This is pretty straightforward, almost something you can do without writing it out— I’ve simply transcribed the basic flam exercises from p. 16 of Stick Control into 5/8. I get bored practicing things in a […]
Author: Todd Bishop
The leap to playing
I feel like this A big problem for many students is how to get from practicing exercises in a book to real playing. It’s actually an issue for everyone, but in this post we’re just […]
Groove o’ the day: Soul Makossa
This is the groove from a track regarded as the first Disco song— Soul Makossa, by Cameroonian performer Manu Dibango. The drummer is Joby Jobs, and he has a bad right hand— he is apparently […]
CYMBALISTIC: Two new 22″ rides in stock!
CYMBALISTIC news: Thanks to a very successful Germany trip in December, stock of cymbals on hand is a little skimpy right now, but we do have a couple of new 22″ A-type rides available— one […]
EZ rock beats in 5/4 – 01
For one of my students, an easy page of rock beats in 5/4. We did one of these a few years ago, but this page illustrates the 2+3 / 3+2 phrasing of this time signature, […]
Tyshawn Sorey linear lick
I did something I don’t usually do— transcribe a lick for a stranger on the internet with no context and no information about the player or music. I have no idea where the person got […]
Practice loop in 6/4: Magdalena
Practice loop in 6/4 sampled from Magdalena, from John Zorn’s album O’o. Tempo is quarter note = 204, and there is an extra bar of 3/4 on the big figure at the end of the […]
NOW AVAILABLE: 2018 Book of the Blog / Syncopation in 3/4
The 2018 CRUISE SHIP DRUMMER! Book of the Blog is now available to order. It includes all of the downloadable exercises and trancriptions posted on the site in 2018, as well as some grooves o’ […]
Feelings and things you can’t do
Taking a little break from working on the 2018 Book of the Blog, musing about different stages of attitudes about players who can do things you can’t: I want to be able to do that! Beginning, […]
Transcription: Joey Baron – Resistor
Here is Joey Baron playing on Don Byron’s solo on Resistor, from the Bill Frisell album This Land— Baron’s playing on this record is one of the major blowing performances of the 90s. The tune […]