“Stop being against something just because it looks ‘weird’.” – Boris, from Blue Movie by Terry Southern. Hadn’t thought of this book in years, then woke up thinking about that quote. The character is based […]
Category: books
Best books: some non-musical selections
Here are several books that have been valuable to me creatively over the years. The Adding Machine by William S. Burroughs Great essays about art, language, and the craft of writing. Along with Exterminator!, […]
Interview: drum author Joel Rothman
[UPDATED 5/16 – Something I had to add to the piece came up in my correspondence with Mr. Rothman. See the new section labeled “PROFIT”] Joel Rothman is one of the more mysterious figures in […]
Rothman book recommendations
While the interview is fresh, I want to give my recommendations for Joel Rothman book purchases. God knows I haven’t seen his entire catalog, but these are very strong books: Basic Drumming – An everything […]
Best books: Studio Funk Drumming by Roy Burns and Joey Farris
Lately I’ve become very anti-hip and anti-novelty with my practice materials, and the 40-page Studio Funk Drumming by Burns and Farris has that in spades. Written in 1981, and revised in 1994, this book focuses […]
Method book round up: Brazilian drumming
As some of you may have noticed, I’ve been thinking a lot about Samba of late. And as my friend Blake Thomas, an expert cuica (not to mention caixa and zbumba) player has loaned me […]
How fast can you take your time?
The Discipline of DE, from William S. Burroughs’ Exterminator!, reprinted in it’s entirety via Melancholia, which appears to be a Dutch literary blog. For me this is right up there with Zen in the Art […]
Best books: Rudimental Patterns by Joe Cusatis
Rudimental Patterns Full Drum Set Studies for the Modern Drummer by Joe Cusatis This book contains most of what I always felt was wrong with the traditional approach to learning the drums, and I LIKE […]
Best books – Chop Busters by Ron Fink
OK, the title is a little goofy- a lot goofy- but this is an excellent, fun book of snare drum exercises written by North Texas State University instructor Ron Fink to “uncover weakness in basic […]
Best books – Even in the Odds by Ralph Humphrey
The classic text on odd meter playing by Zappa/Don Ellis drummer Ralph Humphrey, this book covers swing, funk, and solo patterns in 5/4, 7/4, 5/8, 7/8, and longer odd time signatures. Each meter gets a […]