One of my favorite solos of his:
Category: jazz
Very occasional quote of the day: listening
“Listening is the whole thing. I’ll tell you exactly how I play. My whole approach to playing is reaction. I don’t listen to myself play. I’m not aware of myself because I’m too busy listening […]
Very occasional quote of the day: space to contribute
“The way guys like Bud Powell shaped their solos, they automatically left spaces for the drummers to contribute. A lot of times today, in student performers, I don’t hear that space being offered, because they’re […]
Uptempo drill a la Riley
Major rehash alert: an uptempo jazz drill I was playing yesterday, using what John Riley once called “my C major scale”: an SSBB pattern in 8th notes, with notes omitted. The page below is very […]
Transcription: Buddy Rich – Big Mac
Buddy Rich drum solo on Big Mac, a prodigious funk/rock arrangement by Ernie Wilkins, from Rich’s album Ease On Down The Road— it’s actually better known from Roar of ’74, but I have it on […]
Transcription: Mel Lewis comping
On Chess Mates, from a 1985 Joe Lovano record, Tone Shapes & Colors— a live recording with Mel Lewis on drums, and Kenny Werner on piano. A lot of what I’d call “non-independent” drumming here, […]
Some short tempered performance notes
Following are some comments I wrote after hearing some younger drummers— in a jazz setting, players far enough along with their playing to let their ambitions get the better of them, musically. I got a […]
Quintuplet jazz? – 02 – bass drum added
Continuing that suspect page of jazz rhythms in quintuplets, here are some more practice patterns with bass drum added: See that post view from the outside of a swing feel for some explanation of this […]
Transcription: Elvin Jones – Foolin’ Myself – 04
UPDATE: Boy I suck. This is of course the third solo chorus, and the fourth total entry in this series. I’ll fix that… sometime. Continuing that Elvin Jones transcription from late last year— Elvin Jones playing […]
Daily best music in the world: Roy Haynes with Charlie Parker LIVE
This is pretty amazing. Rough sounding live tape of Charlie Parker in 1951, with Roy Haynes on drums… sounding basically like any other subsequent time in his career. Incredibly modern playing for 1951. h/t to […]