio tracks seem to have a much more processed drum
sound than when the band plays live?
“Actually all the gubbins you hear over my playing in the studio is
under my playing live. It’s a slight role reversal but I’m actually playing
in the parts. Serge [Pizzorno, guitarist] loves that techno-crossover,
dance music and today’s pop music which is very angular and
Pro-Tooled and robotic. It’s just the way it is, it’s what people like to
buy. You can’t always necessarily tell it’s me playing because it’s
layered up with sounds and effects and sample beats. On this last
record Serge had quite a lot of samples and rhythmic ideas that he
put together and I actually played them. In ‘Bumblebee’ there’s this
drum fill that happens, you can hear it all the way through the
changes, that’s actually me playing that and they managed to make it
sound like a sample in the studio. It is quite interesting, the marriage
between technology and the drums, but when we play live it’s more
of a dramatic environment so the drums come to the fore and the
Says Ian of playing
with Kasabian: “It's
exciting music to play”
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
machinery is clattering beneath me, which is
also cool because what that does is it pulls
my drumming in. I can still swing it and play
with some human feel, do some dynamics
and play with a bit of drama, some thrills
and spills, but the whole thing is pinned
together by 808 sub-kicks and 16th-note
stuff. Sometimes I’m actually playing over
the drum pattern again to really reinforce
my sound. I’ve got to play really strictly, be
careful I don’t flam it and slip around. There’s
no having a hangover, you’ve got to be
on-point to make it work.”
Do you use any triggers on your kit?
“No, on this tour now I’ve got a Roland pad
and I’m letting off a snare sound on a tune
called ‘Treat’ off the new album. I’ve never
used triggers with this band; it’s me playing
a drum kit. Some of the tunes have clicks
with percussion effects or drums, or 808,
909 sounds.”
You don’t have a hole in the front head
of your kick, which is unusual.
“There are two mics in the kick drum, a PZM
on a cradle and then there’s a direct mic.
And the cable comes out of the air hole and
it seems to work and looks cooler instead of
having a hole and it’s easy for the techs to
set up. You just plug it in and go.”
What do you use to get the right
snare sound?
“I used to use two snares until I got this
electronic thing. I want a snare with body
and snap and that is dynamic that I can
dance around on. Some snares don’t let you
do that. Maybe it’s just the way it’s tuned. I’m
using a 1978 Black Beauty that I’ve had for a
few years now which is gorgeous and does
the job perfectly. We’ve got an A and a B rig,
they’re both the same but the B rig has a DW
Collector’s Snare. That’s a wooden shell
which is very fat, not so snappy. But the
Black Beauty has that fatness with a little
more snap and they have that ‘clang’. I’ve
got the internal muffler just on the head to
control it that little bit. I’ve got a Controlled
Sound head on it with the dot underneath
and it seems to be fat as f**k.”
What drums did you use in the studio
for the new album?
“I had 24", 14", 18" as the main kit and had a
22", 13", 16" as my middle, wild card kit, and I
had a little 20", 12", 14" as the little baby,
jazzy, funky kit. They were all set up in the
room with hardware around them and I
turned around the snare drums. I had lots
of different snare drums and whatever we
fancied, or whatever breakbeat sound we
were trying to recreate, I changed the
Summer 2014 | 45
Interview
Ian Matthews

ian’s gear
DRUMS
DW acrylic kit in black vinyl wrap: 24"x16" kick
drum; 13"x9" tom; 16"x16" & 18"x18" floor toms;
14"x6½" Ludwig Black Beauty; 14"x7" DW
Collector’s Series snare on B rig

CYMBALS
Zildjian: 14" New Beat hi-hats; 18" K Dark Thin
crash; 19" K Dark Thin crash; 22" K Custom ride;
19" K Hybrid china

PLUS
DW 9000 series pedals, snare stand, boom
stand on ride, DW 6000 series stands for
crashes; Roland SPD-SX; Remo heads – Coated
Controlled Sound Reverse Dot on snare,
Emperors on toms with Coated Ambassadors
on the bottom, Powerstroke 2 on kick drum,
front head artwork by David Dowell; Vic Firth
5A sticks
Interview
Ian Matthews

snare drum. It was either a Black Beauty or a
Radio King, a Hayman that I got for £150,
that put in a good innings, there was an old
Ludwig Jazz Festival around the studio which
sounded good. I found having different sized
drums on hand made such a big difference
for different tunes. One thing about Kasabian
from the day I met them in 2001 when they
came down to Bristol recording demos, a
mate ran the studio, he rang me up, ‘I’ve got
these boys coming down, there’s a £100 in it
if you’ll come and record,’ from that point we
were throwing drums around. Serge loves it
because every hip-hop track comes with a
different drum sound from a different
sample from a different era, from a different
record, sped up, slowed down. It’s all fun.”
As the songwriter, how much does Serge
provide direction for your drum parts?
“He’s got a home studio so he’s got a drum
kit there. Serge can play a bit and we’ve got
Tim [Carter], our guitarist, who’s been
working with Serge on this record. Tim had
half a dozen lessons off Tony Williams when
he was a kid so Tim can play as well. There
are a lot of predetermined beats used for
Serge to write on top of and for arranging so
through the gig, it’s so loud even the boys
turn around and go, ‘Shut up!’ You can’t use
a Z to wash on. I do like the power of the
Z, I know it comes with a heavy metal
connotation but they’re really nice. The one
on my A rig has got a really pure tone to it,
so I swap it out for that one tune.”
What’s changed about your drumming
since you joined the band?
“You always hope that you play to a high
level. As a professional musician around
Bristol, teaching and playing, I practised my
ass off, really worked hard at it, got gigs, I’ve
done all sorts of things over the years, you
always hope that you play to a level, but
actually playing with this band has moved
my headspace on in terms of really stepping
up. Every gig you do, you step up and you
play like it’s your last day on Earth. I know
there are pictures of me with my mouth
wide open looking like Jaws about to strike,
going hell bent for leather, but it means the
same when you’re playing at a low dynamic
as well. Everything you do must have total
clarity and make total sense. People make
mistakes, stuff happens, that’s just human
error, but the actual atmosphere which you Ian: “Every gig you
do, you step up and
you play like it's your

“where with kasabian i'm last day on earth”

smacking the s**T out of it with

ride cymbals, a sizzle cymbal. It’s not terribly modern, it’s bebop-y. It’s
interesting because the lessons learned from playing with Kasabian,
the focus, I take a very similar mindset back to the jazz gigs. Where

a baseball bat, with jazz it's the
same anger but suppressed”
when it gets to me going into the studio,
Serge is on a roll, he’s got arrangements
down, he’s on the move. I’m coming in and
I’m laying the human stuff down as the final
thing. There are a lot of predetermined beats
and grooves. I still get to flavour it and do my
drummer thing, but every band is different.
I’ve been in bands where it’s been dictated,
I’ve been in bands where you jam it out and
thrash it out in a rehearsal room until you
get it going. This band works really well with
Serge doing his thing.”
Live, there are a lot of tunes where you
just play the ride cymbal, not the
hi-hats. Why is that?
“Maybe that’s just my stylistic thing. That’s a
lovely ride cymbal, it’s a 22" K Custom and
it’s really washy but you can really ‘ting’ it.
It’s got a nice bell on it but you can really
crash it so there is a lot you can do with it. I
can go through a dynamic range with it. For
‘Fire’ I swap it out for a Z Power Ride, the
thick ones the metallers use and I use that
because it goes ‘ping’. When I’ve broken my
K on tour and we’ve put the Z up to get
bring to that stage has to be 110 percent.
There is no falling asleep on a wedding gig
vibe here. I learned that coming back to
Bristol and playing the bars. I could see that
other people were more relaxed about what
they were doing, shuffling up, plugging in.
No, this has got to be on it. It definitely
raised my game. I think also being on the
bus for years, listening to music, it’s like
going to music college in a way, going
around festivals seeing so many other
players, so many other bands, it raises
your game.”
Have you been playing much
outside Kasabian?
“I’ve been doing some jazzy stuff, I’ve been
playing with a very good friend of mine in
Bristol called John Pearce who is a classical
violinist who has turned to the dark side to
play jazz and he’s really good at it, and Dave
Newton, the pianist. He’s amazing. I’ve got
another friend of mine called James Morton
I’ve been playing with for years and he plays
a lot with Pee Wee Ellis. This is proper jazz
stuff, getting out the little jazz kit, a couple of
with Kasabian I’m smacking the s**t out of it proverbially with a
baseball bat, with jazz it’s the same anger but suppressed. It’s killing
someone with a baseball bat versus putting a pillow over their mouth
so they can’t breathe. It’s the same intent, the same fierceness. It’s
angry jazz underneath Dave Newton’s beautiful cascading piano and
John’s violin work, playing with hands sometimes, taking the snare
off, playing tunes like ‘Caravan’ almost like conga, rumba rhythms.
You get to play with tones and textures and zinging around the
cymbals, it is different in that respect but I love snake-charming the
audience with rhythm, that’s my zone. I try not to bamboozle them. I
love charming them. I did a gig at the Bristol Fringe, it’s only a small
room, 50 people, when you feel you’ve got the room it’s amazing. If
you get passed off into a drum solo and really mess with them – but
just keep it moving whatever that tempo is, start boxing around with
them rhythmically, using textures, sudden surges in dynamics and
then back down – I love that.”
Funking with Pee Wee
Last year Ian played with funk legend Pee Wee Ellis in Bristol: “I
saw Pee Wee waddle along the side of the stage, calmly get up
onstage, by that time everyone in the band was looking at him
and he just went, ‘No!’ What he wanted was, no one plays the
same. He doesn’t want to hear me lock with the bass player, he
doesn’t want anybody to be playing in the same place rhythmically
at any point. It blew my mind. I’ve been at this for a while now,
and you know what? It was insane but it worked. My missus came
to that gig and she pointed out that song as one of the best of the
set. When you’ve got 200 people in a tightly packed room and you
know everyone in that audience is hypnotised, it had that effect
and I was smiling from ear to ear, it was the best feeling ever.”

48 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 THE ONLINE SHOW FOR DRUMMERS

2014
EVENT
in association with
HIGHLIGHTS
Hands-on demos of the
best drum equipment
Seminars and tutorials from
the world’s leading experts
Exclusive interviews with
top drummers

COMING SOON

20-21 August 2014

Visit musicradar.com/drumexpo2014
FROM THE MAKERS OF

Follow us #DrumExpo
IntervIew
AllAn Cox

50 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

Cox
Allan

Monty Python
just As AllAn Cox CelebrAtes 40 yeArs As A pro drummer,
he lAnds the python gig At the london 02 ArenA. rhythm
meets one of the uK’s most vAlued show drummers
words: Geoff Nicholls photos: Rob MoNk

L
aughs Allan Cox: “I Basie, Ellington and Sinatra. So I had this
‘retired’ when I left double-pronged input. I just knew I loved it and
school in 1974! I’ve been somehow would make it work”.
doing what I wanted to The Python gig is perhaps the biggest of
do all my life and now I Alan’s impressive career, which has seen him
have got to this great helm countless West End shows, from Evita to
milestone – 40 years of earning a living with a set of West Side Story. “Show drumming has allowed me
drums.” Allan is one of the UK’s great stalwarts of to play so many styles of music with so many sizes
musical theatre, and the man entrusted with the of band/orchestra, from trios to a 65-piece
enviable job of playing the 02 Arena on the Monty orchestra with the English National Ballet at the
Python reunion concerts. Royal Albert Hall.” Allan’s versatility has also led to
Growing up in Croxley Green, near Watford, Allan TV (Comic Relief, The Royal Variety Performance),
says, “My brother and sister were always playing and artists ranging from Smokey Robinson to
the Stones and The Who, and my dad would have Johnny Cash.
how did the Python gig come your way?
“I did an album for the musical director, John Du
Prez [aka Trevor Jones], in 2010. He’s a film/TV
composer/producer and he did ‘One Foot In The
Grave’ which Eric Idle sang. John liked the rhythm
section and this gig came in last November.
“I had also done the first tour of [Eric Idle’s]
Spamalot, in May 2010. Getting a tour is always a
good omen for me – I always manage to come back
to the West End from Leeds or somewhere.”
how has the show evolved?
“I was called for dance rehearsals, which is when
you work with the choreographer – Arlene

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 51

IntervIew
AllAn Cox

phillips in this case. the show has 20 dancers.

rehearsals normally start about six weeks before
opening night, with a pianist and drummer. it’s
something i’ve done a lot of. i did chicago in 1997
with a famous american choreographer, ann
reinking. she would not start a rehearsal without a
drummer, it’s an american thing – and thanks very
much! we had dance rehearsals at the London
palladium for three weeks. we didn’t see any
pythons for two or three weeks, and on the day a
couple of them come in – eric idle and michael palin
– for the dancers it’s a huge lift. now we have been
here at Lh2 [massive facility in north west London]
for three weeks, doing 2pm to 10pm each day, six
days a week. it’s a lot of hours, huge technical crew,
video crew, screens flying in and out. But everyone is
walking around with a huge smile, the atmosphere is
really relaxed.”

Relaxed but busy?

“sometimes you don’t do much and sometimes you
can play for three hours. the choreographer will
want you to mark stuff, might want a boom or a bang
and you stick it in the part. it might come out again
the next day.
“the first time the five pythons [John cleese, terry
Jones, eric idle, michael palin and terry gilliam] got
together for a read-through was June 16th. as soon
as they started to run some of those sketches, not in
costume, just sitting around a table, people were
falling about – ‘nudge-nudge’, ‘albatross’ and the
‘arguments’ sketch: “will that be five minutes or the
full 30 minutes?” they have an autocue but
sometimes they leave that behind and verge off into
hilarious dialogue. it will be a bit like a jazz gig i
think, different every night. the music slots
in-between and supports some of the sketches.
then there are probably six big choreographed
production numbers.” Allan has also played in
West end shows such as
evita and 42nd street
idle is the prime mover and the big music fan?
“well he is always wandering around with his guitar,
strumming away. he was very pally with george weckl it would be totally out of place! ‘papa’ Jo Jones my chops are nowhere near where they were 30
harrison. i think he would have been the fifth Beatle! once said you can do a lot of damage with a little bit years ago. But i believe that my playing now is
he lives in La and he was telling me some lovely of technique. i said to John [du prez] there is not warmer and more musical. Building real
ringo stories the other day. much on the parts and he said, well, you know what relationships with people is key – the python gig
“the music is very 1970s strummy guitar and folky to play. it’s nice to get to the position where you are came out of a session years ago. understanding
– there’s not a ton of drumming, but you can get it trusted. to work i really don’t need chops of steel what makes any musical situation work is also key.
wrong. if i tried to give them my one bar of dave with blistering speed. in terms of speed and volume it’s not about me or the drums, it’s about the bigger
picture. getting a good sound – for the music, my
colleagues and the microphones – is really
important. understanding music means being a
great listener, getting the drums out of earshot and

A serious business listening to the whole picture.”

how do you go about translating everything to

AllAn on Comedy drumming
“It is [a serious business] and they take it very seriously.
But you can sit in a dance rehearsal and work something
out very methodically and then one of the Pythons turns
up and everything goes out the window! Sometimes you
don’t get much done because there is so much laughing.
They are on fantastic form, the five of them together.
There is an autocue running and that is the dialogue we
are all expecting to hear and yesterday John Cleese and
Terry Jones just went off on one and the whole room was
falling about and they had to stop the rehearsal. They do a
sketch called ‘Science Today’ in which John Cleese has to
wear a bog-standard female wig and Eric Idle couldn’t
look at him without falling apart. Eric actually said I don’t
think I will be able to look at you in this sketch.”
a massive arena?
“the facilities they have at Lh2 mean they can create
the show here, a west end theatre is not big enough.
the guy who designed the set does the stones. you
don’t realise how big it is until you see 20 dancers up
there and they’re tiny. the sound guy, rory madden,
does tina turner and stevie wonder, so he knows
what’s needed to reproduce what the guys are doing
on stage to the back of the 02. you do get a sense of
being a tooth on the cog of a very big engine.
there are 19 trucks to move it all to the 02.”

52 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Allan’s Tiki drums set-up
for the Monty Python gig

“it’s A lot of hours, huge teChniCAl Crew, video Crew, sCreens

flying in And out. but everyone is wAlKing Around with A huge
smile, the Atmosphere is reAlly relAxed”

Allan’s Kit
drums
Tiki Classic Maple drums in Black Sparkle: 20"x15" bass
drum, 10"x7", 12"x8", 14"x12" and 16"x14" toms. Yamaha
Anton Fig Signature 14"x6" snare drum

CymbAls
Paiste: 14" Traditional hi-hats, 17" and 18" Traditional Thin
crashes, 20" Masters Series ride

plus:
Remo heads – snare: Powerstroke-3 or Coated
Ambassador batter; toms: Clear Pinstripes or Coated
Ambassador batters, Coated Ambassadors resonants (for
slightly less resonance than clear); bass drum: Coated
Powerstroke-3 (no beater patch, ever); Smooth white
Powerstroke-3 front; Yamaha pedals and stands;
Roc’n’Soc throne; Vic Firth 5A sticks; ACS T1 Live! triple
driver in-ear ambient monitoring system; Roland M48
Allan: “i really don’t
need chops of steel Live Personal Mixer
with blistering speed”

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 53

IntervIew
AllAn Cox
is the music both old and new?
“they knew they were going to build on some of the
python tracks from the 1970s. they have put a click
over the top of them. there is a whole field of
technicians with fantastic ability to move the music
around, to whatever video links they are using, etc.
“For cleese’s ‘silly walks’ sketch John du prez and
eric just wrote a song called ‘the silly walks song’
(http://bit.ly/1mrpmgq). arlene choreographed 20
dancers all doing versions of John’s silly walks with
bowler hats and canes!
“and they just put a click on top of ‘christmas in
heaven’, with graham chapman, who is the
deceased python. a young actor, sam holmes, plays
graham, in a white elvis suit and fake tan, angels and
snow flying about. the song comes out of a video
that features graham, then suddenly he is walking
down-stage singing this song. that was originally
done with a big string intro and then an old roland
beatbox comes in and sets the tempo. But there
were only two bars, so they have created a click that
goes through the intro and then doubles up into the
new tempo so we can play with it.”
What is the click?
“John du prez likes a cross-stick. we each have an
eight-channel mixer and i have tracks for click,
drums, percussion, guitar, etc. so i can create my
own mix, including the live python vocals. we even
play along with the band of the royal marines on one
track – they’ve clicked that.
“i just got some new acs t1-Live! in-ear monitors,
with an ambient mic in the ear mould so you can use
“it’s not About me or the drums, it’s About the bigger piCture.
getting A good sound – for the musiC, my ColleAgues And the
miCrophones – is reAlly importAnt”
it all day and i don’t have to keep taking them out to
talk to someone. drums can be nasty, especially if
you are playing six hours a day. music has got louder,
our hearing is at stake and once it has gone it has
Allan cox: he’s not the
Messiah, he’s a drummer
54 | Summer 2014
Allan: “Understanding
what makes any musical
situation work is key [to
being a show drummer]”
gone. i’m not one of the heaviest hitters and i don’t
have any long-term damage, but i do get some funny
[ear] noises occasionally.”
What is the band line-up?
“Quite small: percussion, drums, basses (electric and
upright), guitars (plus mandolins, ukuleles, etc),
trumpet doubling flugel, wind player playing three or
four instruments, and two keyboards. keys-1 is the
main piano part and then Jeff Leach plays keys-2 and
has done all the programming – he’s a real whizz.”
sounds like the ultimate fun gig to celebrate
your 40 years. but how did you get started on
drums originally?
“i was born in 1958, and my brother, who is 10 years
older, was the bass player in a band that rehearsed
in our front room. their drummer used to leave the
drums underneath our stairs and i just loved them.
“i got to about 12 and wrote to the premier drum
company asking about teachers and got an
embossed letter back suggesting max abrams. i went
to max for about three-and-a-half years. i picked up
gigs from about 14 and while at school i was earning
£40-plus a week, which in 1974 was good money. i
just knew what i wanted to do. i couldn’t wait to leave
school at 16. i would take any gig. dad would drive
me and sit in the car with a flask and wait till one in
the morning. so i was slowly ‘networking’. the first
show i did was touring with hair – i lied about my
age, told them i was 18.
“But i wanted to play jazz, and i went on a
wavendon allmusic course at the old stables around
1976. kenny clare was the drum tutor and he was
also working with tony Bennett and couldn’t make
the tutors’ final night concert. i was probably the
strongest [student] and so i was asked to do it,
playing with John dankworth and cleo Laine! i was
scared but it was fun. i started doing jazz gigs but
realised that wouldn’t pay the bills. my biggest thing
was to be a versatile, working drummer.
“i worked on cruise ships for two years – an
opportunity to practise – then came back to London
in 1982 and my first west end show was depping in
evita for £19.50 a show. evita was hard, stuff in 7/8, a
big orchestra. stan Bourke, a great english drummer
who did the west end, and Bobby worth at the talk
of the town were two guys who helped me get my
foot in the door. stan let me dep on 42nd street, a
big show.”
so you were building contacts and trust all
the time?
“i got a call for a session in wood green – 20 jingles
to record in one day. the guitarist, graham ather,
was with the BBc Big Band. and this is how things
work sometimes – about a month later i get a call at
8am from the BBc Big Band saying can you get to
maida Vale by 10am? that was the start of a four
year stint – 1982 to 1986 – playing big band, four to
seven sessions a week. Being able to go into the
control room and hear yourself back straightaway
was invaluable.”
Now, a thousand shows, gigs and sessions later,
you also teach privately and have a highly
acclaimed educational cD, Meet The bass
Player, out.
“that came out of my studies with [canada-based
drum guru] Jim Blackley. i wanted something to work
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 Python percussionist
CorrinA silvester Adds timpAni, hAnd drums And more
how did you get started playing percussion? metals, sound effects. Some of the music has a strong
“I started at nine years old. It just seemed to happen draw towards marching band so I’m playing a bass drum
naturally, I’ve always felt drawn to the instruments. At 18, with mounted clash cymbals. My set-ups depend on what
I studied Percussion at Trinity College of Music. Over the the composer and music requires. At home my studio is
past 13 or so years I’ve been very fortunate to have had full of all sorts of percussion instruments and sounds. As
many playing opportunities in a variety of musical a percussionist the doors open to many instruments, so I
situations with many fantastic musicians.” strive to be the best I can to adapt to the situation and
add to the music competently. Primarily I’m known as a
how does Monty Python differ from other gigs and rhythm section player but I have much experience with
what are the challenges? orchestral playing and working with a conductor.”
“I was so delighted to be asked to play for the Monty
Python gig. As you can imagine, it has been such fun to Any tips for Rhythm readers who want to pursue a
be involved with! Any production might have its moments career in percussion?
with sections you need to have a look at, musically a “Be open minded, listen to lots of music, play with lots
difficult passage to play, moving from one instrument to of musicians and remember to enjoy and learn from
another quickly or changing sticks. A lot of thought has to the experiences.”
go into the musical geography of the pad, choice of
instrument best for the music, where the instruments
and the music are placed in order to play comfortably.
You have to think about the venue’s acoustics, projection
and sound of the instrument within the ensemble,
hearing the other musicians you’re playing with. It’s
attention to detail, the use of common sense and
switching on quickly to what’s happening around you.”

What other gigs have you had, and which have been
the biggest career highlights?
“That’s a difficult question as so far I’ve been fortunate
enough to have had a lot of playing experience.
Percussion chairs on seven West End theatre shows
[currently Charlie & the Chocolate Factory], three
National Theatre productions and four Shakespeare’s
Globe theatre productions, London Olympics 2012
[opening ceremony, album], some recording for film at
Abbey Road, playing creatively with fantastic musicians.
Any playing opportunities are career highlights. It’s
what’s taken from the experience and how you move on
to the next one. Hopefully a better and wiser musician!”
corinne: “As a
percussionist the doors
What is your set-up and which kit is essential? open to many instruments”
“For Monty Python: timpani, tuneables, hand drums,

along with Jim’s material. around the mid-1980s i
had been doing a lot of session work, but my hands
felt shocking! i couldn’t equate the two. dave
hassell, one of Jim’s original uk students, said if you
ever get the chance, go see Jim Blackley. it took me
20 years, but Jim was great, he put me completely
in touch with myself and a way of playing music that
just felt right.
“Jim used the [american jazz saxophonist] Jamey
aebersold cds and i wanted to produce something
that i knew was on the money, all the tracks
recorded with a click by paul morgan, the great
acoustic bass player, with [guitarist] hugh Burns.
there was nothing around with acoustic bass and it
provides a context for that sort of playing. it has
done really well. adam nussbaum recommends it
for developing your swing. John riley uses it and ed
soph at north texas state university. ralph salmins
and ian thomas love it. i have some great quotes on
my website.”
You’re passionate about private teaching
rather than the college route?
“there are a half-dozen really good teachers in
the uk, like paul clarvis, dave hassell, Bob
armstrong. not average, i mean really good,
and that’s a much more financially competitive
alternative than coming out of college with a
huge debt and no gigs. i personally won’t see
you for more than 10 lessons. if i can’t give you
what you need in 10 lessons then i am not a very
good teacher!”

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
Feature
vintage drums

Rhythm’s Vintage Gear pages started back in 2006 and we’ve since
featured over 160 oldies – some rare and valuable, many more modest
but equally treasured. So just how hard is it to find and safely land
your own vintage prize? In the first of our two-part feature,
previous contributors to Rhythm’s Vintage Gear pages share their
experiences and know-how

Words: Geoff Nicholls

56 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 o u r e xp ert s
Garry Allcock
Birmingham big band
legend, vintage drum
collector and player, Garry is
chairman and treasurer of
the UK National Drum Fair
(www.ukdrumfair.com).

‘Sir’ Alan Buckley

Doyen of British collectors, a
true English eccentric with
by far the biggest UK
collection. Curator of the
Classic Drum Museum and
the Vintage and Custom
Drum Show (www.
siralandrums.co.uk).

Mike Ellis
Drummer and techie, runs
Blenheim Drums specialising
in vintage and modern
Premier hardware, spares
and parts, drum repairs 
and restoration (www.
blenheimdrums.yolasite.
com).

Peter Foskett
Fastidious rescuer and
renovator of modest
British-made drums from
English Rogers kit in Black the 1950s to the 1970s.
Pearl, circa 1961/1962

Dave McReady
Scottish drummer and
Olympic-Premier enthusiast,

1. WHERE TO LOOK?
founder of www.
vintageolympic.co.uk.

Robin Melville
Respected Cumbrian
AS REGARDS BUYING VINTAGE, OR SIMPLY OLD/INTERESTING GEAR, WHERE drummer and long-time
Ludwig fan, collector 
WOULD YOU LOOK, ESPECIALLY FOR FIRST-TIME BARGAINS? and player.

Jeremy Peake
The ‘Fen Tiger’, great

o n l in e offline
enthusiast, drummer and
clever renovator of modest
UK drums.

Mike Ellis: “Online auction and sale sites [eBay, Gumtree, Garry Allcock: “Some of the older drum shops still do part- Preston Prince
Drummer, drum maker and
Craigslist, Preloved.co.uk etc] are a good place to start. There are a exchanges. and second-hand shops of any sort might have a drum
teacher, owner of Tiki
few Facebook trading pages as well where prices tend to be lower.” under the counter… You have to ask.” Drums, Hove.

Preston Prince: “It’s still the USA where the bargains are. Peter Foskett: “Car boot fairs, charity shops, local auctions – Dave Seville
Craigslist is the big one. However, quite a few people have taken they are unlikely to know the true value and the auction is less Founder of the Old
Drummer’s Club, the
chances and lost money due to scammers.” likely to attract competition – and even your local rubbish tip and
essential newsletter for
skips! A couple of my best finds came from placing a wanted ad for vintage drum enthusiasts
Peter Foskett: “What used to be seen in second-hand shops old or vintage drums in the local supermarket.” and traders.
has been soaked up by eBay. It’s a great source of gear and
information. I’ve learned a lot about vintage gear in the last 10 Simon Wagstaff: “Bargains can be found anywhere. A lot of it Richard Thomas
Drum enthusiast, regular
years from simply reading people’s descriptions. Consider the is luck. I recently went into a local music shop and picked up a
player; with wife Jayne
competition on eBay with other potential buyers. So when a kit is Hayman Vibrasonic for £20! It needed a bit of TLC but sounds trades gear and spare parts
described as ‘Ludwig Super Classic 13", 16", 22"’, then you are great. The good stuff will normally be with existing collectors as ‘Boozey and Hawkeye’.
immediately up against all the Ludwig collectors. So look for gear though, so network!”
that has not been well described: ‘Drum Kit’, eg: by an owner who Simon Wagstaff
UK National Drum Fair
is not sure what they have. That might throw up the odd bargain.” Richard Thomas: “Attend both UK vintage drum shows - the
committee member,
UK National Drum Fair (www.ukdrumfair.com) and Sir Alan’s Slingerland nut and 
Dave McReady: “Try searching different spellings of well-known Vintage and Custom Drum Show (www.siralandrums.co.uk).” tireless organiser of 
NDF vintage vault.
brands on eBay, Facebook, and Gumtree.”

Andy Youell
Alan Buckley: “The web is one of the last places I would look
Founder of Drumarchive.
because you cannot see what you are getting. On the web you have com, the definitive source of
to know what you are buying.” historic drum catalogues.

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 57

Feature
vintage drums

2. THE KNOWLEDGE
WHAT SHOULD YOU LOOK FOR?

Jeremy Peake: “Look for something that you have some

knowledge about.” WHAT ARE THE BEST SOURCES OF

DEPENDABLE
Dave McReady: “Everything has a value, and stuff that looks
knackered can usually be restored.”

Richard Thomas: “Clean vintage UK and USA drums.

Also some of the old Japanese gear is nice. Not re-wrapped

INFORMATION?
and no extra holes. Cymbals: vintage A and K Zildjians, Black Label
Paiste 2002s and old Paiste 602s. Don’t buy cracked or keyholed
cymbals.”

Andy Youell: “I always like to get a complete set. This often

involves searching around for matching hardware and other
matching items. At the moment I’m trying to pull together a set of
(unplayed) Premier ‘Donut’ heads for my early 1980s Resonator.”
Peter Foskett: “The easiest projects are where you find a
complete unmolested kit that’s been wrapped up in someone’s loft
for years. All it needs is a good clean and maybe new heads. Luck
like that comes along rarely, and working on a limited budget I’ve
focused on British-made drums – Premier, Olympic, Beverley, John
Grey, Ajax, etc. They are accessible and if something is missing
there’s a chance you will find a replacement part.”
Alan Buckley: “Collect catalogues, they are the only reliable source of
information. Or sometimes the experts who have been collecting for
years. But even so-called specialists do not always know the dates. Even I
make mistakes.”
Andy Youell: “On drumarchive.com we’ve got hundreds of catalogues
from all the major (and some not-so-major) brands. I might even say it is
the ultimate reference source for vintage drums. I don’t do as much on the
web as I used to. I gave the Asba site (www.asbadrums.com) to a guy in
France. I shut down vistalites.com and gifted the domain to Ludwig.”

Jeremy Peake: “Forums and Facebook can be helpful, though

sometimes people are not as knowledgeable as they think they are.
Eventually you get to know key people who really know their stuff. Often
they have an encyclopaedic knowledge of a particular brand and love to

3. authenticity share that knowledge. The best resource for catalogues is undoubtedly
the irreplaceable www.drumarchive.com. I also enjoy Dave Seville’s Old
Drummer’s Club publications and the websites run by enthusiasts.”

How can you be sure to identify
items correctly?
Dave Seville: “Contemporary buyers have the benefit of some
excellent sources of information – Mike Ellis, DrumArchive, Rhythm
etc. You wouldn’t walk into an antique store and spend big money
without doing some research. Swot up from reliable sources or
repent at leisure. There will always be villains trying to charge top
money for dubious drums, but many are okay and the rest, if not
saintly, are dumb rather than malicious!”
Mike Ellis: “This can be tricky especially with very old items, but
www.drumarchive.com is a great resource for ID issues.”
Dave McReady: “Google it or ask someone in the know. There
are plenty of forums on the net. Beware, not all sources are what
they claim to be!”
Simon Wagstaff: “Identifying drums can be tricky, especially
with badges/transition periods and no serial numbers.”
Simon Wagstaff: “There are plenty of books, some of the best being
The Slingerland, Gretsch and Rogers books, all written by Rob Cook (www.
rebeats.com). For advice on dating drums and what to look for, www.
vintagedrumforum.com is good. But the best advice is to talk to collectors.”
Preston Prince: “Knowledge takes time, you can’t just dial it in. Get
Rob Cook’s books. They are wonderful resources with plenty of insights.
Steve Maxwell’s archived listings of historical sets is also good (www.
maxwelldrums.com).”
Richard Thomas: “Wikipedia, Geoff Nicholls’ drum books, also
Modern Drummer and Rhythm magazines.”
Mike Ellis: “The Drum Book by some no-hope chancer called Geoff
Nicholls is a great reference tool!”
Robin Melville: “Books on US vintage stuff by Rob Cook and Harry
Cangany. Also, Ned Ingberman has an excellent website (www.
vintagedrum.com) with loads of information. Tam Rankin runs a website
(www.vintprem.moonfruit.com) devoted to Premier/Olympic.”

Peter Foskett: “Beware if you’re making a decision from just a Peter Foskett: “Try www.vintageolympic.co.uk, The Haynes Drum
photograph and description. On the whole, sellers are honest. I’ve Manual, by Paul Balmer and Guide To Vintage Drums, by John Aldridge.”
made some great purchases on eBay. It’s a good source for parts.”

Jeremy Peake: “Ask for more photos or go along and take a look.
Know your subject or do your research.”

58 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 5. the condition
HOW DO YOU ASSESS FOR DAMAGE?
Alan Buckley: “Always get the head off so you can see if it has
been bodged – the badges changed, or it’s been recovered. People
put the wrong strainer on to make the drum work properly. They
don’t realise what damage they can do.”
Mike Ellis: “Check the item is complete, check for any repairs,
extra holes, non-original parts. These can be dealt with but will
ultimately affect the price you should offer. A multitude of sins can
be hidden under coated heads – bodged repairs or ‘Frankenstein’
drums can be caught out with a thorough (inside) shell inspection.”
Dave McReady: “Check for shell delamination, warped hoops,
missing parts. Cymbals for cracks, (centre) key-holing, edge dings.”
Jeremy Peake: “The main things to look out for are rust, cracks,
warping, water damage, heat damage, dented and scratched
finishes, botched renovations, cavalier customisation and missing
parts. It is much easier to make an assessment if you can inspect a
kit first-hand. It’s amazing how so many kits survive intact.
Cymbals need checking for ‘flea bites’, hairline cracks, key-holing
– and associated radial cracks – warping, dents, scratches, over-
cleaning… and it’s not a bad idea to see if they sound good too!”
Andy Youell: “It can be tricky when buying online. Some drums
have particular issues to look out for, eg: the ‘exploding’ lugs on
[1960s] Ajax Nu-Sound kits!”
Preston Prince: “On [vintage] Ludwig drums the wrap should
be folded into the scarf joint [otherwise it has been recovered].
Extra holes are a no-no unless what you want is a ‘player’s kit’. And
that’s fine – there are some great player’s kits out there with one or
two holes, but these are not collectable grade unless super-rare.”
6. common problems
WHAT ARE THE COMMONEST
FAULTS OR DAMAGED PARTS?
Peter Foskett: “Most likely parts to be missing are tension
rods, bass drum claws, hoops (blame that on the fad for removing
the resonant head), lugs, fittings like tom holders, spurs, etc. Look
out for later tom holders that have been fitted to an earlier kit. It
was the fashion at some point to beef everything up, but nearly
always this required drilling larger holes, or holes in different
positions. Collectors hate drums modified in this way. This is a
complex but not impossible repair.”
Jeremy Peake: “Tom rash on bass drums, battle-scarred
wraps and rust. Hardware often has mismatched parts or
ruined threads.”
Preston Prince: “Broken strainers, dented shells, wraps
delaminating, pitted chrome, out-of-round shells.”
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
7. what’s it worth?
HOW DO YOU ASSESS THE VALUE?
Jeremy Peake: “It’s possible to search eBay for past listings and
sale prices, but it’s an unstable market – sellers do the same and
sometimes take the view that their beaten-up old kit with half its
original hardware must be worth as much as the immaculately
restored version they’ve seen on a dealer’s website. Similarly,
some buyers want to purchase kits that have taken weeks of
careful restoration and had a lot of money lavished on them for the
same price as a trashed version they’ve seen sell for a few pounds.”
Mike Ellis: “You really need to have prior knowledge to assess
value, but if you like it and want it, and you can afford it – buy it!”
Simon Wagstaff: “The value all depends on what you’re
prepared to pay. Kits from the US hold more caché than British kits,
which is a bit unfair as some of the Premier and Carlton 1940s,
1950s and 1960s drums were well made with excellent shells.”
Garry Allcock: “Ask around, check the Internet. Very often it’s
‘What’s it worth to you?’ If you have a set and found a matching
snare you’d probably give a bit more, because you really wanted it.”
Andy Youell: “It’s what the market will bear. There is often little
logic. Brand name is a big driver, American drums especially.
Completed auctions on eBay are a good source of [pricing]
information. Watch to see how often/rarely particular drums come
onto the market. I still check eBay recent listings every day.”
Preston Prince: “Don’t look at a price on eBay and think that’s
the price the seller is going to get. A recent ’70s Black Beauty was
listed at ‘Buy It Now’ for £1,200. Another seller sold one very
similar for £700. Check sold prices on eBay. Sometimes I have a
price I think is right due to the drum being rare or unique. Also, if I
sell on eBay, I’ll state a price, then list it as ‘Open to Offers’.”
Premier Club kit from
around 1980
Summer 2014 | 59
Feature
vintage drums
German-made Trixon
1960s Luxus 0/200 kit
8. safe delivery
WHAT ABOUT POSTAGE, DELIVERY
AND INSURANCE?
Preston Prince: “You can post anywhere in the world and
insure items as long as the customer wants to pay. They have the
responsibility to ensure their new investment is insured.”
Richard Thomas: “Obtain the postage costs brochures from
Parcel Force 48. They’re reliable and honest. Always try and insure.
I once sent a Ludwig kit to Singapore without insurance. It never
arrived and I had to pay a full refund. Ten months later the drums
arrived back on my doorstep in pieces… But I got them back!”
Dave McReady: “Royal Mail is expensive, but there are loads of
courier companies. Everyone has horror stories, but most of the
time deliveries go as planned.”
Mike Ellis: “Always send via a tracked and insured courier service.
Check the T’s & C’s, sometimes musical instruments are not
covered. However, if you book through a broker, sometimes the
broker will offer cover with a courier company that itself does not.”
Jeremy Peake: “With so many cheap courier services around,
people sometimes risk sending valuable drums and hardware with
carriers who clearly state musical instruments are not covered by
their insurance. I’ve heard horror stories, but I’ve never had any
trouble so far with couriers. I have had problems with people
posting things to me in shockingly bad packaging.”
Andy Youell: “I bought a pristine pair of Asba congas on eBay.
They were badly packed and arrived in many pieces! I posted a
Premier snare drum in an aluminium flight case. It must have
taken one hell of a knock as it arrived with the strainer broken.”
60 | Summer 2014
9. payment security
WHAT IS THE SAFEST WAY TO PAY?
Andy Youell: “Cash is king!”
Dave McReady: “PayPal is good for online. Used notes on a face-
to-face deal is probably best.”
Alan Buckley: “I always paid cash. I did get a lot from the
States, but I went over there. I would not buy through so-called
dealers. I have to know the person, so if it comes and it is bad you
can send it back.”
Mike Ellis: “PayPal offers buyer and seller protection, but is
still open to abuse. I only do bank transfers with people I know.
Or good old-fashioned cash-on-collection. Never use money
transfers, ever.”
Robin Melville: “I have always bought by credit card from the
USA. PayPal/eBay, although safe, can be costly. My purchases in
this country are usually from people I know and trust, often
collectors themselves.”
Richard Thomas: “Some people accept cheques, which is still
a good way to pay.”
Ne x t Month
We ask our experts about their personal Holy Grails, their best bargains,
the most valuable and collectable gear. Plus how to spot fakes, and who
can you trust with repairs? Finally, is it okay to actually play vintage gear?
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
Interview
Robert ‘sput’ searight

62 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 r o b e r t

Sput
s e a r i g h t

Snarky Puppy’s multi-talented drummer

‘Sput’ talks about wanting to be the next
Quincy Jones and why even a Grammy
Award is no shortcut to success

Words: David West photos: rob monk

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 63

Interview
Robert ‘sput’ searight

B
ack in January 2014
instrumental jazz/funk/
fusion collective Snarky
Puppy snagged the
Grammy for Best R&B
Performance for their
version of the Brenda
Russell tune ‘Something’
from their album Family
Dinner – Volume 1. What
makes their win all the
more impressive is that the
band does everything independently, with
their own record label GroundUP Music, and
no big corporation pushing their music on
the airwaves. For drummer Robert ‘Sput’
Searight, the trophy for ‘Something’ was
actually his second Grammy Award – he won
his first one while still in his teens. By any
measure, this is a band and a drummer on
the rise, reaping the rewards for years of
hard work, building a global audience with a
tireless touring schedule and an inspiring
commitment to preaching the power of
music through clinics and educational
workshops. Snarky Puppy was the brainchild
of bassist and bandleader Michael League.
From its origins in Dallas, where League was
a student at University Of North Texas, the
band is now based out of Brooklyn, New
York, although their touring schedule means
they mostly live on the road, with different
people in and out of the line-up, as many
members are in-demand session players.
Sput was born and raised in Dallas, Texas
in a family rich in music and faith. “My mom
and dad both worked in the music
department of the church. My dad directed
the choirs. My mom played organ, my dad
played the organ and drums, so we had
musical instruments in the house. We had a
piano and an organ. I think as long as I can
remember I was playing drums. I got my first
kit when I was four. It was a red sparkling
Rogers kit. I’ve been playing for a long time.”
Growing up in church, Sput was immersed
Sput: “In my eighth-grade
in gospel, but he cultivated a broad musical year I realised that I stood
palette from an early age. “I had an auntie out beyond the other guys
who was married to this DJ with a big record that were playing the
same instruments”
collection,” says Sput. “They split up and out
of anger she gave all his stuff to my dad, so I
had access to all these records from the ’70s
and ’60s – James Brown, Parliament, Simon
And Garfunkel, The Beatles, a wide variety of
music. Every day after school I used to pick “The perception is when you win
a Grammy you become someone
through the stuff and listen to as much as I
could to see if I could find something that
caught my ear and a lot of it did.”
His musical education continued at the
Booker T Washington High School For The
Visual And Performing Arts, whose alumni
i n t h e i n d u s t r y, p e o p l e s ta r t
include Erykah Badu and Norah Jones.
“When I was young I wanted to be a
calling you, you become rich...
scientist,” says Sput, who plays both drums
and piano. “I was into sports but I didn’t see
myself as an athlete. I don’t think the music
N o n e o f t h at h a p p e n s ”
thing hit me until my eighth-grade year

64 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Sput: “It’s still a goal of
mine now to be a
profound producer”
when I realised that I stood out beyond the
other guys that were playing the same
instruments. I realised I had something I
could expand on. Then I started saying I
wanted to produce, to be the next Quincy
Jones; that was my goal. It’s still a goal of
mine now to be a profound producer.”
He learned about production, exploring
the intricacies of making music. “I would
take some of my favourite songs and
duplicate them in the MIDI lab, minus the
lyrics obviously,” he says. “I would try to
match the live drum sounds with sampled
drum sounds and I would use the same
basslines and try to duplicate them to a tee,
verbatim. Some of the songs I did were a few
instrumental cuts by Mint Condition and
some Michael Jackson cuts. That was the
starting ground for me producing. I was
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
learning how to put music together and form
ideas from scratch. The more you do it the
better you get at it. Now it’s been 15 to 20
years, I’ve gotten the hang of it.”
At high school, Sput became friends with
Myron Butler, now a successful gospel artist
whose 2012 album Worship was produced by
Sput, and they started collaborating. “We
always wanted to do things within the school
walls that reflected our upbringing, which is
the church,” says Sput. “We felt there was so
much talent throughout the school that if we
put a group of people together it would
knock the socks off anybody else.” The
group they formed won a city-wide gospel
choir contest, but then split up. “It’s hard to
manage a group as a teenager. We did as
much as we could, it kept us out of trouble
honestly, because on the weekends we’d
perform at churches or at parks, in malls,”
he says. Undeterred by the first group’s
dissolution, Sput put together a new gospel
outfit called God’s Property with many of the
same personnel. “The kids were dynamite,
talent-wise,” he says. “Everybody could sing,
play, everybody was multi-talented. We met
Kirk Franklin who is a big local artist and he
took a liking to us. We got a record deal
through him, he signed us and produced a
record featuring us called Stomp. The title
cut featured Salt from Salt’n’Pepa. I was MD,
I came up with a lot of the arrangements
and produced that song as well, and that’s
the song that won the Grammy.”
However, having a shiny trophy for ‘Best
Gospel Album By Choir Or Chorus’ on the
shelf was not a ticket to instant success.
“The perception is when you win a
Summer 2014 | 65
Interview
Robert ‘sput’ searight
Grammy you become someone in the
industry, people start calling you, you
become rich. None of that happens,” he
says. “It was just something that was given
to me and life went on. I still had to build my
career. A year after that Grammy, the group
split up.”
Looking for a fresh start, he left Dallas for
LA where he landed gigs with Celine Dion,
Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes, P. Diddy, Erykah
Badu, Timbaland and Justin Timberlake,
although on many of the gigs he started out
playing keyboards as well as being MD.
“Something would always happen with the
drummer and I’d fill in because I could play
drums, I knew the music and it was easier
for me to play drums,” he says. “Now I’m
solely a drummer on most of the gigs I play,
except for the stuff I produce.”
Sput first crossed paths with Michael
League at a jam session in Dallas and the
pattern of swapping keys for drums
repeated itself. “Mike would come down and
one day he sat in and played and that was
pretty much it for our relationship,” says
Sput. “That was the start of something really
“ I ’ d n e v e r s e e n a c h e e s y,
n e r d y l o o k i n g w h i t e g u y p l ay
w i t h t h at m u c h s o u l a n d f u n k
o n t h e b a s s . I t w a s c o o l”
dynamic for me in my life. I’d never seen a
cheesy, nerdy looking white guy play with
that much soul and funk on the bass. It was
cool. We kept in contact and he asked me to
come check out his band, which was Snarky
Puppy. I was blown away and I would come
and sit in with the band. He asked me to play
keys because the keyboard player was from
London and couldn’t go on the tour. I learned
some of the hardest music I ever learned in
my life on the fly, basically. The rest is
history. It’s been eight years since I’ve been
in the band. The first year I played piano and
I’ve been playing drums ever since.”
While the bulk of the band members now
live in New York, Sput has stayed in Texas.
“Right now there’s no need to move for me,”
he says. “We don’t do a lot of shows in New
York, we don’t rehearse a whole lot. We
rehearse before tours and before records
and usually we fly in and do that stuff
anyway. I’ve been to New York but I’d rather
be at home with my mom and my sisters.”
In 2013, Snarky Puppy played almost 200
shows around the world, which for Sput is
the key to their rapidly growing fame and
success. “This band works really hard and
66 | Summer 2014
we’ve really grinded tooth and nail from the
States coming over here to Europe, we’ve
done tours that were non-stop, relentless,
just to get the word out and see if people
could gravitate towards the music,” he says.
“I didn’t expect to win a Grammy because
that’s the ultimate award but I thought that if
people gave this music a shot they would
like it. It’s gratifying to see people recognise
us, fans – we call them friends. You feel like
you know them even when you meet them
for the first time. That’s a beautiful thing.
That’s the most gratifying part of it, even
more so than the awards.”
While the core of Snarky Puppy is an
instrumental group, they often collaborate
with vocalists when they want to play a song
with lyrics. It was their team-up with Lalah
Hathaway that won the Grammy but in
Sput’s opinion they don’t see bringing in
vocalists as a calculated way to reach a
wider audience. It’s just part and parcel of
the creative process. “I don’t think we
concentrate too much on what the
thing-to-do is. We just do what we want to
do,” he says. “We don’t compromise. We’re
not a commercial group, we don’t do things
the conventional way. We want to always be
creative and play live music and incorporate
that in whatever we’re doing, whether that’s Bent nails what about me
bringing in a vocalist or whatever. We don’t A great performance of ‘Bent Sput captured live on stage with
do that intentionally to create radio success.” Nails’, a track written by Sput Snarky Puppy at a gig in
One of their most daring collaborations himself for Snarky Puppy, filmed Nashville as he navigates the
for Vic Firth, and a showcase for dense arrangement with total
saw the members of Snarky Puppy playing
his open-handed playing style. confidence and a huge groove.
with The Metropole Orchestra earlier this http://youtu.be/6iXajbpp-7s http://youtu.be/DBrwalgqErY
year. Based in Holland, the Metropole
Orchestra is a hybrid between a symphony
orchestra and a jazz big band with 52 players
joining forces with the 10-piece Snarky
Puppy. “The director Jules Buckley and Mike
wrote songs, so it was a performance of
music written for a 62-piece orchestra
playing as a band. Most of the time the
Metropole plays with people, it’s the artist
singing their own music then Metropole Something Amour T’Es La
playing around their arrangements, which is The song that won Sput his Magda Giannikou joins Snarky
second Grammy – ‘Something’ Puppy on this performance
cool. They have the best timing in the world
featuring Lalah Hathaway. The demonstrating the group’s
as musicians and orchestral players. This band loves to record live takes facility for tackling music from
particular thing is different because it was with the audience members across the world, with a great
written for them and the music is beautiful. sitting amongst the musicians. drum and percussion break.
It’s one of the most incredible experiences http://youtu.be/sCxknUG01as http://youtu.be/KPHB6hm2wV8
I’ve ever been a part of in my life,
actually. It’s hard to go from that to
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
Interview
Robert ‘sput’ searight
Sput’s Gretsch and Meinl
set-up with Snarky Puppy
playing with 10 people now but it’s one of
those things I hope we get the chance to
tour. It’s going to be a game changer if that
happens. I think people would love to come
see it. We nicknamed it Snarkopole.”
Even when he’s not playing alongside an
orchestra, Sput still shares the stage with
nine other people, including Nate Werth on
percussion, so he has worked to develop a
sound that complements such a stacked and
packed playing environment. His Gretsch kit
“the time period of the
’ 7 0 s d e f i n i t e ly i n f l u e n c e d
m y s o u n d a g r e at d e a l”
includes two snares, a 14"x5" and a 14"x8".
“I’m a product of the ’70s,” he says. “The
time period of the ’70s definitely influenced
my sound a great deal. In terms of snares, I
like the sound of Clyde Stubblefield and Jabo
Starks, the higher pitched snares that were
popping but at the same time I like the
snares that were deep – Al Green, George
Clinton and Parliament. I’m such a fan of the
deep snare and would play it for a whole gig
if I was allowed to. Other than that you have
68 | Summer 2014
to build a sound around what works for the
gig. For this gig I’ve experimented a lot. I
played a lot of shells so I’ve really tried to
make sure the toms are deep and big when
they need to be. I still have the contrast of
the smaller toms, being able to create
different timbres and textures. Nate basically
has everything known to mankind in his
set-up, which is congas, bongos, a snare, a
bunch of stacked cymbals and a bunch of
toys – cowbells, blocks, he has all kinds of
things over there that take up a great deal of
space rhythmically. Being able to utilise the
sound of the toms allows me to hit them one
time and make a difference, so that’s really
where I’m coming from when I’m thinking
about my sound. I’m trying to create the
tones of the ’70s in my bigger toms. Then in
my smaller toms I’m trying to create the
more fusion-y ’90s Vinnie Colaiuta toms.”
Sput enjoys mixing up his configuration to
prompt changes in his playing. “It changes
from gig to gig because I play differently
when I set up differently,” he explains. “I
might play a 14" to the left side or play small
to big the traditional way, or I switch and
might play big to small. It depends on how DRUMS
I’m feeling but every now and then I like to Gretsch New Classic
change the set-up and it changes my style.” series in Gold Sparkle:
Outside of Snarky Puppy, the drummer is 20"x18" kick drum,
10"x8" tom, 12"x10"
not one to rest on his laurels. “I’m starting a tom, 14"x14" &
label. There’s a band I started called RSVP 16"x14" floor toms,
which features a lot of young musicians from 14"x5" & 14"x8"
Dallas. I play piano, write and arrange most maple snares
of the music and it’s a very lively, exciting
CYMBALS
group. It’s more on the funky side but it has
elements of fusion as well. Then I have a few
artists like my baby sister Rachella Searight.
Meinl Byzance Series:
22" Traditional ride,
12" Generation X
She sings so I want to do some records with splash, 18" Vintage
her. There are a few local talented bands in crash, 10" Extra Thin
the Dallas area, one called The Found I want splash, 22" Sand
to produce. They’re a hip-hop/R&B band.” crash ride, 16" Extra
Thin Medium hi-hats,
On top of that, he is planning a trio album 20" Extra Thin crash
with organist Cory Henry and guitarist Isaiah
Sharkey and an album with a group of PLUS
multi-instrumental drummers. “We’re going Evans heads – Level
to set up multiple instrument stations, have 360 G2 Coated on
small kits and play together. It’s going to be a toms, Power Centre
Reverse Dot on 5"
really cool project.” He’s also working on an snare, Hybrid on 8"
album with Snarky Puppy’s percussionist snare, EMAD on kick;
Nate Werth. “We started it in January and we Gibraltar hardware
have another instalment of recordings to do, and pedal; Vic Firth
all percussive instruments. We’re doing a AJ1 and AJ2 sticks
documentary as well. So it’s going to be a
pretty interesting year for me.”
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
70 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 The
“It was like magic, there is no other
way of describing it. When we
listened back to it, I went, ‘This is
going to blow America off the face
of the Earth.’ within two months
we were doing our own tour”
Lee Kerslake
From conquering America with Uriah Heep to almost drinking
himself to death, Lee Kerslake tells Rhythm about the best and
the worst of his tumultuous life in rock
F
rom his decades behind the kit with
Uriah Heep to the genre-defining
albums he played on with Ozzy
Osbourne, Lee Kerslake has been a
pillar of British rock drumming since
the late 1960s when he first came to
prominence in psychedelic rock band
The Gods. Born and raised in Bournemouth, Lee
started out playing rock’n’roll – Elvis, The Everly
Brothers, The Shadows – in a local band. “I was
loving every minute of it on stage and I was loving
the girls liking me as well and that was something
else,” he says. However his musical career was
nearly nipped in the bud by the lure of outer space.
“There was a company that was interviewing kids to
be involved with space – space shuttles, sputnik,
rockets – and I loved all that,” he says. “I was
excellent at maths and science so I was halfway
there. I promised my mum I’d do the interview, I
walked it. So I got the job. I was getting £1, 19s, and
11p a week. Then the band got gigs on Fridays and
Saturdays. We were getting £25 on a Saturday
between us. There were four of us and a bit of petrol,
so I was going, ‘Hang on a minute, I’m getting a
tenner for doing two gigs with this band, I’m going to
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
interview
Words: David West photos: rob monk
be a drummer.’ That was it.” He hit the big time in
the 1970s with Uriah Heep alongside guitarist Mick
Box, keys player Ken Hensley, vocalist David Byron
and a rotating cast of bassists, before leaving in 1979.
He joined Ozzy Osbourne’s band but relations turned
toxic with Ozzy’s manager and wife Sharon, leading
to a long-running legal dispute. After leaving Uriah
Heep again in early 2007, Lee has been semi-retired
but has just released a new album this year.
Was your first recording experience with
The Gods?
“It was ’67 because I got Greg Lake into the band for
a bit and we had my 21st birthday at my auntie’s
house. That was great. I met Ken Hensley and saw
how clever he was at writing and he had his
Hammond. In Bournemouth where we had semi-pro
bands, all they had was the Vox Continental. It was
the worst sounding instrument I’ve ever heard in my
life, but it’s all we had. When I was working with Ken,
he had a Hammond. Wow! This guy I like already!
He’s from London, he’s cool, great player. I was a
singer and a drummer, the bass player was a singer,
Ken was a singer, and the lead guitarist was a singer,
so we had harmonies. We literally had the beginning
of Uriah Heep, because we were all singers. Gods
was phenomenal. We were such a cult band, we sold
out the Marquee in Wardour Street three nights on
the trot, for a band without a record deal. Then we
got a record deal and it fell apart.”
You bounced betweens bands – The Gods, Head
Machine, National Head Band, Toe Fat.
“I was ducking and diving. I was being offered jobs
every which way because when we had The Gods we
had such a following that the music industry knew
me and Ken. Ken left the band and went off to join
Cliff Bennett, I managed The Gods for a little while
but I had to let it go. I couldn’t do it – drumming,
driving, management, agent, everything. Then I got
offered a job to join National Head Band, with a very
rich backer who put us on a retainer. We wrote an
album called Albert One which was so ahead of its
time. It was phenomenal but it didn’t go anywhere. I
met an agent and a manager, Gerry Bron and Steve
Barnett, and I said, ‘I want you to hear the band.’
They said ‘Okay, we’ll get you a gig at Thumpers in
Leicester Square and we’ll have a listen.’ So I did the
show and Gerry and Steve said, ‘Can we have a
word with you privately? We’re not interested in
Summer 2014 | 71
The interview
the band, we want you for a band called Uriah
Heep.’ I said, ‘I don’t know.’ They said, ‘It’s worth
£100 a week to you.’ ‘Where do I sign?’ I met with
Mick [Box, guitarist] down in Covent Garden in a
rehearsal studio. There was no one else there, just
me and Mick, so we jammed for two hours. That was
it, I was in. I was in the studio within a month. I joined
in 1971, 23 November, I was in the studio December
’71, and I was on an American tour ’72. That quick.”
Did you know fourth album Demons And
Wizards would be so big?
“Oh yeah, we knew. I was writing with Micky and
David. Ken would bring his songs in, we were so keen
to make it happen because when we played together
“We had two Top 20 albums in the first year.
Every town in America, everywhere you
went you heard ‘Easy Livin’’. It was magic”
we were unbelievable. Even when we supported
Deep Purple, we’d blow them off stage, that’s what
we took into the studio, that confidence, kind of an
arrogance, but with no ego. We wanted to make it
and we would steamroller over anybody. Remember,
Uriah Heep had already done Very ’Eavy Very ’Umble
and Look At Yourself and it was kind of on its way
and then we had this thing about magic and fantasy.
It bit like a virus. I remember when we did ‘The
Spell’, the fight scene between the black witch and
the white witch, one take and we were done, it was
“[The doctor] said, ‘If you’d
carried on another year
with Uriah Heep, you’d
have been totally deaf’”
72 | Summer 2014
that good. Gerry said, ‘You’ll never better that.’ It was
like magic, there is no other way of describing it.
When we listened back to it afterwards, I went, ‘This
is going to blow America off the face of the Earth.’
Sure enough within two months we were doing our
own headlining tour in ’72.”
This must have been at the start of the era of big
arena tours in the US?
“Well, yeah, but we were still the tail end compared
to Deep Purple, Black Sabbath – they were three
years ahead of us, already in America. We just came
in and rounded it off. Here’s another band for 37,000
people to come and see. We had two albums in the
Top 20 in the first year, Demons And Wizards and
The Magician’s Birthday went through the roof. Every
town in America, everywhere you went you heard
‘Easy Livin’’. It was magic within the five members,
we all clicked. I was listening to Sting talking on the
TV many years ago about how it clicked for The
Police. They were fine-tuning and honing their work
and suddenly it clicked and they went through the
roof. It’s the same as when we were doing Ozzy, we
were left to our own devices, we were writing,
admittedly I only wrote one on the first album but I
arranged and co-produced the first album with my
Lee Kerslake On Soloing
■■“I could not go on there with an ego, ‘Hey look, guys, I can
do this for hours.’ That’s crap to me. On stage I want to
entertain you, so I’ll do a drum solo that will last maybe
eight minutes long and that’s the end of it. I can’t go on and
do half an hour. It does my head in. I can do a drum solo and
put everything I know in eight to 10 minutes.”
ideas for the drumming, harmony, vocal parts, and I
went to Bob and said, ‘If we get the right deal, we’ve
got a monster.’ Then they asked us to do Diary Of A
Madman, we wrote that, I went, ‘This is another one
that’s going to stand the test of anything,’ and it has,
it’s sold 60 million.”
Had you heard Randy Rhoads before you joined
Ozzy’s band?
“I knew Bob [Daisley, bassist] from Widowmaker, we
were friends. We went into Shepperton Studios, Bob
had already sent me a couple of tracks, ‘Crazy Train’
and ‘I Don’t Know’. I’d never heard of Randy. Bloody
hell, what a player! I was trying to be cool, but I went,
‘Wow, that guy’s a genius, he’s out of this world.’ I’ve
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
Lee on Uriah Heep: “Even when we
supported Deep Purple, we’d blow
them off stage, that’s what we took
into the studio, that confidence”
never heard a guitarist like him. I joined, we started
writing and we wrote for about four days, the whole
album. My forte was vocal melodies and I’d sing a
verse and then Bob would write the whole song. It
was great. It just rolled out. Randy would have a part
on guitar, I’d go, ‘No, play this part,’ and I’d sing him a
guitar part and it would work. No one said, ‘I don’t
want to play that.’ Bob would say to me, ‘Double up
on the middle eight.’ ‘All right.’ Everything went great
and it showed on the album.”
Did you tour between recording the two albums,
Blizzard Of Ozz and Diary Of A Madman?
“We did one English tour, I think eight or nine shows,
Hammersmith up to Scotland. Then while we were
doing that Sharon was on the road with Ozzy and she
turned around and said we’ve got to do another
album. I went, ‘Okay, but this time we want some
money up front. We can’t do an album unless we’re
turning over money, so find us some money and we’ll
do it.’ She wrote me a cheque, bounced it on me. It
brought me to ruin. And then she got rid of us at the
same time. Not nice.”
Was there any uncertainty about Ozzy’s viability
as a solo artist?
“There was no doubt he could do it. He didn’t want to
do it, he put every barrier in the way, all he wanted
to do was feel sorry for himself, get drunk. But we
worked on him. We got to him. He got to us and we
got to him. I liked him, I liked the son-of-a-bitch, I
really did. I got on well with him. Sharon got her
claws into him and I’m not going to knock her for her
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
talent, she’s a clever, very hard woman. We gave her
the first couple of million, set her up, she rolled it
into hundreds of millions, but what I don’t like about
her is she cheated me, Bob and Randy out of our
rightful amounts of money. That would have set me
up for life like a pension. It wasn’t a lot of ask, a
couple of million, but she fought us, the lawyer cost
her six million to fight us then they threw it out of
court, statute of limitations. I’ll never forgive her for
that. I can’t because that nearly killed me. I nearly
took my life. I just felt so cheated. What am I doing in
this business? I’ve done everything I can by the book,
I’ve never cheated anybody, all I’ve done is give them
“I was doing a good job of drinking myself to
death. A good friend of mine said, ‘Stop feeling
sorry for yourself,’ and I pulled myself out”
my talent and they’ve ripped me off. I was doing a
good job of drinking myself to death. A good friend
of mine said, ‘Stop feeling sorry for yourself, get off
your a**e,’ and I pulled myself out.”
Your second run with Uriah Heep lasted 25 years.
Why did you eventually leave the band again?
“I stayed with the band because I enjoyed it. When I
lost the case against Ozzy I was getting ill and I
refused to admit to it. I’m a typical stubborn Aries
and I was kidding myself that I was okay but I wasn’t.
I was getting sicker and sicker. Because I lost the case
I felt useless, I felt the industry had cheated me again
and I felt lost. I went on stage in 2006 and it was
coming to a head. I didn’t play well at all. I was so
angry with myself, it was stupid. We broke up for
the Christmas holiday, Mick phoned me up and said,
‘This can’t go on anymore.’ I said, ‘No, it can’t. It’s
time for me to move on. I’ve got to stop, I don’t know
what’s wrong with me.’ I went to the doctor’s, he
referred me to the hospital, the guy said, ‘Right, your
hearing, you’re down 40 percent in one, 50 percent
in the other, you’ve got tinnitus, you’ve got arthritis
on your knee, on your hip, and you’ve got sleep
apnoea,’ when you stop breathing during the night.
He said, ‘If you’d carried on another year with Uriah
Heep, you’d have been totally deaf.’ So I stopped
everything. I’m still writing and playing but not
on the level where we go to Brazil for two weeks,
America for a month, then Canada for a month,
then Australia. I can’t do that anymore. I don’t want
to, it’s not my thing.”
And now you’ve got BKB - The Berggren Kerslake
Band – are you enjoying playing again?
“Fantastic. I love it. I’m laughing at the whole
industry. On ‘Walk Tall’ I went ‘hee hee hee’, suck it
all of you, we’ve done it. That’s to the industry, the
people who thought we’d fail. We had such fun.
Summer 2014 | 73
The interview

Lee: “We had this thing

about magic and fantasy.
It bit like a virus”

We were doing it in his garage and we did the

Lee Kerslake on record

basic tracks in his kitchen and that’s his studio. We
had to get me a flight from London to Stockholm to
do two gigs in Irish pubs for four hours a night so I
had a bit of money in my pocket and to pay for the
flight, so I could stay there on Sunday and carry on
doing the album. It’s so back to the roots. It’s an
Key albums you must hear
honest album. There are songs you can whistle and Weaving The Magic Lost In The On The Road Again
singalong. It was hard work, some of the time I 1972-1980 Blizzard 1981-2006
wasn’t there and they had to do it without me. I’d be 1980-1981
on the phone, ‘Do the harmonies five times, 20 Uriah Heep Uriah Heep
times. Now it works.’ My phone bill! But I’m proud of Demons And Wizards (1972) Ozzy Osbourne Abominog (1982)
Mercury Blizzard Of Ozz (1980) Mercury/Bronze
it. It just needs a break now, for people to listen to it. Uriah Heep’s ■ Epic “I thought it was a
It’s a very honest album, a happy album to listen to. I massive fourth ■ Ozzy Osbourne’s ■ brilliant album,” says
wanted it to be how we did music in the ’70s, ’80s album, released in solo debut features Lee about Heep’s
and ’90s, that style is gone, so bring it back. What’s 1972, is an absolute the stunning guitar triumphant return.
classic of British ■ work of Randy ■ ‘Too Scared To Run’
the best way of bringing it back? A new band, BKB. rock by any reckoning. It’s a fantasy Rhoads and the still hits like a heavyweight.
Let’s hope so anyway.” themed behemoth, from ‘The Wizard’ masterful rhythm section of Lee ■
through the juggernaut of ‘Easy ■ and Bob Daisley. ‘Crazy Train’ gave Living Loud
As the most experienced guy in the band, do the Livin’’ to the epic ‘The Spell’. Lee ■ Ozzy his first solo anthem, while Living Loud (2004)
says the fantasy themes came from classic tracks such as ‘Suicide Capitol
others look to you as a mentor? Ken Hensley’s slumbering mind. ■ Solution’ and ‘Mr Crowley’ defined ■ “Sharon was giving us
“Yes and no. Stefan [Berggren, singer] values my “He used to dream amazing dreams,” the sound and direction of heavy so much grief so we
knowledge and talent, yes, but I also value his. He recalls Lee. “He’d tell me what he ■ metal in the 1980s. wanted to do our
may not have been around as long as me and had as was dreaming about and he’d put songs, our way,” says
much success as I’ve had, but he’s equally as good.
them into a song.” Ozzy Osbourne Lee of this all-star
Diary Of A Madman (1981) project with Bob Daisley, Jimmy
He’s a great singer, he’s got a great voice, he plays Uriah Heep Epic Barnes, Don Airey and Steve Morse
great keyboards and he’s a good guitarist and a good The Magician’s Birthday (1972) While Bob Daisley ■ revisiting songs they wrote for Ozzy.
engineer-cum-producer. He’s got talent. I think we Mercury and Lee Kerslake’s
should just go for another album later in the year. Another dose of ■ names were not on ■ Still Rockin’
epic fantasy and ■ the album – the credits 2006-2014
I’ve already got six songs ready to go, I’m sure he has prog rock, released listed Rudy Sarzo ■
as many, and try to do it again but without having to barely six months and Tommy Aldridge – their stamp ■ The Berggren
play in an Irish bar for four hours. We’ve got to fight after Demons And is all over Ozzy’s 1981 opus Diary ■ Kerslake Band
for every bit of music we can now, everything’s Wizards. “Everybody loves a bit of Of A Madman. The lawsuit against ■ The Sun Has Gone Hazy (2014)
fantasy,” says Lee who describes ■ the Osbournes led to both Blizzard ■ Soulfood
downloaded. I want vinyl to come back. It’s honest Ken Hensley as “a genius writer, ■ Of Ozz and Diary Of A Madman ■ With singer/guitarist
and it’s warm. A CD is heartless. You put on vinyl, lovely words, and we were the rock being reissued in 2002 with the Stefan Berggren, Lee
there are things in there that make you feel good. side, where we would write ‘Shady rhythm section re-recorded by ■ kicks out a set of
If I’m feeling it, you’re feeling it, there must be Lady’ [from 1975’s Return To Fantasy] Faith No More’s Mike Bordin and blues-based hard rock.
about a bunny girl David met in Metallica’s Rob Trujillo – but a He proves he’s still got
something in it. I don’t know whether that’s going to America. And a girl I met was ■ backlash from fans saw the ■ his groove on ‘Super Sonic Dreem’ and
happen or not but vinyl should come back. If it does, ‘Sweet Lorraine’.” original parts restored. the stomping title track.
the record industry will be back.”

74 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

SUBSCRIBE!
TO the print edition of
and get an Evans snare head, a pair of
pro-mark 5A sticks & drum key plus
Pro-Mark & Evans posters & stickers
■■  Get a FREE snare head, Drum Key, sticks, posters & stickers
■■  Save 27% and pay just £12.99 every three months
■■  Never miss an issue
■■  Delivery to your door at no extra cost
■■  Free CD every issue

Subscribe online
www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/RHYP2P
Or call 0844 848 2852 quoting reference RHYP2P
Lines are open 8am to 9.30pm weekdays and 8am to 4pm Saturdays
 Plus
SAVE
27%

About the subscription bundle

This subscription gift bundle begins with Evans’ Power Center snare head that is designed Offer expires:
Aug 30th 2014
to add durability and reliability to the area where the stick hits the most, while keeping the Terms and Conditions: This offer
is for new UK subscribers to the
head open and resonant with a bright sound. print edition paying by Direct Debit
The 5A stick has long been the best selling stick for all styles of music due to its well balanced design and its only. Full details of the Direct Debit
Guarantee will be provided and are
warm tone. Crafted from hickory, Pro-Mark’s stick gives responsiveness as well as durability. available upon request. You will
receive 13 issues per year. Your
You’ll also get a Pro-Mark and Evans poster and sticker thrown in; the posters feature an artist on one side and a large collage subscription will start with the next
available issue. Please allow up to
of artist images on the other. Artists include Jojo Mayer, Joey Jordison, Neil Peart and Mike Portnoy. 50 days for delivery of your gift. If
We’re also throwing in a Pro-Mark Drum Key keyring – a simple but extremely handy gift for tightening your drums – designed and at any time you are dissatisfied in
any way please notify us in writing
engineered by Pro-Mark, so you know that it’ll last. and we will refund you for all
un-mailed issues.
For more info check out www.evansdrumheads.com and www.promark.com.
 100 Drum
Heroes

100 of the greatest drummers of all time interviewed and profiled

Includes exclusive interviews and photos from Rhythm’s
28 years as the UK’s biggest drum mag
Drum heroes discuss their music, playing techniques,
gear and career highlights
An essential read for fans of drumming and drummers
across all genres of music

Available from newsagents and itunes

EXCLUSIVE video & audio DRUM LESSONS
Welcome…
Combining fun and serious business…
Contents
‘ain’t It FUN’ paramore p82
Get To Grips with…
The frighteningly talented Ilan Rubin once again proves inter-dependence p84
his versatility on our playalong track this month.
Incorporating elements of rock, hip-hop and New Session tools
Jack Swing into Paramore’s track ‘Ain’t It Fun’, Ilan has created a fun drum odd times part 3: 15/16 p86
track that perfectly suits the song. In the first of a brand new column, Ajay
Naik from new music school the BCME begins looking at the business of Rhythm concepts
music, with great advice for anyone looking to have a career in music, afro-cuban rhythms p87
particularly playing drums. Elsewhere, Erik Stams looks at Afro-Cuban
rhythms, Jason Bowld looks at 15/16 time and Colin Woolway tackles hone your career with…
alternative sticking. Finally, I take another look at utilising rudiments in a the business of music p89
snare solo. Enjoy!
The next step
Learn how alternative sticking p90
to play better at
21st century rudimentS
News • Reviews • Tuition
Samples • Forums
13-stroke-7 p91
Community
Pete Riley Rhythm CD Editor Improve your playing with
Snare drum solos p92
YOUR TUTORS
PETE MIKE COLIN adam
RILEY STURGIS WOOLWAY bushell
Rhythm’s CD Mike is a A professional Adam is a tutor at
editor also has a long-time drummer for 30 the Brighton
number of instructional Rhythm contributor and has years, long-standing Institute Of Modern Music,
books and a DVD entitled worked with numerous Rhythm contributor Colin is and has toured with hit
Technical Difficulties under artists including A-ha, Asia, originator of the Drumsense artists including Sheryl
his tutorial belt. and Bob James. teaching system. Crow and Faithless.

JASON ERIK gareth ajay

BOWLD
Rock School
contributor Jason
is drummer for metal
supergroup Axewound. He
also recently did sessions
for Killing Joke and PWEI.
STAMS
Erik built up an
impressive
résumé studying and
recording in NYC. He is now
Head of Drums at Tech
Music School.
dylan smith
Gareth drums
with Stephen
Wheel, Gillian Glover, Mark
Ruebery and Kiss The Blue
Sky, plays in musicals and
teaches in the UK and USA.
naik
Ajay is Chief
Executive of the
British Centre for Music and
Enterprise (BCME) which
offers courses in music
business and more.

standardised drumset notation key

All our Drum Lessons contributors are using what is increasingly being regarded as the standardised system of drum kit notation, as outlined by Norman Weinberg in his
Guide To Standardised Drumset Notation. This book is published by the Percussive Arts Society, and is available from www.pas.org. To gain a full understanding of all
aspects of the system, we recommend you check out this book.

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk summer 2014 | 81

 Drum lessons

Full track

‘Ain’t It Fun’
Paramore
Blistering rock with a hip-hop feel
from Ilan Rubin

P
aramore brought in Ilan Rubin to lay it
down large for their 2013 eponymous
album, and his playing on ‘Ain’t It Fun’
combines a rock mentality with a funky Track Info
hip-hop flavour.
As you approach this chart, there are two
things that you should keep in mind. The
first is that all the 16th notes should be
played with a definite swing feel. In practical
terms this means that the second and fourth
notes of a group of four 16th notes should
From the album:
be played as the third and sixth notes of a Paramore (2013)
sextuplet. The end result creates a feel not 104bpm
unlike hip-hop or new jack swing. The
second important issue is the use of space
within the parts. Notice that there are times
when the hi-hat is not included in the full kit
pattern. This conscious omission of the
hi-hat significantly opens up the track for the
other instruments. Additionally, the kick
drum patterns are very sparse in their your tutor
construction and in keeping with the open
MIKE STURGIS
feel of the track. mike@mikesturgis.co.uk
While there are no dynamics to be aware
of, the various changes in the patterns is most certainly more.
create their own musically contrasting
sound. In particular, notice how the hi-hat
Rubin’s work here shows why he is a
first-call session drummer as he adapts his
HEADS UP!
New Jack Swing
pattern changes from section to section, own playing style to suit the needs of the Urban hybrid of jazz, funk, electronica
creating differentiation in texture and track perfectly. You can hear a different and r’n’b music that emerged in the ’80s
feel. Again, there is a mentality here in side of his playing with other bands such through the work of producers Teddy
the construction of these parts that less as Nine Inch Nails. Riley, Bernard Belle, Jimmy Jam etc.

01 Notice
Rhythm - 2 how
3 2 the hi-hat is leftIT
outAIN'T
here to
FUNcreate space.
- PARAMORE - Mike Sturgis transcription

INTRO Swung 1/16th note feel

©»¡º¢ IT AIN'T ŒFUN - PARAMORE
RhythmŒ- 2 3 2
÷ 44 œ œ Œœ œ œ Œ œ- Mike Sturgis Œ transcription
œ Œ œ Œ œ Ó
œ Œ œ ‰. œ œ Œ œ œ ‰. œ Ó
1INTRO SwungŒ1/16th note feel Œ J Œ J
V1 ©»¡º¢
Play 4
Œ œ+Snare Œ œ
÷ 4onPlay
Rim
Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Ó
02÷ œ\ œœ\ theœ\ride
1
œ \
œ onœ theœŒœrimœhereœforœ a tight,
Œ œ\pattern
œ \ \ \ \ œ
\ œ œ\
œ œ sound.
Œ œ\percussive
\ ‰\ . œ\ œ œJœ\ œ PLAY
œ œ
Œ 5 MORE Œ œ\ œ\œ œ\ œ ‰œ\ . œ\ œJœ\ Ó œ\ œ ..
¿
œ Œ œ ‰ . œJ Œ Œ œ ‰ . œJ Œ Œ œ ‰ . œJ
5V1
Rim hats +Snare
Play on Tight
B1 ¿
÷ œ\ œ\¿ œ\ œ œ\¿ œ\ œ¿\ ¿œ\œ œ\œ œ ¿ œ\ œ\ œ\ œ œ\ œœ\ œ\ œ\ œ œ\ œ œ⋲\ ¿œ\ ¿ œ\ œj œ\ œœ\ j œ\ Ó œ\ œ .. œ
÷ ‰œ œ Œœ œ⋲œ .
PLAY 5 MORE

5
‰œ. J œŒ œ Œ ‘ ‰ . J ‘ Œ œŒœ œ . œœ œ ‰ . J
13
‰ TightJ hatsŒ ‰ ‰ J ‰ J Ó
B1
C1
‰
o¿ + o¿ + ⋲ o¿ ¿+ oœ ¿+ o + o + o + o + ⋲ o ¿ + ¿ oj j Ó
82
÷ ¿ ¿œ | Summer
¿œ ¿2014 ¿ œ .¿ ¿ œ ¿ œ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‘¿ ¿ ¿ ‘ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ ¿œ œ . œ œœ œ
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
œœ
 INTRO Swung 1/16th note feel
©»¡º¢
Rhythm - 2 3 2 IT AIN'T FUN - PARAMORE - Mike Sturgis transcription
4 Œ Œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Ó
÷ 4 œ
INTRO SwungŒ1/16th note
œ œ feel Œ œ œ Œ œ ‰ . œ œ Full Œ track
œ ‘Ain’t Œ œit fun’ ‰ . Paramore
œ Ó
1
©»¡º¢ J
 Sturgis transcription J
Rhythm - 2 3 2 IT AIN'T FUN - PARAMORE - Mike
V1
÷ 44on Rim Œ œ+Snare Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Œ œ Ó
Play
œ
INTRO SwungŒ1/16th note feel Œ
œ œ Œ œ ‰. œ œ Œ œ Œ œ ‰. œ Ó ¿
1 œ
÷ ©»¡º¢ œ
\œThe\hi-hat œ œ œ œ
\ is introduced œ œ œ
\ œ\ \ on\the upbeats, œ œ œ œœ
\ œ \ and\ the\pattern œ œ œ
\ isœ\ mostly œ
\ linear œ J
œ
\ \ inœ construction. œ
\ \ œ\ œ œ\ œ
œ J
\œ œ\ œ\ œ .. œ
03V1 4 Œ Œ +Snare Œ ‰ . J ŒŒ Œ Œ ‰ . J Œ œ Œ œ Œ Œ Œ œ
PLAY 5 MORE
Ó ‰ . J
5
÷ 4on Tight
Play Rim
œ hatsŒ œ Œ œ œ œ
œ Œ œ ‰. œ œ Œ œ Œ œ œ ‰. œ Ó ¿
B1 J J
1 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
÷ ‰œ\ \¿ \ \¿ œ\ ⋲ ¿\ ¿\ \ œ ¿ \ \ \ \ œ\ \ \ \ œœ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ PLAY 5 MORE
œ
\ ¿\ ¿ œ\ œ œ\ œ
œ œ\ œ\ œ\ œ .. œ
5÷Play on Rimœ Œœ +Snare œ . ‰œ œ J œŒ œ Œ
V1 .
‘ ‰ J.
‘
⋲
Œ Œœ œ . œ œ Ó ‰ . J
j j
‰ Tight hats Œ ‰ ‰ œ ‰ œ Ó ¿
13B1 J J Jœ œ œœ .
÷C1 ‰œœ\ œo\¿ +œ\ œ oœ\¿ +œœ\ ⋲ oœ¿\ ¿+œ\œ oœ\ œ ¿+œ\ oœ\ +œ\ œ o œ\ + œœ\ o œ\ + œ\ œo œ\ œ PLAY 5 MORE
œ œ œ œ œ
+ ⋲ o ¿ + ¿ oj œ\ j \ Ó \ . . œ
\ \ \ \
÷ ¿Note¿œtheŒ¿œhi-hat ‰ . œJ Œ Œ ‘ ‰ . J ‘ Œ œŒœ œ . œœ œ ‰ J
04B1÷ ‰ TightJ hatsœŒ
5

13
¿ ¿ œ .
openings¿ ¿
on
œ
œ
each¿ ‰  œ¿
upbeat œ ¿
just ¿
like
œ a¿’70s¿disco¿ ¿
feel.
œ
¿
PLAY 5 MORE
¿ ‰ ¿ ¿ ¿‰œ
œ J œ œ J œ œ Óœ œ œ
œ o¿ +Œ o¿ +œ o¿ ¿+‰ . o œ ¿+‰ œo +Œ o +œ o +‰ . o œ œ
+‰ ⋲ Jo ¿ +Œ ¿ oj
17 C1 ‰
œ ⋲
÷ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ .¿ ¿ œ ¿ œ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‘¿ ¿ ¿ œJ J J œ œ. œ œ
j ӌ
V2 ‰
‘ ¿ ‰ ¿ œ¿ œ ¿ ‰ œ œ Ó œ œ
13÷ ¿œ ¿J œ¿Œ ¿ ¿œ ¿ œ¿ ¿‰œ ¿ œ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ PLAY 5 MORE
¿ œ¿ J ¿ œ œJ œ œ œ ¿
¿
17÷C1 œ o œ+Œ o +œ o +‰œ . o Jœ +‰ oJ +Œœ o +œ o +‰œ. o Jœ PLAY 5 MORE
+‰ Jo +Œœ o œ œ œ œŒ œ .
25
V2
¿ ¿ Œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‰¿ . ¿ J ¿Œ ¿ ¿Œ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿‰ . ¿ J ¿ Œ ¿ ¿Œ ¿ œœ ‰ .œ œœJ
÷ ¿ hatsœ¿ ¿ ¿œ ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ ¿ œ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ
B2 ¿œTight PLAY 5 MORE ¿ œ¿ œœ¿ ¿ œœœœ œ œœ œœ œ . ¿j̊
œ
÷ ‰œ ¿ Œ ¿ ⋲œ ¿ ¿ ‰ ¿ Jœ ‰ J Œ œ . œ œ .
‰ ¿ Jœ ¿ PLAY¿ 5¿MORE ‰ J Œ Œ . ¿œ
17
Œ
œ ‰œ . J Œ Œ œ ‰‰ . J œ ⋲ œ . œ ⋲
Œ œ œ Œ œ . j œŒ
œ ‰‰ . J
25÷V2 œ œ. œ œ œ  PLAY 5 MORE
œ  œ. œ ‰ œ Œ
œ
œ œ
33B2 ‰ ¿TightJ¿ hatsŒœ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ¿‰ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‰œ¿ J¿ Œ J ¿ ¿ œ¿ ‰¿ œJ œ Œ œ œ ‰œ. . J¿j̊
÷ ‰œ ¿o + ¿o ⋲+œ ¿ o¿ + o¿ œ + o + o +œ o +‰ ¿o œ ¿ PLAY ⋲ ¿ 5¿MORE œ +⋲ œo + œo. j œ Œ ‰ . . ¿œ
25
C2 œ
Œ
÷ œ¿ ¿ ¿ œ¿. ¿ œ ¿ ¿œJœ ¿ ¿PLAY¿ 5 MORE ‰œ . Œ Œ ‰ . Jœ œ . œ Œ œ Œ œœ œ ‰ œJ
‰ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ¿ œ . œ ¿ ¿ ¿
‰ J Œ œ ‰ Jœ Œœ œ ‰œ. œ Jœ ¿
33
÷ TightJ hatsŒœ
B2 œ ‰ œ ‰œ J Œ
+‰⋲ œoJ +‰ . œo. Jœ jŒ Œ Œ ‰ . ¿j̊
PLAY 13 MORE
41 C2 ‰
Œ ¿o +Œ ¿o ⋲+œ ¿ o¿ +‰ . o¿œJ +‰ œoJ +Œ o +œ o +‰‰ . ¿o œJ ¿ ⋲ ¿ ¿ œ
÷ ‰ œ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ¿. ¿ œ ¿œ ¿œ œ ¿ ¿PLAY¿ 5 MORE ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ¿ œ œ . œ œ . œ ¿ œ¿ œ¿ ¿ œœ œ
33 ÷D ‰¿ J Œœ Œ œ œ‰ œ œ ‰œ J Œ PLAY 13 MORE ‰ J Œ œ ‰ Jœ Œœ œ ‰œ. œ Jœœ
œ œ œ œœ œ +‰ œ œoJ œ +‰ .œ o œœœJ Œ œ œ Œ œ œ œ
41 ÷C2 Œœ o œ+Œ o œ + oœ +‰ . oŒœJ +‰ œ oJ +ŒŒœ o +œ o +‰ . o JPLAY 5 MORE
57
‰ ¿ Œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿Œ œ¿ ¿ ¿ Œ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿Œ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ Œ ¿ œ¿ ¿ œ œ Œœ œ œ œ
÷D ¿ œ Œ œ
05÷ Œ¿œRemoveœŒthe hi-hat
41
œ
hereœ and
‰ .bringŒœin the
œJ J œ ‰ œ œ onŒŒthe fillsœœto create‰ variety.
toms . œ PLAY 13 MOREœ œ ‰ œ œ œ ‰ .œ œœ Œ œ œ Œ œ œ œ
JPLAY 5 MORE œœ œ ŒœJ œ œ œ⋲J œ œ Œ œ ¿ ¿
57 ÷D œ œœŒ œ œœ œ œœŒ œ œ œœ œŒ œœ œ œœ œ Œœœ œ PLAY 5 MORE
œ œ œ œ
65 ¿ Œ Œ Œ Œ Œ Œ Œ Œ ‰
÷ ¿œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ PLAY 5 MORE
œœ œ œ œo +œ œœ⋲o œ+ oœ œ+ ¿œ o¿œ
57 ÷ œ œœClaps Œ œ œœ œ œœŒ 3 X œœ œŒ œœ œ œœ œ Œœœ œ PLAY 5 MORE
œœ œœ C3Œœ ¿œ ¿œ œ¿ œ ¿ œ ¿Œ œ ¿ œ ¿œ
÷ .. Œ Œ¿ Œ Œ¿ .. œ œ œ œŒ œ œ œ œ Œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ . œ ‰Œ œ
j
65
‰œ
73 ¿ Œ
C3
o +Œ ⋲o + o +‰ .¿ o¿œJ
œ
÷ +œ o œœClaps +œ oœœ œ+ œœ o 3œ X+œ o œœ œ6 œœ œ œœ œ œœ 6œ PLAY 56MORE
œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
j œ +œ o‰ +¿ o¿ œ+¿ +¿ o ¿ ¿ œ ¿ œ
65 ÷ ¿.. Œ ¿ Œ¿¿ ¿Œ ¿ Œ¿ ¿ ..¿ œ¿ œ œ œŒ œ œ œ œ Œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ . ¿œ ¿ Œ ¿ ¿œ ¿ œ ¿ ‰ œ .¿ ¿œ
73 ÷ œ œ œ œ 6 PLAY 22 MORE6 PLAY 7 MORE
Œ œo +Œ o œ+ o œ +‰ o J
C3
78
+‰ oJ Claps œ
+Œ o + o 3 X+‰ . o J 6 +‰œ oJ‰ +Œ¿ o¿ +œ¿ +¿ œo ¿ ‰ ¿ œ ¿œ
œ
÷ ¿.. Œ ¿ ¿¿ ¿Œ ¿ ¿ ¿ ..¿ œ¿ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ j
œ œ œ œ . ¿œ ¿ ¿ ¿œ ¿ œ ¿ œ .¿ ¿Fine
73
÷ œ œ œ œ œ PLAY 22 MORE PLAY 7 MORE
œ Œ œ Œ œ œ œ œ ‰ œ œœJ
78 +‰ oJ +Œ o + o +‰ . o J 6 6
6 +‰ oJ +Œ o + + o ‰ Fine
¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ ¿ ¿
÷ œ œ œ PLAY 22 MORE PLAY 7 MORE
œ œ œœ
78 ‰ J Œ ‰ . J ‰ J Œ ‰ œœ
Fine

Words and Music by Hayley Williams and Taylor York © 2012 But Father, I Just Want To Sing Music, Hunterboro Music administered by WB Music Corp, USA. Warner/Chappell North America.
UK/EU Reproduced by kind permission of Faber Music Ltd. US/Can reproduced by kind permission of Hal Leonard Corporation All Rights Reserved. International Copyright Secured

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 83

 Drum lessons

get to grips with… Spend some time

Doubling Up
working on getting
your limbs to fall at
exactly the same time

Forget independence, this month it’s

all about locking the limbs together

A
s a drummer, the development of
‘independence’ is of course an
incredibly important area of study.
The ability to employ four limbs
independently of one another is key to
your tutor success behind the kit. However, that’s not
to say there aren’t times where the limbs
Adam Bushell
adambushell@bimm.co.uk should revert to locking in together, and
play the same thing at the same time.
Although this may seem simple (after all,
it’s what came naturally at first), there are
other factors associated with this approach
that must be addressed.
For example, the ability to get any two,
three or four limbs falling exactly together
(‘togetherness’), without flamming, requires
diligent practice and attention to detail. And,
as is the case with this month’s examples,
the ability to play fast, intricate patterns
importance of being able to play a bass
drum at exactly the same time as a HEADS UP!
simultaneously using different limbs also crash cymbal, or a hi-hat foot together Dependence
presents a challenge. The study of with a ride cymbal note. These skills are This refers to an approach where the
limbs are working together and playing
‘togetherness’, or dependence, is sadly often assumed as given, but closer the same part. Although we try and
often overlooked in favour four-limb inspection and checking for accuracy break initial dependency and pursue
independence work. may highlight the need for extra practice independence, both skill-sets should be
One should never underestimate the in this area. developed and practised regularly.

Rhythm - 2 3 2 Adam Bushell's CLASSIC BEATS Column

DOUBLING UP CLASSIC BEATS Column
01
Rhythm - 2 3
Rhythm - 2 3 2
2
A paradiddle groove, with the right foot doublingAdam
DOUBLING
Bushell's
up the right-hand
Adam Bushell's
part.
UP CLASSIC BEATS Column
Ex 1 DOUBLING UP
Ex 1
> > (>)
Ex 1 ¿ œ ¿ ¿ ¿ > ¿ ¿ ¿ > ¿ (>)
÷ 44 .. ¿œ (œ ) ¿œ ¿œ œ ¿œ (œœ) (œœ) ¿œ (œœ) >œ ¿œ ¿œ >œ ¿œ (œ) ((>œ )) ..
÷ 44 ..¿œ (œ ) ¿œ ¿œ œ ¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿œ (œ) ¿œ ¿œ œ ¿œ (œ) (œ ) ..
÷4 ..œ () œ œ œ () () œ () œ œ œ œ (œ) (œ ) ..
02
Ex 2 An inverted paradiddle groove, again with right foot and right hand locked together.
> > (>)
Ex 2
Ex 2 ¿ ¿ > ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ > ¿ ¿ (>)
÷ 44 .. (œ) (œ) ¿œ >œ ¿œ ¿œ (œ ) ¿œ (œ ) (œœ) ¿œ >œ ¿œ ¿œ ((>œ )) ..
÷ 44 .. œ¿¿ (œ) (œ) ¿œ œ ¿œ ¿œ (œ ) ¿œ (œ ) () ¿œ œ ¿œ ¿œ (œ ) ..
.. œ
÷4 œ (œ) (œ) œ œ œ œ (œ ) œ (œ ) (œ) œ œ œ œ (œ ) ..
Ex 3
03
Ex 3 >
A composite groove, made of components from Ex. 1 and Ex. 2.
>
> (>)
>
> >
Ex 3
÷ 44 .. ¿¿œ œ( ) (œ) ¿¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿¿œ >œ ¿¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿ >œ ¿ ¿ >œ ¿ œ œ ¿ œ œ ¿ >œ ¿ œ ¿ ¿ >>œ œ ¿ œ
> ( ) >
÷ 44 .. ¿œ (œ) (œ) œ¿ (œ) (œ) œ œ œ ¿œ œ ¿œ ¿œ ((œ) ¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿œ (œ) (œ ) ¿œ œ ¿œ (œ) ¿œ ¿œ œ (œ) ¿œ (œ)
÷4 .. (œ) (œ) (œ) (œ) œ¿ œ œ¿ œ œ œ¿ œ œ¿ œ¿ (œ) ¿œ ((œ) (œ) œ¿ ((œ)) (œ ) œ¿ œ œ¿ (œ) œ¿ œ¿ œ (œ)) œ¿ ((œ))
( ) ( )
œ œ œ> œ ( ) ( ) œ > œ œ ( ) œ ) ( ) œ > ( ) œ œ ( ) œ œ > ( œ
> ¿ > > >
÷ ¿¿œ ¿ ¿
(œ) (œ) ¿œ (œ ) (œ) ¿œ >œ ¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿¿œ >œ ¿¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿¿œ >œ ¿¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿¿œ >œ ¿¿œ (œ) (œ) ..
÷ œ¿ (œ) (œ) ¿œ (œ ) (œ) ¿œ œ ¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿œ œ ¿œ (œ ) (œ) ¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿œ œœ ¿œ (œœ) (œœ) ¿œ (œ) (œ) ¿œ œœ ¿œ (œœ) (œœ) ...
÷œ (œ) (œ) œ (œ ) (œ) œ œ œ (œ) (œ) œ œ œ (œ ) (œ) œ (œ) (œ) œ œ ()( ) œ (œ) (œ) œ œ ( )( ) .
84 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 From the makers of

EXPERT VIDEO
TUTORIALS

Learn drum maintenance

from the pros
AvAilAble now exclusively From the rhythm App on newsstAnd
 Drum lessons

Get creative with There are plenty of

Odd times
inner rhythms we can
exploit to make sense of
the 15/16 time signature

part 3: 15/16
Odd grooving in the teens with a
polyrhythmic edge

A
nd so we progress onto another very
odd time signature this month – yes,
that old indie stalwart 15/16! Joking
aside, this time signature can take a bit
of time to get your head around due to the
your tutor quick turnaround being of the ‘/16’ variety
but upon closer inspection, you’ll see that
Jason Bowld
jase@jasonbowld.com there are plenty of inner rhythms and
phrases within it we can exploit to make
rhythmical sense of it. Ex. 1 for instance
exploits the ‘15’ element by playing five
groups of three on the hi-hat. These are of
course dotted eighth notes that carry on…
forever, basically. Another two-bar groove in
Example 2 has us playing a specific rhythm
on the ride bell which spans the two bars of
15/16 in three phrases of 5/8 or 10/16
depending on how you want to count. This
creates a polyrhythmic feel between the ride
bell and the breakbeat feel of the kick and
HEADS UP!
15/16
snare. Example 3 finishes off with a frantic Playing in 15 isn’t just about prog metal
one-bar 15/16 groove. Here the kick drum or jazz/fusion! Led Zeppelin’s song
plays five groups of three and the groove is ‘The Ocean’ is in 15/8 and doesn’t seem
odd due to the groove following the
really anchored by the first three quarter-
guitar riff.
notes played on the ride with a linear-type
fill finishing off.
Rhythm - 2 3 2 Jason Bowld's
ODD TIMES part 3 - 15 / 16

01
Rhythm
Ex 1
Two- 2 3 2of half-timeJason
bars Bowld's
grooving here. At first, it’s a good idea to practise the samba phrase in isolation until it sounds and feels smooth.
ODD TIMES part 3 - 15 / 16
Rhythm - 2 3 2
¡¡∞ bpm + Jason Bowld's o
ODD TIMES part 3 - 15 / 16
Ex 1
15 . ¿ œ ¿ œ ¿œ œ ¿ œ ¿œo ¿ œ ¿ œ œ ¿ œ ¿ œ ¿ œ .
÷
¡¡∞
Ex 116
bpm + . œ ( ) œ ¿ ( ) œ ¿ œ ( ) ( ) œ ¿o œ ¿ ( ) œ ¿ ( ) œ ¿ ( ) œ ¿ ( ) œ ¿ œ .
¿
15bpm +.. (œ )
¡¡∞÷ 16 ¿
Ex 2 This ¿ œ œ ¿ (œ) œ ¿œ œ (œ) ¿ (œ) œ ¿œ œ ¿ (œ) œ ¿ (œ) œœ ¿ (œ) œ ¿ (œ) œ ¿ œ œ ..
02
÷ 16
¡º∞ bpm +
drum’n’bass
15the.. doubles,
.
œ (œ )
groove
try pattern
Ride
œ œ is deceptively tricky due to the inverted doubles played towards the end of the groove. Although the focus is playing
.
not to (overlook
.
in) 5/8 the
œ œ accents
.œ (œ)that
. (œ. ) œ them
precede œ as they
œ .
help lock œ). œœ . (œ) œ . (œ.) œ . œ .œ ..
(.œ) theœ .timing(down.
Ex 2

15bpm +.. ¿. (œRide œ pattern in¿œ. 5/8¿. ¿œ. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿. ¿.

¡º∞÷ 216
Ex ) ( )
œ¿ Ride patternœ in¿ 5/8¿ (¿ ) œ ¿ ¿œ œ ⋲ œ ¿œ ¿ (¿œ ) œ ¿ ¿œ œ œ ¿œ ¿ (œ) ¿œ ¿œ ..
15bpm +.. . (œ) (œ) œ. . (œ. ) . . œ ⋲
¡º∞÷ 16 . . (œ. ) . œ. œ . . (œ) . œ. ..
Ex 3
÷ 16 15 .. ¿R (œ) (Lœ) L¿œ ¿ . (¿œ) R ¿ L¿ œ .⋲ L ¿ ¿R (¿œ ) . œ ¿ L ¿œ Rœ œ .¿œ ¿ R(œ) ¿œ L ¿œ ..
œ œ œ œ œ œ
¡£º3 bpmHere,+>œthe ‘shape’ ofœthe blues groove in bar>œ one is mimicked
œ œ œ > œ œ œ œ
03÷ 15conviction
Ex

. ¿R whenœL playingœL it. . >¿R œL . œL >¿R . œL Rœ . R œL .

>
by the accents within the phrase in bar two. Keeping this in mind will help your

Ex 3 .
¡£º16bpm + œR (L ) (L ) œ. œ. (L) ¿R œ. œ. œR .
¿
15bpm ..+> (œ) (œ) ¿
R
> œ L
> L R
œ L
œ
÷ 16
¡£º œ œ œ (œ) œ
œ
œ œ ..
15 .. ¿ ¿ ¿ œ œ
÷ 16 œ (œ) (œ) œ œ œ (œ) œ œ œ œ ..

86 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Drum lessons

Rhythm Concepts

Afro-Cuban
rhythms
…and applying them to the drumkit

T
he drum kit is not traditionally used in You will need to play the
Afro-Cuban music. Through Latin-jazz rhythms of two or more
percussion instruments
and a cross-pollination of styles and simultaneously on the kit
culture over the years, drummers are
expected to have a working knowledge of
your tutor Latin rhythms. Over the next several weeks of the clave pattern as being two bars long. beats in the first bar and three in the second.
we will be applying some of the most It can then be easily divided into three beats This music is rhythmically challenging but
Erik Stams
www.erikstams.co.uk popular and useful Afro-Cuban rhythms to in one bar and two in the other (Ex.1). Notice very rewarding. Listen to Jerry Gonzalez, Tito
the drum kit. This generally involves playing the call and response of the two bars. Puente, Machito, Celia Cruz, Los Van Van,
the rhythms of two or more instruments of Cascara is the Spanish word for ‘shell’. The Michel Camilo, Ray Barretto, Charlie
the percussion section simultaneously. pattern in Ex. 2 is traditionally played on the Palmieri, Ojos de Brujo and drummers like
No discussion about Afro-Cuban rhythms shell of the timbales. Example 3 shows how Steve Berrios, Ernesto Simpson, Phil
would be complete without mentioning it fits with the 3:2 Son clave pattern. Play the Maturano, Steve Gadd, Dave Weckl, Antonio
clave. The clave rhythm (played on claves) clave pattern in the left hand (cross-stick) Sanchez and Horacio Hernandez in order to
acts as a rhythmic ‘key’ to the music; an against the cascara in the right. Ex. 4 get an understanding of the flavour and feel
organizing principle that musicians base introduces the syncopated ‘bombo’ (bass of this rich music.
their phrasing on. You can hear clave in the drum) note on the second beat of the ‘3’ side
rhythmic call and response of the melody of of the clave pattern. In Examples 5 and 6 the
most songs, even in modern pop music.
There are two types of clave pattern, Son
cross-stick and tom imitate the sound of the
congas (or timbales). Examples 7 and 8
HEADS UP!
CLAVE
clave and Rumba clave. Both can be played illustrate how to play these rhythms in 2-3 The rhythmic ‘key’ to the music that acts
in either 3-2 or 2-3 formats. For the purposes Son clave. This is done by literally reversing as the base of all musical arrangements
of this lesson we’ll focus on Son clave. Think the order of the two-bar sequence: two in Afro-Cuban music.
Rhythm
Rhythm -- 2
2332
2 Erik
Erik Stams
Stams RHYTHM
RHYTHM CONCEPTSCONCEPTS
Rhythm -- 2
Rhythm 2332
2 Erik
Erik
– Stams
Stams
Intro to RHYTHMAfro
RHYTHM
Applying CONCEPTS
CONCEPTS
– Intro to Applying Afro
– Intro to Applying
– Intro to Applying Afro Afro
01
Ex
Ex 1
1
3-2 Son clave pattern.
3-2
3-2 Son
Son clave
clave pattern
pattern Ex
02
Ex 2
2
Cascara pattern (on floor tom shell, cowbell or ride cymbal).
Cascara
Cascara pattern
pattern (on
(on floor
floor tom
tom shell,
shell, cowbell
cowbell or
or ride
ride cymbal)
cymbal)
Ex
Ex 1
1 3-2
3-2 Son
Son clave
clave pattern
pattern Ex
Ex 2
2 Cascara
Cascara pattern
pattern (on
(on floor
floor tom
tom shell,
shell, cowbell
cowbell or
or ride
ride cymbal)
cymbal)
j
÷÷ 44 .. ¿¿ ‰‰ ¿¿j Œ ¿¿ ŒŒ ¿¿ ¿¿ ŒŒ .. 44 .. —— —— —— ‰‰ —— ‰‰ —— —— —— —— —— ‰‰ —— ..
4 .. Π.. 4 .. ..
Ex
Ex 44 Add the "bombo"
‘bombo’note
note(bass
(bassdrum)
drum)on
03
Ex
Ex 3
Ex
3
Ex 3
3
Clave
Clave
Clave
and
Clave and
Clave and
cascara
and cascara
and cascara
patterns
cascara patterns
cascara patterns
together.
patterns together
together
patterns together
together
Ex
Ex
the
the
04
the442nd
2nd
Add
Add
2ndAdd
Add
note
side
note
note
the
the
the
of
of
of
"bombo"
of"bombo"
the "bombo"
the
the
"3"
the"3"
the
"3"
note
note
note
side
clave.
side
side
of
of
(bass
of(bass
(bass
drum)
drum)
the clave
the
the
clave
clave
the 2nd note of the "3" side of the clave
on the second note of the ‘3’
on
drum) on
on

÷4 .. ——¿¿ —— —— ‰ ——
¿¿ ‰ ¿¿
—— —— ——
¿¿
——
¿¿
—— ‰ —— . 4 .. ——¿¿ —— —— ‰ ——
¿¿œ ‰ ¿¿
—— —— ——
¿¿
——
¿¿
—— ‰ —— .
‰ ..
÷ 44 . ‰ .. 44 .. œ

05
Ex
Ex 5
5
Left hand imitates conga pattern/timbale pattern.
Left
Left hand
hand imitates
imitates conga
conga pattern
pattern // timbale
timbale pattern
pattern Ex
06
Ex 6
6 With
With added tom notes to further imitate congas.
With added
added tom
tom tom
tom notes
notes to
to further
further imitate
imitate congas
congas
Ex
Ex 5
5 Left
Left hand
hand imitates
imitates conga
conga pattern
pattern // timbale
timbale pattern
pattern Ex
Ex 6
6 With
With added
added tom
tom tom
tom notes
notes to
to further
further imitate
imitate congas
congas

—— ‰ —— œ —— —— —— —— —— œ —— . — —— ‰ —— œ ——œ —— ——¿ —— —— œ ——œ .

4
÷÷ 444 .. —— ——¿
¿ œœ ‰ œ ¿¿ œ .. 44 .. — ——¿
¿ œ ‰ œ œ ¿ œ œ ..
. 4 . œ
07
Ex
Ex 7
7
Ex 7
Ex 7
2-3 Son clave pattern.
2-3
2-3 Son
Son clave
2-3 Son
2-3
clave pattern
Son clave
pattern
clave pattern
pattern
Ex
Ex
08
Ex 8
8
Ex 8
8
Full 2-3 Cascara pattern.
Full
Full 2-3
2-3 Cascara
Full 2-3
Full
Cascara pattern
2-3 Cascara
pattern
Cascara pattern
pattern
j ——¿ —— —— œ
÷÷ 444 . ¿ ¿ ¿ ‰ ¿j Œ ¿ .. 444 .. —— œ ——œœ —— ——¿¿ —— — œ —
‰‰ — œ —œœ ....
4 ... ŒŒ ¿ ¿ ŒŒ ¿ ‰ ¿ Œ ¿ .. 4 .. ¿ œœ
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 87
 100 GREATEST
DRUM BEATS & HOW TO PLAY THEM

PLUS
LEARN TO PLAY
DRUMS TODAY!
Includes beginners
guide to get you up
and running

ON SALE NOW
Available from all good newsagents, on Apple NewsStand & from myfavouritemagazines.com
Hone your career with…

The Business
of Music
Making a living from drumming

O
ver the next six months, I will be
sharing some insights into how the
music industry works and, in particular,
focusing on how YOU can go about
making a career in the global music industry.
your tutor We will discuss the various paths your career
could take and the specialities you should
Ajay Naik
AjayNaik@thebcme.com explore. Along the way, I will bring up some
stark realities and dispel common myths so
that you can make informed choices in
forging a long-lasting livelihood in the world
of music (the holy grail!). Some familiar faces
will also openly share their own experiences,
trials and tribulations as professionals
earning incomes from the industry.
Long gone are the days where you could
make a living by just being a great drummer
and performer; having good technique,
groove and pocket are just the prerequisites
to getting your foot in the door. We will look
at what else you need to do and be aware of,
when you’re sat behind the kit, or when
you’re on downtime, all with a view to
preparing you to make a career in the
industry you love.
These days cost management comes first
and therefore budgets are significantly
reduced; the major record labels operate Even Taylor Hawkins will
admit that sustaining a
more as major banks; artists can become a career in music is tough
major success over night (by going viral on
social media) but their shelf life can often be
short; top tunes can be written, composed, your playing and then managed to get that too many before getting on stage or going
recorded and mastered in your bedroom; ever-important first gig and rung on the into the studio. If you’re unreliable, turn up
the industry is much more global in its ladder, as long as you showed talent, you late, show lack of commitment or don’t have
had a fair chance of making some success. the skills to get on with other people, you
It is very easy for a young and budding don’t tend to do well in life. So why should
nowadays you have to leave musician to look at their heroes and assume
that if they just keep practising and
we treat the music business as an exception
to this rule? I’m not saying we shouldn’t have

those ‘lazy-stupid-unreliable- woodshedding, they will get there. Hey, if it

happens, then absolutely fantastic! But the
fun, or let off some steam every now and
again, far from it. But at some stage in your

muso’ stereotypes behind and harsh reality is that less than 0.001% (that’s
one in 100,000!) get to the top and land the
life, to have a career in music you will have
to make the choice to step up your game

act like a professional opportunity to record and tour with rock

nature; technological advances can be a
blessing and a curse; astute and targeted
marketing and branding can determine
success for artists. So, to survive, you need
to be open-minded, flexible and roll with the
punches! Even the likes of Taylor Hawkins
admit that sustaining a career in music is
very tough so it’s important that you’ve
always got something going on.
In the past, if you worked endlessly on
giants like the Foo Fighters! And that is why
these guys and gals are so humble and
admit how lucky they are (somehow, though,
I tend to find that the harder you work, the
luckier you get!).
Nowadays, to make a decent living in
music, you have to operate in the mindset of
a business person, leave those ‘lazy-stupid–
unreliable-muso’ stereotypes behind and act
like a professional. In any other industry, if
you got drunk before going to work, you’d be
fired, yet plenty of musicians still have a pint
from amateur to pro. The former being all
about fun and not taking things too
seriously, the latter being about treating the
studio, stage and other music environments
as your respected workplace (and trust me,
you can still have a lot of fun there).
In future issues, we will look more closely
at technology and how it drives the music
business, how to make an income via
recording and publishing, why having a
handle on the financial side is so important
and the emergence of the ‘Music
Entrepreneur’ (it could be you!).

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 89

 Drum lessons

the next step

Alternative
Sticking
Simple ways to change your playing If you change the
sticking you can

O
open up a new world…
ne of the major concepts in my
teaching is the idea of what we call
‘sticking’. This is simply the right- and in ‘hand-to-hand’ style would mean that based on the accents, followed by a fill using
left-hand choices we make when the accents would fall on a different hand the alternative sticking, and notice how you
playing any rhythm or snare drum line. The each time, but with this alternative sticking, can stay on your leading hand to play this…
your tutor most obvious choice is to play hand-to- as in ‘right-left-left’, the accent stays on have fun!
hand, where you play alternating strokes the right hand. Example 2 plays these
Colin Woolway
all the time. But often, if you change the accents down the toms, and Example 3
HEADS UP!
colin@drumsense.com
sticking, you can open up a new world. I call plays the accents on the ride cymbal. In
this ‘Alternative Sticking’, and this month’s both of these examples, the accents would HAND-TO-HAND
lesson is a simple example. be hard to play in that order if you were Alternating each stroke as ‘right,
Example 1 shows a bar of 16th notes playing hand-to-hand. left, right, left, etc’, no matter what
Rhythm - 2 3 2 rhythm or timing.
The Practice
subdivided into 3-3-3-3-4. Playing this Colin Woolway's "THE NEXT Challenge shows
STEP" a groove
column
Rhythm - 2 3 2
Colin Woolway's "THE NEXT STEP" column
01 A bar of 16th notes, subdivided Rhythm
3-3-3-3-4,- 2use
3 2sticking of R-L-L for the groups of 3…
Colin Woolway's "THE NEXT STEP" column
Ex 1
>Rhythm - 2 3 2 > Woolway's> "THE NEXT> STEP" column >
Colin
Ex 1
÷ 144 >œ œ œ >œ œ œ >œ œ œ >œ œ œ >œ œ œ œ
Ex
÷ 4 >Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >œR œL œL >Rœ œL œL >œR œL œR œL
Ex 14
÷ 44 >Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >œR œL œL >Rœ œL œL >œR œL œR œL
02 Apply the accents to the toms…Exnote
÷ 244 the>Rœfreedom
œL œL of>Rœthe œLrightœL hand!
>Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œR œL
Ex 2
÷ 244 >>Rœ œL œL >>Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œR œL
Ex

÷ 4 œœ œ œ œ œ œ >œ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >œR œL œR œL

Ex 24 R L L R L L R
÷ 44 >R œL œL >Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >Rœ œL œL >œR œL œR œL
Ex 34 œ
÷ 4 R œL œL Rœ œL œL Rœ œL œL Rœ œL œL Rœ œL œR œL
03 Now apply to the right-hand cymbal…
Ex 3
÷ 344 ¿Rœ . œL œL Rœ¿ œL œL ¿Rœ œL œL ¿Rœ . œL œL ¿œR œL œR œL
Ex
¿ ¿ ¿
÷ 344 ¿œ . œ œ œ¿ ‰œ œ J¿œ œ œ⋲ J¿œ . œ œ ¿œ œ œ œ
¿ ¿
Ex
÷ 44 œ . œ œ œ ‰œ œ Jœ œ ⋲œ Jœ . œ œ œ œ œ œ
÷ 44 ¿ CHALLENGE
PRACTICE
œ œ ¿ ‰œ œ ¿J œ œ⋲ ¿J œ œ ¿ œ œ œ
PRACTICE œ¿ . CHALLENGE
¿ ¿ œ ¿‰ ¿ œ¿ ¿ ⋲ ¿ œ . œ
÷ 44 ¿œand œ from J J
Example 3. œPlay on the hi-hat or ‘
PRACTICE CHALLENGE
04 Let’s play a groove based on the rhythm
makes the whole pattern easier to play!
4 . ¿sticking
œ ¿ ¿
œ ¿
⋲ œ .¿ ¿ ¿ the ride cymbal or mix it up. Note how the sticking
PRACTICE
4 ¿ œ ¿œœ ¿œ ¿ Jœ .¿ ¿œœ ¿
÷ 4 ¿œ . CHALLENGE ‘
÷ 4 œ . œ œ ⋲ Jœ . ‘
4 ¿ ¿ ¿œ ¿ ¿⋲ J ¿ ¿œ ¿
÷4 ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‘¿
÷ œ . ‘œ œ ⋲¿œ .œJœ. œ ¿œ œ œ ¿œ œ œ ¿œ .œ œ ¿œ œ œ œ
÷ ‘ ¿œ .œœ œœ ¿œ œœ‰ œœ J¿œ œœ œœ⋲ J¿œ .œœ œœ ¿œ œœ œœ œœ
÷ ‰ ⋲
‘ ¿œ .œ œ ¿œ œ‰ œ J¿œJ œ œ⋲ J¿œJ .œ œ ¿œ œ œ œ
÷ ‘ œ. œ ‰ œ ⋲ œ. œ
J J
90 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 21st century Rudiments

13-stroke-7
Old rudiment given an odd time…

O
ne can’t imagine that the 13-stroke roll was ever
intended to be played in seven – but if you do
play it in seven you can roll some septuplets
into your playing!
Rhythm - 2 3 2
Colin Woolway's

01
21st Century
Rhythm - 2 3 2Rudiment
Flow of seven notes, accenting the first.

drumming essentials
Colin
Ex 1 Woolway's
21st Century Rudiment
>
Rhythm - 2 3 2
>
Ex 1
÷ >œ œ œ œ œ œ œ >œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
Colin Woolway's
21st Century Rudiment
÷ Rœ œL œR œL œR œL œR œL œR œL œR œL œR œL
Ex 1
>
Ex 2 R >>
02÷÷ >œœDouble What you need to know before you start
L R L R L R L R L R L R L
œ œ up
œ the
œ notes
œ œ between
œ œ œ the
œ œaccents.
œ œ
Ex 2 œœœœœœœœœœœœœ œœœœœœœœœœœœ
> R L R L >R L R L R L R L R L

÷ Rœ œL œL œR œR œL œL œR œR œL œL œR œR œL œR œR œL œL œR œR œL œL œR œR œL œL Matched Grip 16th nOTES

Ex 2
Ex 3 >
R L L R R L L R R L7 L R R L > R R L L R R L7 L R R L L 01 Both hands hold the sticks in the same
manner: thumbs on the side of the
07 AKA ‘semi-quavers’. If a standard bar of
music is regarded as a ‘whole’, then 16
÷ œ œ œ œ œ>œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ >œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
Ex 3 ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
sticks; forefinger opposite the thumb; middle, ring evenly spaced notes within that bar are regarded
03÷ œ¿RPlay
¿
œ your
L L R
¿ ¿
œ œ œ œR œRœLœ7Lœ Rœ œRroll
R>L L13-stroke
œLœ œRseptuplets
œ>R œL œL œRœRœ Lœ7 œas
œ œRœfill!
L Ra
œœ
L L
and little fingers curled under the sticks; palms as ‘16ths’, hence ‘16th note’.
Ex 3
÷ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ7 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ7 œ œ œ œ œ œ held down, facing the floor.
> > CROSS-STICK
08
¿¿ ¿¿
÷ œ œ œ œœœœœœœœœœœœœ œœœœœœœœœœœœ TRADITIONAL GRIP Played on the snare by holding the stick
02 The right hand is as matched grip, but
the left-hand stick is held differently (vice
at the tip end, laying it across the drum
and striking the rim with the ‘butt’ end, keeping
versa for left-handed players). The stick is lodged the tip in contact with the head.
in the fleshy bit between the thumb and forefinger
and the fore and middle fingers curl over the stick, RIM SHOT
while the ring and little fingers curl under to
support the stick.
09 Played by striking the head and the rim
of the drum at the same time. It makes a
loud, sonorous sound, good for accents in a snare
QUARTER NOTES pattern or heavy rock backbeat.
03 Also known as ‘crotchets’. If a standard
bar of music is regarded as a ‘whole’, HEAD types
then four evenly-spaced notes within that bar are
regarded as ‘quarters’, hence the term ‘quarter
10 The ‘batter’ head is the drum head you
strike and the ‘resonant’ head is the
note’ (in other words, four beats in a standard bar). head on the underside of the drum that gives it a
full and resonating sound.
EIGHTH NOTES
04 Classically referred to as ‘quavers’. If a
standard bar of music is regarded as a getting started
‘whole’ and four evenly-spaced notes within that

bar are regarded as ‘quarters’, then eight
evenly-spaced notes within that bar are regarded
as ‘eighths’, hence the term ‘eighth note’ (ie: eight
beats in a standard bar).
eighth-note TRIPLETS
05 The musical definition of a triplet is
‘three evenly spaced notes occupying
S
itting behind a drum kit for the first time can
be a daunting thing. However, once you get
to grips with the basics you’ll be playing in
no time. And if you’ve never picked up the
sticks before we can help you. Head to the links
below, and you’ll find the following content just
for beginners.

get the full interactive the same space as two evenly spaced notes’. In the
case of eighth notes, two would be replaced by
Take your first steps into reading music with our
guide to drum notation – http://bit.ly/147icLI

rhythm experience three eighth-note triplets.

Did you know that you can get full audio and video
of these fantastic Rhythm lessons on the CD
covermounted with the print edition, or with the
fully enhanced digital edition available for iPad,
iPhone and iPod Touch? Follow this link to find out
where to get hold of Rhythm with video and audio
content – http://bit.ly/ZKxmRe
OSTINATO
06 An ostinato is a repeated pattern,
usually not very long, often three or four
notes played over and over again. The most
famous drum ostinato is the snare drum pattern in
Ravel’s ‘Bolero’, but contemporary drummers
often refer to ‘bass and hi-hat’ ostinatos.
Find your way around the kit with our anatomy of
a drum kit guide – http://bit.ly/WGLM7R
Five video drum lessons covering basic rock, funk
jazz and the shuffle – http://bit.ly/15pOGx9
Video guides to accompany the drumming
essentials above – http://bit.ly/ZJHOZU

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 91

 Drum lessons

improve your playing with…

Snare Drum
Solos part 10
Single-stroke and flam workout

W
e’re back to a regular snare solo for
this issue and one based around
flams and single-stroke rolls. There
is however a twist to both stickings
as the flams predominately feature extended
your tutor flam taps, created by playing groupings
of longer than two notes in each. These can
Pete riley
p.riley@mac.com be seen in the first line and second ending,
while the single-strokes are short bursts of
singles that could be regarded as extended
ruffs in groups of threes, fives and sevens
and can be seen on lines two and three.
Line four, or the first ending, features
some challenging hand-to-hand flams that
should really give your technique a workout,
especially in the last bar. To pull off
consecutive flams like this, a down/up
contra-motion in either hand can really help
retain the dynamics as well as keeping HEADS UP!
things relaxed and accurate. Flam Tap
As with all of these solos try to use just A flam tap is a rudiment where the hand
two stick-heights with strong accents, while that plays the accented note of a flam
then plays a second note before the
the unaccented notes, including grace notes,
sticking reverses.
should be played quietly about an inch off
Rhythm - 2 3 2 the drum. SNARE SOLO - PETE

> > > > > > > > > > > >
j j j j j j j
÷ 24 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ œj œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œ
1 R R R R L L L R R L L R R R L L R R L L L R R L L R R R L R L L

> > > > > > > > > > > >
÷ œ œœœœœ œœœœœ œœ œ œœœœœ œœœœœ œœ œ œœœœœ œœœ œœœœ œ œœœ œœœœœ œœœœ
5 R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

> > > > > > > > >

÷ œ œœœœœœœ œœœœœœ œ œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œ œ œœœœœœœ œœœœœœ œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ
9 R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R R L R L L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

1 > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j
÷ œ œ œœ œœ œ œœ œœ œ œ œ œœ œ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œ œ œ œœœ œœ œœ œœ œ œ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œ ..
13 R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R LR L R LR L R L R L R L R L

2 > > > > > > > > > > > >
j
÷ œ œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œ j
œ œ œ œj œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ œj œ œ œj œ œj œ
33 R R R L L L R R R L L L R R R R L L R R L L L R R L L R L

92 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Get our digital edition!
Start your
FREE TRIAL
today

*Free Trial not available on Zinio.

Available on your device now

Outside the UK?

Subscribe to
and save up to 35%
Never miss an issue of Rhythm again, with 13 issues per year
delivered to your door for up to 35% less than the shop price!

Europe
Subscribe from just £63.99 per year
www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/rhyeu

North America
Subscribe from just $23.21 per quarter
www.imsnews.com/rhy-a005

Rest of the World

Subscribe from just £73.99 per year
www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/rhyrow
Own a tablet?
Subscribe to Rhythm on your iPad via www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk/
digitaledition or www.zinio.com/rhythm for Android.

TERMS & CONDITIONS: This offer is for new overseas subscribers only. You will receive 13 issues per year. Your subscription will start with the next available issue. Minimum subscription
term is 12 months. If at any time during the first 60 days you are dissatisfied in any way please notify us in writing and we will refund you for all un-mailed issues. 35% saving is based on
buying 13 issues from the US newsstand at $10.99. Savings in other countries will vary.

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 93

 The No.1 website for musicians

Looking for a new drum kit?

Get the best advice at musicradar.com

Thousands of gear Tips and tutorials to

reviews and killer help you play and
video demos sound better

Welcome!
More bang for your buck
D
rummers are feeling the pinch in
these times of financial hardship,
so anything that helps deliver
quality drums at a cheaper cost
is always of interest. Ludwig has come up
with a novel way of helping you keep a few
quid in your pocket thanks to its new Signet
105 series.
These ingenious kits come unassembled,
meaning that you get to get some early
bonding time with your new kit and Ludwig is
able to cut out a chunk of assembly time,
while passing the cost savings on to you. It’s
a win all round, right?
Elsewhere this month we’re back checking
NEW
geaR
Looking for a particular review? Check out our
out some of the finest British custom work as
we put Guru’s In-Tense snare range under the
huge archive of reviews, round-ups and buying
microscope on page 100. guides at www.musicradar.com
Sticking with snares we also take a look at
some gorgeous looking specimens from
Angel. Jake Stacey finds out if they really are
heavenly on 106.
And that’s not all, this month we also take
a look at Meinl’s new Transition ride, which
was developed in conjunction with Mike
Johnston, and a set of Read Audio custom
ear plugs.
As always, enjoy and we will see you next
month when we’ll be back with more
beautiful gear for you.

Contents
REVIEW ludwig signet 105 drum kit  96
REVIEW guru in-tense snare drums 100 102
Meinl
REVIEW meinl transition ride 102 Transition Ride
REVIEW read audio custom ear plugs 103
REVIEW vector g3 bass pedal 104
REVIEW angel snare drums 106 104
vintage gear wfl classic drum kit 108 Vector
Bass Pedal
ask geoff your gear questions answered 110

star ratings explained

During the review process
we investigate three key
areas in detail
Build quality Is it consistent? Are
components up to the task? Are shells
round? And so on.
Playability Does the product
convincingly do the job it was
designed for?
Value for money Does the price reflect
the product fairly, and how does it
compare with competitors?
Each area receives a star rating out of
five. These ratings are then collated to
arrive at an overall Rhythm Rating.
Look out
for these
The Rhythm Recommends
award is given to those
products that score four out
of five. These are products
that, although not scoring
top marks, are strong
products in their field. The
Rhythm Star Buy is awarded
to those products that score
five out of five for design,
construction, function
and value.

Poor: sub-standard product

Average: acceptable but uninspiring
Good: above average
Excellent: superior product
96
Ludwig
Outstanding: impossible to fault Signet 105
drum Kit

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 95

Gear RevieW
LUDWIG
SIGNET 105 KIT
£1,399 Celebrating Ludwig’s 105th year, the Signet 105 is a bold new
idea which brings USA maple drums within reach of everyone
Words: Geoff Nicholls
A
flat pack kit! What a great Ikea,
sorry, idea (couldn’t resist).
Well, the Signet is not a flat
pack, but it is certainly shipped
unassembled, telescoped into a single
weighty box with the bare shells all drilled
and ready for assembly. The customer fits
together the kit thereby saving Ludwig
considerable time and effort, not to mention
simplifying shipping. The savings are passed
on so that you can now own an American-
built Rock Maple Ludwig kit at a fraction of
the normal cost. It’s a bold initiative, but
does it work?
Build
We have the bigger of the two Signet 105
shell packs, the TeraBeat, with 22"x16" bass
drum, 10"x8" and 12"x8½" mounted toms
and 16"x16" floor tom. Alternatively, you
can have the GigaBeat which has 20"x15"
bass, 12"x8½" mounted tom and 14"x14"
since the signet’s shells arrive
completely bare you can
tap them and hear just how
resonant they are
floor. There is no snare drum option.
The shells are six-ply American rock
maple, 5.5mm thick, constructed in the
same Monroe, North Carolina factory as
Ludwig’s top USA drums, and we all know
they ain’t cheap. Although the shells are
typical, the EcoXotec (exotic) finishes are
new, being eco-friendly alternatives to the
usual rare wood veneers. There are three
hand-applied thin lacquer treatments
which augment the outer grain on top of the
six plies of maple. The review kit is Indian
Teak, while alternatives are Macassar Ebony
and Alpine Blue. Ludwig’s Product
Development Manager Josh Allen tells
Rhythm, “They are real wood finishes that
give the exotic look without cutting down
exotic trees. The veneers are made of
sustainably grown hardwoods that are
essentially shredded up and dyed, and
put back together to resemble the Ebony,
96 | Summer 2014
Teak, and even the Alpine Blue finish.”
Inside, the shells are natural maple,
lightly sanded and sealed, while the bearing
edges rise at 45° to a central peak with a
slight flat at the apex.
So how about this assembly lark? Well,
there’s a single instruction sheet, but frankly
you don’t need it, the process is obvious. The
four bare shells each have a cardboard
mount with all the relevant fittings. I started
with the smallest tom, mounting the 12
‘snap-in’ Insta-Lite lugs first. I was a bit
surprised to find that when you push-and-
swivel them into their holes there is some
play, so they are a bit floppy. But this is
taken up when you mount the head and
2.3mm steel hoop and start to apply
tension, as with a normal drum. The slight
looseness helps self-alignment, preventing
cross-threading.
The Triad small tom mounting bracket
has two locating holes fixed by two bolts
using a drum key. A doddle. On to the other
small tom and floor tom. The latter has the
usual three legs which again are fixed by
Triad mounting blocks, each with two bolts.
Finally, the bass drum. It’s the same deal
with the lugs and this time there are long
tension rods which slot through the
lightweight claws over the wooden
bass drum hoops. There are also
spurs, which presented the only
brief moment of head scratching,
especially for someone who hasn’t read the
instruction sheet! Being impetuous I fixed CONCEPT
the first one on the wrong side and had to Celebrating Ludwig’s 105th
remove it, turn it round and put it on its year the Signet self-assembly
correct side. That took two minutes. I concept is a revolutionary
mention this because it illustrates just how initiative, cleverly realised
wonderfully simple the assembly is.
There are 56 lugs, three legs, two spurs
and two mounting brackets, so at a leisurely
pace it takes the best part of an hour to
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

finish
The TeraBeat kit is in Indian
Teak, one of three eco-friendly
EcoXotec finishes with a
natural satin appearance
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
badge
Ludwig’s signet ring badge
is tiny and lightweight in
keeping with the whole
Signet 105 concept
Summer 2014 |
Essential spec
PRICES
TeraBeat (22"x16",
10"x8", 12"x8½",
16"x16"), £1,399;
Gigabeat (20"x15",
12"x8½", 14"x14",
£1,199)
SHELL MATERIAL
North American Maple
plywood
CONSTRUCTION
Plywood
PLIES
Six-ply, 5.5mm
BEARING EDGES
Dual 45° inner and outer
with slight flat at apex
FINISHES
AVAILABLE
EcoXotic wood veneer
finish in Indian Teak (as
pictured), Macassar
Ebony or Alpine Blue
SHELL
AVAILABILITY
TeraBeat: 22"x16",
10"x8", 12"x8½",
16"x16"; GigaBeat:
20"x15", 12"x8½",
14"x14"; also, 8", 10"
toms, 14", 16" floor toms
and 22" bass drums
available individually
SUPPLIED HEADS
Toms: Ludwig
Weathermaster
single-ply Heavy Clear
batters and Medium
Clear resonants
LUGS PER DRUM
Snap-In Insta-lite lugs
TOM MOUNTS
Triad 3-point tom
suspension mounts,
Stiletto bass drum spurs
CONTACT
Active Music Distribution
020 8693 5678
info@activemusic.co.uk
www.activemusic.co.uk/
www.ludwig-drums.com
97
Gear RevieW

They say…
Joshua Allen is the Manager SHELLS
of Product Development at American maple shells
Ludwig, USA are made in Ludwig’s
What is the thinking behind
Monroe, North
the Signet? Carolina factory
“The idea of the customer employing Radio
assembling is pretty Frequency Shell
revolutionary. The purpose 
of Signet is to offer the unique sound of 
Technology
Ludwig USA-made maple drums at a more
accessible price-point. Removing the assembly
process allowed us to achieve the price we
wanted without having to compromise on
performance or sound. I believe this is a first. 
It is a completely different approach to making
an affordable drum.”

Are there plans to extend the concept?

“I think there is room for other options within
Signet, and some of the technologies used on
these drums can be expanded onto other
product lines.”

Presumably, a snare drum would be too

difficult to design?
“We are looking at that option right now. A
snare drum is a bit more complex to put
together, as the strainer and snares need to be
installed and adjusted correctly. I designed hardware
Signet so my five-year-old son could assemble All hardware is unique to the
it, and I haven’t figured out how to design a
snare mechanism to that level of simplicity.”
Signet and while lightweight is
strong, beautifully designed
and lustrously chromed

assemble and rough-tune. No doubt you
could do it in half that time if you were in a
hurry. The resulting kit feels sturdy, yet
lightweight. The hardware is uniformly light
in design and construction compared with
most heavy metalwork which is normal
today. Thus the bass drum spurs are even
called Stiletto spurs and the claws are
decidedly low-mass.
The GigaBeat is a jazz-proportioned kit,
while our TeraBeat is more of a rock beast,
although some might worry it’s insubstantial.
Personally I loved the streamlining, but then
I am not 22 years old and out playing like a
Since you have assembled it
yourself you really do know
Hands On
The Signet’s unique construction should
have a direct effect on its sound. The
button lugs are effectively ‘floating’ rather
than screwed tightly into the shell as is the
usual case. (This gives the added bonus of
no screws to loosen or rattle inside the
shell.) Eight lugs – rather than 10 – on a
22" bass drum hoop actually makes tuning
easier, while allowing the drum to breathe
more freely.
Another not inconsiderable bonus is that
since you have assembled it yourself you
really do know the kit, and the only tool
effectively isolated from the bracket (and
Also try… thus the shell) via two hardened steel pins,
floating on elastomer mounts. So again
resonance is aided.
In practise though – and here comes the
down part – I didn’t find the sound that
resonant to start with. Let me explain. The
kit came with Ludwig’s own clear
1 Weathermaster heads and although the
sound was tonally maple-rich, initially it was
Jalapeno hard, pingy and I was struggling to get the
Pack-Away small toms in particular to sustain as well as
series they should. The solution, and I’m almost
We say: “With a full, embarrassed to say this, lay in changing the
cool sound, subtly
different from
heads for a mix of Evans G1s and coated
mass-produced kits,
they sound the
Remo Ambassadors which improved the
sustain and overall sound significantly. The
business.” WeatherMasters worked better with the

the kit, and the only tool
employed is your drum key
maniac every night.
Josh Allen has a spirited response to this:
“In reality, these are probably some of the
most durable, gig-able drums you can buy.
The design of each component was
optimised using Finite Element Analysis
(FEA) software, adding material only where
needed to achieve the necessary strength
at minimal mass. Designing the parts this
way lets us reduce mass mounted to the
shell, which allows for greater shell
resonance, and makes the drums lighter
for transportation.”
bigger drums, the floor tom and particularly
the bass drum. This unencumbered beast
blasted forth, the thin shell reverberating
with a short but wickedly dusky sustain.
employed is your drum key. And since the
shells arrive completely bare you can tap
them and hear just how resonant they are, 2 VERDICT: Brilliant new self-assembly
concept, cleverly, elegantly and
work out what their fundamental notes are,
in DW ‘timbre-matching’ style.
Gretsch successfully engineered, brings
Although all the hardware has been Renown Maple USA-built American rock maple Ludwig
drums into the middle budget arena.
We say: “Combines
designed specifically for the Signet, the Triad classic looks with the Refreshing to encounter a truly
tom mounting bracket is a modification of sort of sound quality different product.
Ludwig’s recent Atlas mounting system and build standard that
will both appeal to and Build Quality
which replaces the ubiquitous isolation-style
cope with the energy playability
suspension brackets. The mount is in two levels of younger Value For Money
parts, a bridged bracket which is bolted to drummers.”
Rating
the shell and the tom arm mount which is

98 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

AVAILABLE NOW ON NEWSSTAND FOR IPAD, IPHONE & IPOD TOUCH

Subscribe from £2.49 (per issue)

DOWNLOAD THE APP NOW & RECEIVE
A FREE ISSUE! ➠ HTTP://GOO.GL/2E95Z
23 l SONGWRITER
Gear RevieW
Guru In-Tense
Snare Drums
From £870 Is Guru’s low-mass approach a solid thing, or are
their latest snare drums merely lightweight?
Words: Jake Stacey
T
he term ‘guru’ means master or
teacher. It’s appropriate then that
these drums come from the
masterful workshop of Guru
Drums and aim to teach us a thing or two
about the current state of the art of drum
building. Guru is the brainchild of Dean Price
and Andy Crosby, the former a respected
craftsman, and the latter an innovator and
experimenter. Guru’s philosophy is that
sound is everything – and their
uncompromising approach to this has led to
the company rejecting the ‘usual’ way of
doing things, and instead finding its own
path to percussive enlightenment.
Build
The two snares sent to test are from the
In-Tense series: a 14"x7" drum that features
Guru’s handmade Ovangkol rims, and a
13"x7" with standard steel hoops. The shells
Its defining feature is a lack of
mass – its apparent solidity
belies its actual weight, which is
very much on the light side
are constructed using Guru’s proprietary
segmentation process, which machines the
shells with angled shoulders according to the
diameter and number of segments in the
drum. The segments are then assembled in
layers, with each layer overlapping the next
such that joins are always in the middle of
the layers either side. Once the glue has
cured, the shell is machined to remove the
excess, leaving the machined reinforcing
rings as an integral part of the shell. The test
drums are made from English ash with an
Ovangkol centre band, and are 6mm thick in
the centre. The drums are finished with
shellac and a hard wax.
Each drum has Guru’s own lugs that are
designed and manufactured in-house,
machined from T6-grade solid aluminium,
and ultra-low mass with a view to a minimal
footprint on the shell. Guru says that this
approach “places far less stress and weight
100 | Summer 2014
on the shell than standard lug systems,
plus promotes full engagement of the
shell across a wide range of dynamics”.
The attention to detail is such that even
the tension rods are bespoke with a finer
thread to promote tuning stability. Guru’s
fastidiousness extends to the use of bespoke Also try…
internal fixings made from stainless steel,
rather than ‘off the shelf’ screws.
The snares feature Dunnett R7 strainers
and Puresound Blaster 20-strand snare wood shells
wires, and ship with a Protection Racket AAA Snares are made from
rigid case to protect your investment. English ash with a centre
band of Ovangkol and are
Hands On 1 6mm thick in the centre
Being suckers for any wooden-hooped drum, Tiki Monoply
we start with the 14" snare with its machined Maple snares
Ovangkol hoops. Lifting it onto the stand, its We say: “Considering
defining feature is a lack of mass – its how big a sound it
apparent solidity belies its actual weight, produces it is
surprisingly nimble and
which is very much on the light side. Don’t articulate, dealing with
variations in speed and
dynamics with aplomb
– rimshots explode with
pinging overtones while
cross-sticking is solid
and focused.”
let that fool you, though, this is no mere
featherweight, but all part of Guru’s
masterplan – the ultra-light hardware is
designed to allow the light solid shell drums
to speak without the excessive damping of
2
heavier shell hardware. VK Carbon
The effect of this is immediately apparent. Fibre snare
The 14" has a very open voice, warm and We say: “Yet another
winner from the UK
woody – the shell contributes much more to
drum scene, as VK
the sound than is sometimes the case – and delivers a cracking from-
it has a defined fundamental tone, without scratch snare.”
excessive overtones. The wood hoops
enhance the sense that the drum is an
organic thing that ‘breathes’ as you play it
– without the metallic ring of metal hoops,
the sound is all wood. The hoops contribute LUGS
an amazing variety of cross-stick sounds – a Guru’s own lugs are
rim click cuts right through, and playing the machined from T6-grade
very edge of the drum with the tips of the solid aluminium and are
sticks sounds almost like a wood block. The ultra-low mass
14" responds well across all tunings, without
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 wood hoops
Ovangkol hoops contribute a
variety of cross-stick sounds;
stick-tips on the edge sounds
almost like a wood block Essential spec

PRICE
With triple-flanged
hoops: 13", £870; 14",
£910; Ovangkol hoops
£260 (only available
with snares)
SHELL MATERIAL
Wood
CONSTRUCTION
METHOD
Segmented
NUMBER
OF PLIES
Single-ply, 6mm with
re-rings
BEARING EDGES
Batter – half-roundover
with 45° inner cut, with
flattened ‘R6’ peak;
Resonant – as batter
with ‘R1’ peak
FINISHES
AVAILABLE
As pictured
HOOPS / RIMS
Triple-flanged, S-Hoop,
die-cast or Guru
shell construction Ovangkol
SHELL
Shells are constructed using AVAILABILITY
Guru’s proprietary 14"x5½", 14"x7",
segmentation process 13"x5½", 13"x7"
LUGS PER DRUM
10 Guru ultra-low mass
on 14” drum, eight on
13” drum
SNARE STRAINER
any sense that the drum can ‘choke’ at Dunnett, stainless
higher tensions. SNARE WIRES
The steel hoops of the 13" give it a more Puresound Blasters, 20
controlled, tighter feeling; the rims strand
contributing a slightly harsher, CONTACT
higher frequency sound to the Guru Drums
rimshots that helps it cut a touch 07824 338897
more than its bigger brother. The info@gurudrums.co.uk
www.gurudrums.co.uk
steel hoops also mean that the smaller
drum is happier at higher tensions, though
both drums exhibit sensitivity across the
range that means they respond as well to
a soft touch as a heavier hand.

VERDICT: Expensive, yes, but Guru’s

drums exhibit an uncompromising
approach to performance. If you are
after a superbly-fashioned drum that
features the best of UK craftsmanship,
check out Guru.

Build Quality
playability
Value For Money
Rating

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 101

Gear RevieW

Meinl Byzance Essential spec

Transition Ride PRICE

£420 We check out Mike Johnston’s aptly-named signature cymbal Mike Johnston’s
Signature Transition
Ride, £420
Words: DAVE HOLMES CAST OR

A
PRESSED
merican drummer and drum suitable for all players of any genre and with a medium blow produces a gong-like Cast
educator Mike Johnston didn’t want to put anyone off! bloom and increasing it causes it to burst ALLOY USED
teamed up with German into a huge crash. While the overall sound is B20
cymbalsmiths Meinl to develop Hands On thick and full of substance, it never loses FINISH
an entirely new hybrid ride. The additional It quickly becomes evident this cymbal is control, allowing each strike to be heard with Hammered indentations
input from the various members of Mike’s going to be lively – you can detect it flex clarity. Even at a peak, the bell is highly with dark charring
large on-line drumming community make under each stick strike, giving it a slightly capable of penetrating the ensuing sound HAND OR
this collaboration unique. Together they’ve organic feel. A well-placed tip-strike waves, though always complementing. MACHINE
created a cymbal which Meinl describes as produces a delicate dry ping followed by a HAMMERED
possessing “articulate sticking to wide open wash with an underlying dark and Hand
VERDICT: It would be difficult to
crashing”. Mike says he wanted a ride that mysterious Turkish tone. By slightly COUNTRY OF
pigeonhole this cymbal into a MANUFACTURE
“would have amazing tone, stick definition changing the angle of the stick and awarding particular genre. It is a cymbal with a Turkey/Germany
and would swell into a beautiful crash”. the edge of the cymbal with a shoulder split personality, easily transitioning
wallop, it instantly morphs into a very large from ride to crash and back again, DIAMETERS
Build crash. It’s easy to control, both to crash, ride making it highly versatile. AVAILABLE
21"
First unveiled at the 2014 NAMM show, the or both. This can prove useful for filling
Build Quality SUITABLE FOR
Transition Ride hails from Meinl’s pro those gaps, underpinning a nippy middle
playability Intermediate to
Byzance Extra Dry Series. This Turkish-made eight, raising a chorus, pounding into a
Value For Money Professional level –
Signature Ride is cast from a B20 alloy – a punky verse or simply to define the end of
Rating all genres
blend used in Byzance cymbals and many of an eight-bar phrase. Striking at the edge
the world’s top pro cymbals. Around the CONTACT
D’Addario
entire surface there are distinct areas 0191 300 3000
boasting a variety of textures and finishes - www.meinlcymbals.com
each contributing to the visual appeal and
sonic character. The upper surface appears
‘pre-aged’ or stressed by some intensive
hammering and flame grilling, while other
sections are simply left to oxidise
naturally. This graceful ageing
process is helped by the mottled
patches of green and brown
interwoven in between the firm
hand-hammered indentations
eventually encompassing the
raised bell. The underside of
this bell is left entirely in its
raw state with a gloriously
deep red oxide hue.
In contrast, the rest of
the underside is highly
polished and the fine
lathed grooves have been
all but smoothed-out due to
this intense shining – the
lathe scribes abruptly halting
as they make contact with the
well-rounded, robustly red bell.
At a quick glance its hard to spot
the numerous logos dotted around
– each one understated – and, if you
didn’t realise this was a signature
model, it would be easy to glance over
Mike Johnston’s laser-etched signature
under the bell. Mike believes the cymbal is

102 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

Read Audio Essential spec

Custom EarplugS PRICE

£135 Bespoke protection for your other lugs…

£135
MATERIAL
Acrylic
Words: Stu Williams
ATTENUATION

F
or instruments that are essentially 10 – 26dB
designed to be attacked, we MOULD TYPE
drummers get quite precious at Ear canal
times about certain parts of our COLOURS
set-up; cymbals, our snare drums and bass AVAILABLE
drum pedals are usually on the out-of- Clear
bounds list at a kit-share gig. And for good MODELS
reason, they’re commonly referred to as AVAILABLE
‘breakables’. So why is it, then, that we still Acoustic, Orchestral,
Amplified, Extreme
put the safety of one of our most fragile,
vulnerable, and certainly irreplaceable tools CONTACT
in the hands of those little foam buds that Read Audio
020 3397 8837
we half-inched from the venue? That’s
www.read-audio.com
the question Read Audio is asking, and if
you’ve ever reimagined rehearsal room
bog roll as rudimentary hearing protection,
so should you.

Build
Read Audio was set up in 2013 to produce
custom-made earplugs and in-ear monitors
for musicians. If you’re unfamiliar with the
concept, here’s how it works. Blue silicon is
squirted into your ear-canals; after about
10 minutes it sets and creates the perfect
impression of your ear, which is then used
to create the plug. Inside the plug is a filter
which reduces the incoming sound by an
average dB-rating. The difference between
this and foam plugs is that the filter
reduces the sound at a flatter frequency
response, rather than simply blocking
out all frequencies.
Granted, custom moulds are no new
thing, but there are a few things that Read
reckons puts them above the competition.
The ’plugs are available in four guises – attenuation
Acoustic, Orchestral, Amplified and Extreme ‘Amplified’ earplugs
– and it’s the latter two that will be of interest offer 20dB attenuation,
to most kit players, offering 20 or 26dB ‘Extreme’ model, 25dB
average attenuation respectively. Regardless
of which filter you choose, the sets cost £135, comes packaged in a protective case, and sound you get from wearing earplugs
but Read will supply subsequent spare/ Read Audio will even include your name/ (not necessarily a bad thing), and speech
replacement pairs from your original cast favourite profanity moulded into the plugs. between songs can still get lost in the filter.
at half-price. What’s more, it’s a fast process. However, we’d like to have had some
After taking the mould, Read Audio can have indication of which is the left/right earplug VERDICT: Overall these are pro-level
your plugs (or replacements) ready to ship (yes, they’ll only fit in one, but on a busy plugs that will protect your ears and
in 48 hours. stage, it’d be handy). The material is harder cost you less than one decent crash
than you might expect or be used to, cymbal – and you can replace those!
Hands On resembling a pebble, rather than Play-Doh.
Build Quality
We opted to try the Amplified set – offering a Despite this, the plugs are still comfortable
playability
high level of attenuation, but if you’re to wear for an extended time. Most
Value For Money
playing heavy rock or metal, you’ll probably importantly, the noise attenuation works
Rating
want to go for the Extreme model. The set well too; there’s still some of that ‘miked-up’

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 103

Gear RevieW

PERCUSSION
KINETICS VECTOR G3
BASS DRUM PEDAL
£259 A bass drum pedal coming from a genuinely different angle
Words: Adam Jones

P
ercussion Kinetics’ Vector G3 is a
radical new pedal that claims to
improve the drummer’s stance
across the entire kit. The
brainchild of Swedish-born Berklee College
alumni Goran Kjellgren, the concept is based
around his desire to benefit not just the foot
action but the playing experience as a whole.
Build
For years, Goran was bugged by what he
considered to be his unbalanced playing
stance. Being right-sided, he planted his
right leg square-on to the bass drum, turning
his left side towards the hi-hat. Sounds
familiar? To Goran, this positioning seemed
fundamentally flawed as it inhibited fluidity
across the kit, especially on the right-hand
side. He felt the solution lay in a more
ergonomic stance: what if the right foot
could be placed off-centre, allowing the
considering how disjointed
the pedal’s components appear,
the response is both razor
sharp and silky smooth
drummer to face forward with equal access
to both playing sides? The Vector pedal is
Goran’s attempt to solve this conundrum and
enable the drummer to place his feet (as on
a clockface) at five-to-one rather than
ten-to-twelve.
Ruggedly handsome, the G3 sits on a
polished stainless steel baseplate which
widens dramatically at the hinge end,
providing the most obvious visual clue to the
pedal’s capabilities. It houses a slot which
allows the heel end of the footboard to slide
through a full 10cm of left/right positioning.
Adjustment is simply a question of loosening
off the single Allen key bolt; once in its
chosen position it locks tightly thanks to a
hefty jaw clutch.
Offsetting the footboard on its own is only
a partial solution; in order to maximise the
effect, the cam can also be slid along the
rocker shaft. On a regular pedal the chain
would struggle to cope with such a diagonal
slant; the G3 incorporates a spherical
bearing into the top of the footboard which
moves in three planes, ensuring that the
chain always hangs straight and turns
smoothly. It is for this reason that the G3
uses a single-width chain – Goran reckons
that, while it would be possible to fit a
double-width chain, it would be sluggish and
less responsive. The beater holder can also
be slid along the rocker shaft, so wherever
the pedal footplate is angled the beater is
always hitting the centre of the head. In
addition, the pedal clamp can also be moved
along its own axis, allowing even more
positioning flexibility. Conspicuously absent
from the G3 are threaded spikes to prevent
pedal creep while the footboard angle (up
and down) can only be altered in conjunction
with the pitch of the beater (ie: not
independently). A left-hand version of the
pedal – where the cam and beater holder
swap places – is available, while a double
version is reportedly under construction.
Hands On
Setting up the G3 I’m struck by how smooth
and quiet the action is – in conventional
alignment it feels solid, accurate and quick.
Applying some adjustment – by moving the
heel end leftwards, raking the cam (and with
it the top of the footboard) to the right and
sliding the beater over to the left – it loses
none of these qualities. Considering how
disjointed the components appear – slewed
footboard and beater shaft nowhere near
the cam – the response is both razor sharp
and silky smooth.
But according to Percussion Kinetics the
whole point of the G3 is that its influence
spreads all over the kit. Advocates of the
pedal speak of an instant moment of
conversion when everything clicks and falls
into place. For me it’s more of a gradual
realisation, as though the years (well,
decades actually) of my embedded stance
and technique can only be unlearned slowly.
During my first session with the G3 I catch
my foot straightening out (ie: pointing back
towards 12 o’clock) several times. It’s only
after more prolonged exposure that I feel
completely settled with the new layout and
Also try… am able to concentrate on simply playing;
I notice a new lightness in my efforts, an
ease of execution that wasn’t there before.
Sometimes the smallest of tweaks can
reap the healthiest of rewards.
1 VERDICT: I have to confess that I
approached the Vector pedal with a
Sonor Perfect degree of cynicism. Having since spent
Balance pedal quality time with it I believe that it
offers a genuinely new angle in kit
We say: “The Perfect
Balance is a pedal of dynamics. Though it’s not cheap, it
rare beauty, though at a
price. It’s also perfectly
could change the way you play – for
the better – forever.
named.”
Build Quality
playability
Value For Money
Rating
2
Sleishman
double pedal
We say: “Every so often
the drumming world
faces a new innovation
and the Sleishman Twin
is a unique answer to
the ‘problems’ of
conventional double
pedals.”

104 | Summer 2014 www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk

 Essential spec

BEATER
Beater holder can be slid
along the rocker shaft, so PRICE
wherever it is positioned the Percussion Kinetics
beater is always hitting the Vector G3 bass drum
pedal, £259
centre of the head
DRIVE
Chain
BEATER
Felt
FEATURES
Polished stainless steel
baseplate; ‘Zero’
heelplate hinge;
adjustable heel position;
wide footboard;
adjustable cam position;
spherical chain bearing;
adjustable beater
position; low friction
spring hanger;
adjustable clamp
position; soft case
included

footboard CONTACT
Liberty Drums
Footboard can slide 0845 0090672
through a full 10cm of www.vectorpedal.com
left/right positioning

clamp
Pedal clamp can be
moved along its own axis,
allowing even more
positioning flexibility

design
Vector pedal is designed to
enable the drummer to place
his feet (as on a clock face)
in a five-to-one position

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 105

Gear RevieW
Angel Drums
Custom Snares
From £462 Keenly-priced custom snares demonstrate their heavenly virtues
Words: Jake Stacey
H
ungary may not be the first
place the typical UK drummer
looks when considering
purchasing a custom drum.
More often our eyes are drawn to the gaudy
riches of the United States, or perhaps our
own shores, where we can boast legions of
individual drumwrights all happy to sell you
a bit of wood lathed, chopped and painted to
your exact specifications.
To turn one’s back on the former Eastern
Bloc nation, however, is to forego the
country that brought us the Rubik’s Cube,
the biro and the theory of thermonuclear
fusion. To those accomplishments we can
now add the work of Zoltan Angel, the
guiding hand behind the eponymous
Angel Drums. We have been sent two
cross-sticking for rim-knocks
produces a clear, bright ‘click’
that penetrates the mix, ideal
for those slower numbers
of Zoltan’s finest snare drums to put
through their paces.
Build
Each drum exudes an understated solidity,
the satin finish on the shells complementing
the grain of the wood. One drum is maple,
and the other the less common sapele, a
wood more usually seen on high-end guitars.
Each is constructed by a hybrid segment/
stave method, with each piece of wood
selected for resonance and shaped to give
the best tone. Zoltan’s experience as a
master furniture craftsman is evident in the
fit and finish of each drum – the lugs are
hand-turned by Angel from brass (chromed
on the maple, left natural on the sapele)
and each drum also features the almost
106 | Summer 2014
steampunk-looking Angel throw, again
machined by hand from a piece of solid
bronze. The lugs are seated using Angel’s
‘secret’ dual-point method in order to
promote shell resonance. Under each lug is
a small hole, the theory being that multiple
small holes will vent the pressure in the shell
quicker than one single large hole. The snare
beds are wide and shallow to promote the
greatest articulation, and both drums use
Puresound snare wires.
Crowning each drum are the unique
‘Angel Hoops’ – thick, single-flanged steel
hoops with hand-welded ‘half-moon’ fixings
for the tension rods. Said to eliminate
overtones and widen the useable tuning
range, the Angel Hoops are also available as
aftermarket upgrades for your existing
snares. Indeed, almost the only parts of the
Angel snares not made in-house are the
heads! The finishing touch is the stylized
chromed halo ‘A’ badge, which sits proud of
the shell on two mounting lugs. Retail drums
can be purchased with a custom leather
snare drum case at extra cost.
Hands On
The initial impression is one of heft – the
Angel Hoops plus solid brass lugs and
strainer suggest a solidity which could stifle
the shell, and so it comes as a surprise that
when struck, the initial note is so open and
clear. The hoops seem to focus the tone in
the way a die-cast hoop can, but it is much
less constrained with no suggestion that it is
smothering the drum. The hoop forms part
of the sound, imparting a slight metallic note
– not at all unpleasant – that serves to
underpin the woody fundamental tone of the
drum. Each snare has vent holes directly
underneath the lugs to promote articulation,
and so it proves – there is no feeling of the
drum choking under fast sticking, and the
hoops ensure that rim-shots cut through.
Cross-sticking for rim-knocks produces a
clear, bright ‘click’ that penetrates the mix –
ideal for those slower numbers where the
Also try… backbeat tends to get lost.
The sapele drum appears marginally
darker in timbre but both respond to a wide
range of tunings. With the heads cranked
tight it’s possible to get a Copeland-esque
crack; tuned down, the drums demonstrate
their versatility in a rock setting. Each
1 responds well to light ghost notes – when
Tiki Drums backing an unamplified jazz trio it was
possible to hear the lightest of touches
snares without overpowering the rest of the band.
We say: “Considering
the standard of
construction and quality
The strainer proves easy to use –
adjustments can be made using the lever
of components, they’re
great value.”
whilst playing, or the dial on top when the
snares are released. It’s the work of a second
to simply flick the lever and it works
smoothly every time. With the snares off, the
drums provide a clear and open note –
playing across the head and rim gives a
convincing timbale impression.
2 VERDICT: Beautifully-constructed and
fantastic sounding, Angel Drums’
Highwood custom snares marry exceptional
Heritage quality with genuine innovation and
snares flair. When one considers the amount
of craftsmanship that goes into each
We say: “Make no
mistake, these are
component, the prices appear more
superb drums with a than reasonable.
beautiful tone.”
Build Quality
playability
Value For Money
Rating
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 Essential spec

construction
Snares are constructed using a
hybrid segment/stave method,
with each piece of wood shaped
to give the best tone PRICES
From £462 (13"x5"
domestic wood) to
£1,142 (14"x8" exotic
wood); Angel Hoops
£156 (raw), £211
(polished)
SHELL MATERIAL
Wood
CONSTRUCTION
METHOD
Proprietary stave
BEARING EDGES
Custom to your
specification
FINISHES
AVAILABLE
throw-off Custom to your
specification – Satin
Drums feature the as pictured
steampunk-looking Angel HOOPS / RIMS
throw, machined by hand Triple-flanged as
from a piece of solid brass standard, Angel Hoops
optional
SHELL
AVAILABILITY
13"x5" – 14"x8"
standard, but custom
sizes available
SUPPLIED HEADS
Evans
SNARE STRAINER
Angel Throw-off
SNARE WIRES
Puresound 24
CONTACT
Murat Diril UK
0203 09 27 932
www.muratdiril.co.uk

LUGS
Lugs are seated using
Angel’s ‘secret’
dual-point method to
promote shell resonance

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 107

Gear RevieW
vintage gear
WFL CLASSIC KIT Circa
Superb early example of the Ludwig style which would
go on to define the rock era in the 1960s
Words: Geoff Nicholls photos: James cumpsty
A
round the time this kit was
made, William F Ludwig Sr,
co-founder of the Ludwig
dynasty, was entering a golden
period. Having finally got back his company
(if not his name, hence the use of the initials
WFL) from the Conn Corporation who had
steered Ludwig through the Depression
years, Ludwig went on to produce some of
the most successful American post-war
drums. This kit is the forerunner of the
all-conquering Super Classic of the rock’n’roll
era just around the corner. We’ve seen
several of those in Vintage Gear, but not an
early WFL swing band Classic like this. It
belongs to Tim Mason, a Norfolk based
drummer and vintage drum collector who
plays in a band called The Song.
Tim says, “All the badges have ‘WFL Drum
Co.’ on them and that places them
somewhere between 1948-52 or earlier, with
the exception of the rack tom which has an
aluminium badge which probably dates it to
the earlier 1940s, as they switched from
brass during the Second World War.
“The sizes are 24"x14", 13"x9" and 16"x16",
with the 14"x6½" Ray McKinley snare.” In the
late 1940s Ludwig’s two big cover stars were
“The kit has a big warm woody sound and
is one of my favourites, due in part to the
rounded bearing edges and mahogany
shells” Owner Tim Mason
■■ray mckinley new classic snare
14"x6½" snare drum with P87 Classic Streamlined strainer/
throw-off and three-ply mahogany shell with reinforcing rings.
108 | Summer 2014
1948-52
Buddy Rich and the rather less celebrated,
but subtly swinging, Ray McKinley. Ray was
actually the more commercially successful
‘pop star’ because of his long association
with Glenn Miller.
“I got the kit from a fellow collector about
10 years ago and the snare drum came from
‘Rocking Rita’, an American lady who dealt in
vintage drums and spares many years ago. I
was told by the guy I bought the kit from
that he had got it from a blues club in the
USA. I’m not sure if this is true or just a good
sales pitch, but it worked. It was great to get
an original kit that no one had added to or
altered, as many from this era have been
modified with new tom holders, spurs, etc.
“The kit has a big warm woody sound and
is one of my favourites, due in part to the
rounded bearing edges and mahogany
shells. Combine that with the nickel-plated
hardware and wonderfully yellowed White
Marine Pearl finish and the fact that it is a
WFL Ludwig kit – what more could you want?
As to the value, that is always the unknown
with vintage kits. If I had to put a price on
this kit it would be around £2,500-plus.
Maybe optimistic, but I have not seen
another like it for sale.”
■■BADGE ■■tom holder
Aluminium WFL badge on the small tom indicates this tom Bass drum hoop-mounted clip tom holder, the precursor to
may have been made during the WW2 years. the more familiar consolette holders of later Ludwig drums.
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
 classic kit

Need to know

■■finish
Drums are in White
Marine Pearl finish with
nickel-plated hardware
LUDWIG■
and LUDWIG
William F Ludwig and
his brother Theobald
founded the Ludwig and
Ludwig drum company
in Chicago in 1909.
WFL
In 1937 Ludwig bought
back his company from
the Conn Corporation.
But Conn held the
Ludwig marque, so
Ludwig used his initials,
WFL, from 1939 to 1955.
RAY MCKINLEY
Swinging drummer,
vocalist and band
leader, forever
associated with Glenn
Miller, the biggest big
band star of the WW2
years with immortal hits
like ‘In The Mood’.

■■CLASSIC KIT
Kit is a great example
of an early swing band in association with…
Ludwig Classic

www.ukdrumfair.com

www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk Summer 2014 | 109

Gear RevieW
How do you know what
to fix if your kit sounds
off on gig night?
Rhythm
gear guru Geoff
ASK
A SK
Nicholls bashes
out your kit
conundrums
EOFF
GEOFF
G
Hi Geoff
I am a tuning geek. I watch videos, read
books, use a Drum Dial, Tune-Bot etc, but I
still struggle to get the sound I want. Mostly I
overthink it, but it is science. I was never
taught how to tune and it is an individual
preference, but there has to be a reason why
things go wrong. Mostly, it only goes wrong
when I get to the gig, set up, and get ready for
soundcheck, when all of a sudden my snares
buzz, a floor tom sounds wonky, something
gets an ugly overtone/ring to it, etc. There is a
world of information on tuning from scratch,
but nothing on last-minute tweaks to fix
something when there is no time to start over.
How do you know what to fix?
J, via e-mail
Do you have a kit question for geoff?
Big or small, there isn’t a gear query that Rhythm
expert Geoff Nicholls can’t grapple with.
Email askgeoff@futurenet.com
110 | Summer 2014
Hi J,
What you’re describing here is a scenario
that all drummers face at some point – we’ve
all been there. It’s a scenario that can be
unnerving at best, disastrous and confidence
destroying at worst.
Before the gig, you do absolutely
everything in your power to get your
instrument sounding the way that you
want it. But then when you arrive at the
gig, the PA engineer puts up some
musicians are never totally
happy with their tuning and
drummers are no different
microphones and you suddenly become
self-conscious about your sound.
Science
You say it’s science. Well, undoubtedly there
is a science of acoustics and there must
theoretically be measurable physical-
acoustical reasons why the floor tom
suddenly develops an excruciating hum. But
the variables involved are so unpredictable
and different in every location that it would
be a near impossible task to quantify them.
You already have all those tuning gizmos
– would you be any better off if you took a
lab full of oscilloscopes on stage?!
It’s not so much science as the practical
craft of adapting and compromising. Your
point however that there are lots of tips on
how to tune from scratch, but little that
addresses on-the-spot solutions, is fair. And
again, that’s probably because it’s down to
experience and the particular situation. Like
they say, you only really learn to drive once
you have passed your test.
Improvisation
It’s not that you don’t know how to tune.
Quite the contrary – you are a self-confessed
tuning geek! So you know what sounds good
to you, but now you are faced with
unpredictable situations, so how are you
going to cope? Is this any different from,
‘Here’s a new song, what are you going to
play’? You can practise grooves and
technique all day long, but it means nothing
if you can’t find something musically
appropriate to play. Maybe think of tuning
issues a bit like this?
Confidence
The problem is often more psychological –
that drummer’s inferiority complex most of
us have at times. You have to learn to love
your own sound. If you don’t, then why
should anyone else? So your snares buzz.
Everyone’s snares buzz. Don’t be un-nerved
by engineers. Get on the good foot. Go in
smiling and make friends – engineers are
nervous as hell and are often just passing
their own pressures/insecurities on to you.
Be positive, laugh it off and find a solution
together. You should be a delight to deal
with since you are genuinely concerned
with sound. Don’t apologise for everyday
problems which in the scheme of things
are minor. Musicians are never totally
happy with their tuning, and drummers
are no different.
The plan
Which is not to say you shouldn’t continually
try to address and improve the niggles.
But instead of being overwhelmed and
defeated, go through each scenario
individually and see if you can’t come up
with a bunch of strategies, so you are less
likely to panic if or when it happens. Like
snare buzzes: loosen them/tighten them;
adjust the orientation on the stand a few
inches; loosen or tighten the tension rods
nearest the wires; apply a smidgen of tape;
move the bass rig…
www.rhythmmagazine.co.uk
GET OUR DIGITAL EDITION!

START YOUR
FREE TRIAL
TODAY

AVAILABLE ON YOUR DEVICE NOW

*Free Trial not available on Zinio.

 Next month in
magazine Registered office: Future Publishing Ltd,
30 Monmouth St, Bath,
Somerset, BA1 2BW
Tel 01225 442244
Editorial Department
Editor Chris Barnes

prog
chris.barnes@futurenet.com
Art Editor Richard Broughton
richard.broughton@futurenet.com
Production and Community Editor
Chris Burke
chris.burke@futurenet.com
Staff Writer Rich Chamberlain
richard.chamberlain@futurenet.com
Contributors
Craig Blundell, Jason Bowld, Adam Bushell, Gareth Dylan Smith,
Danny Gill, Dave Holmes, Adam Jones, Ajay Naik, Geoff Nicholls,
Chuck Parker, Matt Parker, James Smurthwaite, Erik Stams,
Andy Staples, Mike Sturgis, David West, Colin Woolway,
Multimedia Editor Pete Riley
Gear Photography Philip Sowels/Joby Sessions
Feature/Interview Photography

The drummers of modern Adam Gasson, Robert Downs Shawn Stanley, Gavin
Roberts, James Cumpsty, Getty images, Corbis
Music Engraver Chris Francis

prog discuss their Advertising & Marketing

Telephone: 01225 442 244 Fax: 01225 732285
Advertising Sales Director Clare Coleman-Straw

approach to the genre

Advertising Sales Manager Richard Hemmings
Advertising Sales Executive Simon Rawle
Campaign Manager Sarah Jackson
Production
Production Manager Mark Constance

Featuring Mike Portnoy, Matt Halpern, Matt Garstka, Production Co-ordinator Ian Wardle
Ad Production Jo Crosby
Circulation Contact James Whitaker

Ryan Van Poederooyen, Jerry Gaskill and more Printed by William Gibbons, Willenhall
Distributed by Seymour Distribution Ltd
2 East Poultry Avenue, London EC1A 9PT
Future Publishing Limited

PLUS! The 30 greatest prog drumming Creative Director Bob Abbott

Group Art Editor Rodney Dive
Editorial Director Jim Douglas
albums of all time, voted by you Senior Licensing & Syndication Manager Regina Erak
Head Of Music Rob Last
Chief Executive Zillah Byng-Maddick
Subscriptions

plus!
To view your account details/status
and to change your address, please visit
www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/youraccount.
For subscription enquiries and orders please email
rhythm@myfavouritemagazines.co.uk or call
0844 848 2852 (UK) / +44 (0) 1604 251045 (overseas).
Though we try to acknowledge and respond to all correspondence

On your CD Ben thatcher New gear and emails received in the editorial office, sheer volume does not

Master classic tracks by Find out why the Matt The latest products
Rush, Cream and Lower Helders-approved from Premier, Alesis,
Than Atlantis and drummer and one half of Forecast, Ahead
improve your drumming rock duo Royal Blood is and Cymbomute
with world-class video about to become your Plus Vintage Kit and
drum lessons new favourite player gear advice ©Future Publishing Limited 2009. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be
used or reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. Future Publishing
Limited (company number 2008885) is registered in England and Wales. The registered
office of Future Publishing Limited is Beauford Court, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath BA1
2BW. All information contained in this magazine is for information only and is, as far as
we are aware, correct at the time of going to press. Future cannot accept any
responsibility for errors or inaccu racies in such information. Readers are advised to

also
contact manufacturers and retailers directly with regard to the price of products/
services referred to in this magazine. If you submit unsolicited material to us, you
automatically grant Future a licence to publish your submission in whole or in part in all
editions of the magazine, including licensed editions worldwide and in any physical or
digital format throughout the world. Any material you submit is sent at your risk and,
although every care is taken, neither Future nor its employees, agent or subcontractors
shall be liable for loss or damage

Print 6,372

Ryan Jenkinson reverend & the makers Digital 923

The ABC combined print and digital
cirulation for Jan-Dec 2012 is 7,295

Stacy Jones miley cyrus A member of the Audited Bureau of Circulation

Antonio Sanchez pat metheny We are committed to only using magazine

paper which is derived from well managed,
certified forestry and chlorine-free
manufacture. Future Publishing and its paper
suppliers have been independently certified

issue on sale 26 august 2014

in accordance with the rules of the FSC
(Forest Stewardship Council).

*contents subject to change

9000
9015