April 2021 – Volume 45 • Number 4
On 23rd Apr 2021
In It’s About Time: Jeff Porcaro, The Man and His Music, author Robyn Flans relates the story that the title track to Steely Dan’s Gaucho album was nearly cut when the musicians couldn’t get a good take, causing Donald Fagen and Walter Becker to leave the studio. Jeff Porcaro and the other players stayed in the studio all night, and the eventual final rhythm track had “something like 47 edits.” Whatever the number, it would have been a tragedy had this song been cut from the album.
The song and its drum part are masterpieces. Porcaro’s impeccable time, feel, and exquisite musical taste pervade the entire track. Drummers should carefully study the beautiful placement of every single note—and remember, this is in the days preceding digital recording and being able to move notes on the grid. Although there are many edits in the final cut, the placement of every note on the drums is all Porcaro. It’s one of the most eloquent drum parts I’ve ever heard.
The tune starts out with a buzz on the snare into a 16-note groove. I debated whether to transcribe this song in half-time, with one backbeat per bar, as this is how the piano chart is written. But I ultimately decided it is easier to understand the architecture of the drum part while seeing beats 2 and 4 on the snare in each bar.
Articles in April 2021
Zildjian, Latin Percussion, GrooveTech, DW and more
Zildjian Armand’s Personal Collection In celebration of what would have been Armand Zildjian’s 100th birthday, Zildjian is releasing vintage cymbals from the Zildjian family vault for the first time. This release features 200 hand-selected vintage 20" cymbals from Armand’s collection.…
“Rocking with a Radio King”
Calgary teen isn’t precious about gigging with his 1960 Slingerland kit. Taylor Miles is just 15 years old, but he has already earned veteran status with his band, Exit Division. The Calgary, Alberta, alternate-rock group has played tons of gigs…
Hendrix Drums - Player’s Stave Series 6.5x14 Rock Maple Snare
The big, beefy sound you’d expect from a thick shell and then some. Hendrix is a Houston, Texas-based company specializing in crafting premium stave and ply-shell drums that provide professional-grade sound and performance at working drummer prices. The flagship line,…
Jeff Porcaro
It’s About Time Initially, we were scheduling a short review of long-time MD contributor Robyn Flans’ book on Jeff Porcaro, It’s About Time: Jeff Porcaro, The Man and His Music. Then, we thought about it for a second. This is…
David “Pick” Withers
Conjuring Mood Grooves with Dire Straits Called “the biggest British rock band of the ‘80s” by Classic Rock magazine—and with sales of more than 100 million albums and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018—the story…
C&C Custom Drums - Maple/Gum Series
A timeless classic shell formula tailor-made for the stage or studio C&C Custom Drums is a custom drum shop based in Gladstone, Missouri. Despite claiming to be a small company, they boast an impressive and growing roster of endorsees from…
Fred Armisen
The Multitasking Marvel ofLate Night with Seth Meyers If Fred Armisen was “just” the band leader, drummer, and former guitarist of The 8G Band on Late Night with Seth Meyers, it would be a pretty monumental accomplishment. But Armisen is…
Applying Musical Concepts to the Drumset
By Thomas Lang. Presented by Drum Channel. In order to take what you are practicing and apply it musically to the drumset, you have to develop facility, technique, and independence first. Then, you can transition to playing more freely—almost like…
How It Feels to Be Something On
Sunny Day Real Estate From the cover art alone, you get the sense that something was burning at Sunny Day Real Estate’s core when they released How It Feels to Be Something On in September 1998. The sun image on…
Eric Leiderman
Late Night with Seth Meyers Producer Puts Drums Up Front Why is the TV producer from Late Night with Seth Meyers featured on the cover of Modern Drummer, you ask? Eric Leiderman was a drummer first, and he has been…
Donn Bennett’s Drum Vault
Tico Torres’ 1984 Bon Jovi Pearl Drumset By 1984, Tico Torres and his band Bon Jovi had worked their way through the ranks of the New Jersey bar scene, had recorded their first album, and were opening for established acts…
Sheila E - Modern Drummer, July 1991
A lot of percussionists—and drummers, too—have that problem of overplaying. The way you overcome it is by developing discipline. I learned all about discipline when I became a session player. I’d go into the studio and the producer would say,…
Matt Chamberlain
Changing Things Up with Bob Dylan After joining Bob Dylan’s band in 2019, and playing on his latest album, Rough and Rowdy Ways, Matt Chamberlain was supposed to be spending much of 2020 on the road with the legendary singer-songwriter.…
Mono - 24" Cymbal Bag
Simple, comfortable, and durable—everything you need to transport your prized pies with ease. For most of us drummer, a cymbal bag is a necessary piece of gear but one of simple utilitarian nature. Most of us skimp out and go…
Realistic Reggae Rock
Hi-Hat Patterns, Part I Starting with this month’s issue, Modern Drummer is offering a three-part series curated from Carmine Appice’s brilliant book, Realistic Reggae Rock . Get those hi-hats grooving, gang! Part I consists of hi-hat patterns that apply to…
RECORDINGS
Jochen Rueckert Stars and Garters Forty-four-year-old German-born drummer/composer Jochen Rueckert has released five swinging and visceral jazz records—all with top New York City players, and all tinged with the drummer’s left-of-center approach. Stars and Garters—which refers to awards and medals—is…
Ed Shaughnessy
September 1992 For those fortunate enough to have grown up somewhere between 1965 and 1991, whose parents allowed them to stay up until 11:30 at least to hear the famous downbeat to Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show, drummer Ed Shaughnessy had…
Give the Drummer Some!
Hi, everyone! Welcome to the April 2021 issue of MD. I was hoping by the time I would be writing this editorial we’d be back to some sort of normalcy. Unfortunately, such is not the case yet. Fortunately, day-by-day, it’s…
Remembering Scott Asheton
The Stooges’ Punk Rock Pioneer The Stooges first burst onto the national stage roaring out of Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1969 with a cutting-edge and revolutionary debut album, and the music world has not been the same since. At the…
