Liberty DeVitto Plays "You May Be Right" - Billy Joel

As cited on the albums that shaped my musical tastes - Ten Albums that Have Influenced my Taste in Music, this is pure awesomeness!

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https://youtu.be/ smsTKhTMfMY - Liberty DeVitto Plays "You May Be Right" - Billy Joel

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Nic Collins Learns Impossible Neil Peart Drum Part

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https://youtu.be/ U6kOiWB-G9w - Nic Collins Learns Impossible Neil Peart Drum Part

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Steve Jordan Plays Drums

I am going to be completely honest about Steve Jordan. Until I listened to this video, I do not think I had ever listened to Steve Jordan play drums. I've been aware of him for at least a couple of decades, possibly 4 decades and the only reason I can't narrow down how many decades I've been aware of him is that I don't recall the month/year of the Modern Drummer issue with his cover story. I want to say it was 1985 - it could have been 1986 or 1987 or 1988 (those were the years I subscribed to Modern Drummer magazine.
I typically have nothing but love for Drumeo. However, I have to say that I wish that Steve Jordan had talked about the actual part he composed and how he had came up with it - was it that brilliant pattern on Take One? Did it evolve? Did he have other patterns that were discarded? That's the kind of in-depth question I wish the video below answered. It's interesting that the lyrics were

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https://youtu.be/ dGGja0SeYAs
- Steve Jordan Plays "The Piña Colada Song" | Rupert Holmes

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Wolfgang Van Halen Hears 5 Seconds Of Summer For The First Time

Some adult words in this video. 

https://youtu.be/GUPVdYicNJE?si=DrLxkNxHsku47NTg 

How to Choose Drumsticks Part II - Kind of

This is an email I just received and it's totally related to How to Choose Drumsticks. 

From: Mark Feldman <mark@bangthedrumschool.com>
Date: Nov 25, 2024 7:29 AM
Subject: I Wish I Could Tell This To My 8 Year Old Self

Hello Friends - I was lucky enough to go to a private middle and elementary school in NYC as a kid. I recall that we were first introduced to foreign languages when we were about eight years old. The teacher told us that we could pick Spanish or French. "You can pick whichever one you want," she told us. Like a bonehead, I chose French. The reason I think it was bad decision is that I never---seeing as I reside in the USA---have the opportunity to speak or otherwise use this language skill. It's pretty much useless to me. Sure, when I went to Paris, I used it. But so what? If someone had just properly advised me as a youngster, I would have taken Spanish instead. Now, that would have been useful! But French? Nope. I wasted my time on that. Well, you could argue that I learned how to learn or that my brain was "exercised" or developed because of learning French. And you'd probably be right on that score. But, I still would have gotten a lot more utility out of having learned to speak Spanish. I wish my parents had advised to learn Spanish instead, but they didn't. Not that I can blame them; I probably came home from school one day and simply informed them, "hey mom, hey dad...guess what? I'm learning French in school!" They probably just heard that and said, "oh, that's nice, Mark." So, I can't blame them. Even as a kid, you don't always get all the guidance that you need or want. Sometimes it's the same with drumming. I may have told you the story of a teacher I had who taught me a technical thing that was absolutely wrong. And I spent hundreds of hours practicing that way. It was John Riley (if you don't know him, look him up) who showed me the correct way, but it was absolutely brutal having to undo all of that ingrained muscle memory from learning the wrong thing. I won't mention the name of the person who showed me the wrong thing here....just because he doesn't really teach anymore so none of you are in "danger."  But the tale I've just told really proves that it's incredibly important to get good guidance. Do any of you feel confused about how to learn the drums from the beginning? What do you even do first? What should you spend your time on? What are the correct details of hand technique? and foot technique? There's a lot of stuff to learn and you need someone you can trust. That's why I made the Drumming for Absolute Beginners online video course. You don't want to waste time on the wrong stuff! I'm ready to help you with this. I'll give you the info you need; I'll teach you everything!  You won't have to worry about that. Step-by-step; if you want to learn the drums all you have to do is follow my instructions. It's really easy. I've made the whole thing super simple. This course will take you from Point A = I don't really know how to play to Point B = I can just sit down behind the drums and play off the top of my head (and sound great doing it). Like I said, it's our online video course called "Drumming for Absolute Beginners." It's step-by-step and it's based on my system of learning called The 5 Pillars of Drumming® (which is actually a registered trademark--it's for real). Do it at home at your own pace. You'll get results. Just follow the steps. Go here to sign up now: https://bangthedrumschool.com/drumming-for-absolute-beginners-course-now/   Thanks for reading. Regards, Mark Feldman

How to Choose Drumsticks

When I was growing up, my parents wanted to treat Mark, my younger brother, and I fairly. When I showed an interest in drumming, one or both of my parents went to Carma Lou's House of Music on Center Point Road and bought a pair of drumsticks and then, I think it was for Christmas, Mark got a drumstick and I got a drumstick. Unless you're Rick Allen - much respect to Def Leppard's drummer who lost an arm in a terrible auto accident decades ago - one drumstick is not going to get the job done. I tell that story to people who ask me how long I've played drums. I think it's a funny story; I tell it quite well.
Fast forwarding through the 1980s, I began playing drums both in 3904 Studios and at school. During that time, there was Modern Drummer magazine, which would show up on a magazine rack at Carma Lou's House of Music. There was no such thing as Drumeo or the Internet. It makes me wonder if I were growing up when my kids grew up - from 1996 to the present - the following question / theory: Would I have become a better drummer than I am now if I had access to the technology that is available in 2024? Right now, just to set the stage, the technology to learn how to play drums is overwhelming.

• You can purchase 1:1 mentoring sessions with drummers who live all around the world.
• You can go to Nashville, TN, for a week of intensive "drum school" where all you do is play drums every day for a week.
• You can watch countless videos by drummers on Youtube as well as videos behind a paywall to learn how to play like John Bonham or Buddy Rich or even Lars Ulrich.

Those examples are broad strokes and not an exhaustive list. My point is that the information available from 1996 to the present was obviously not available in 1980. I had to figure things out about drumming through Modern Drummer magazine or watching videos on MTV or watching and listening to any drummer that happened to be playing drums wherever I was. I never knew anything about what is included in the video below about how to choose a drumstick. Jared, from Drumeo, breaks down the different types of drumsticks that are available. None of this information was available in a video like this. When I went by myself to Carma Lou's House of Music on Center Point Road with the intention of buying drumsticks, I could try out different drumsticks but I didn't know what I was choosing. How many drumsticks did I purchase in my lifetime? Wow, I wish I had that number. I can't fathom how many drumsticks I would not have purchased if I had watched the video below.
Why embed this video about choosing drumsticks? I have played drums for (roughly) 40 years, give or take a few years. I'm embedding this video in the hope that some drummer happens upon this post on my blog, reads the text of this post, and watches the video below, and has an eaasier time getting into playing drums than I did. I don't regret my path - it was mine to navigate and pave.

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https://youtu.be/ JemCbY6bblo - How to Choose Drumsticks

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Ulysses Owens Jr Hears the Offspring for the first time

I believe there is an alternate reality where "Ulysses Hanson" exists - what a great name!

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https://youtu.be/ qtL4wvicQj0 - Juilliard Jazz Prof Hears The Offspring For The First Time

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Gregg Bissonette Hears System Of A Down For The First Time

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https://youtu.be/hyR5-b1wfrw - Gregg Bissonette Hears System Of A Down For The First Time

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Can New York City Play Drums?

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https://youtu.be/zDJcmekmeXc - Can New York City Play Drums?

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Todd Sucherman's Masterful Drum Solo

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https://youtu.be/0SaYqRLjfO4 - Todd Sucherman's Masterful Drum Solo

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Who Played Liberty Devitto's Part Best? | The Drum Department 🥁- Ep.51

I watched the first minute of "Who Played Liberty Devitto's Part Best? | The Drum Department 🥁- Ep.51" but when I am trying to embed the episode, episode 51 is not about Liberty Devitto. Thus, I am embedding a playlist of "The Drum Department" from Drumeo. Before Drumeo fixes their issue with having two episode 51 videos, this is the current episode 51, about prog drummers, and it includes a hilarious clip from a movie with Marshall from "How I Met Your Mother" and "Ant-Man":

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https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLThYwnIoLwyWO-lssFL9qi31ZdOxiUKtc&si=sOkNouL2PtavEpPK - Who Played Liberty Devitto's Part Best? | The Drum Department 🥁- Ep.51

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The Genius Of

Within the last 2 weeks, I saw a job ad for a contractor to be a Copywriter for this series. I think that would be totally awesome!

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https://youtu.be/ UAQQX_SrLq0 - The Genius Of Keith Moon

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And another in this series.

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https://youtu.be/ uR2mr4WrLU0 - The Genius Of John Bonham

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Drum Chops For Beginners

https://www.drumeo.com/beat/beginner-drum-chops/

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https://youtu.be/ a5LJbvA9uzk - Drum Chops For Beginners

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Thomas Lang - Applying Independence On The Drum Set

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https://youtu.be/ ShWqcXP3kpg - Thomas Lang - Applying Independence On The Drum Set - Drumeo Live

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Tommy Aldridge - Heavy Metal Beats & Fills (Drumeo Live)

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https://youtu.be/ eSV4I_ah94o - Tommy Aldridge - Heavy Metal Beats & Fills (Drumeo Live)

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Simple Single Paradiddle

Single Paradiddle

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Reversing an Earlier Choice

Though not exactly the same offer, elsewhere on this blog, I wrote about how I didn't think I would practice drums as a reason for not purchasing drum lessons. That was for a 30-day challenge, as described on my Could I Commit for 30 Days to Improve my Drumming? post and, ultimately, no, I didn't accept the 30-day challenge. Today, when I came in to work, I saw that Drum System from Drumeo had a sale advertising 82% off the normal price. When I clicked on the link, I saw that 82% off meant paying $47 for a $247 product:

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By the way, now I do have a reason to practice my drums: the Bad Rumor gig on October 28, 2022, is only 16 days (2 weeks, 2 days) away. We are rehearsing tonight at Russ's house in Cedar Rapids. Russ has a set of drums in his house so I only need to bring sticks. I will probably bring up some cymbals as well and, perhaps, the new-to-me Pearl bass drum pedal that came with the Sonar set. I have only played that pedal 4 times so I'd like to be more familiar with it between now and the gig.

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For the record, here's a description of what I puchased:

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Drumming System 2.0 The Drumming System includes 20 training modules and is widely considered the Ultimate Encyclopedia of Video Drum Lessons. You can jump around to the topics that interest you the most, including How To Play Drums By Ear, How To Practice Efficiently, Drum Theory & Notation, Hand Technique, Drum Rudiments, Foot Technique, Heavy Rock Lessons, Mixed Rock Lessons, Groove Rock Lessons, Jazz & Latin Lessons, Drum Fills, Dynamic Drumming, How To Build Speed, Drum Setup, Tuning & Gear Tips, Live Gig & Studio Drumming, Drum Soloing, Writing With A Band, and Hand Drumming & Percussion.

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and here are the 20 sections with a total of 338 lessons!

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Drumming System 2.0

How To Play Drums By Ear

This module covers all of the essentials to get you playing for the very first time. Absolutely no sheet music reading ability is required. Everything is taught by ear.

pack bundle - 10 Lessons  

How To Practice Efficiently

Learning to practice efficiently is what can make the biggest difference in your overall progress. This module focuses on providing you with the information you need to create a balanced practice routine.

pack bundle - 8 Lessons  

Drum Theory & Notation

In this module, you'll learn about note values, time signatures, dynamics, and how to read and write your own drum beats!

pack bundle - 20 Lessons  

Hand Techniques

Proper hand technique can completely change the way you play the drums. In this module, you'll learn about a variety of matched grip variations, traditional grip, and finger control technique!

pack bundle - 4 Lessons  

Drum Rudiments

This module will teach you how to play all 40 drum rudiments. Once you've learned all of the rudiments, you'll learn how to incorporate the six most popular drum rudiments into your drum-set playing! This module teaches you all forty drum rudiments from these five categories: single strokes, drum rolls, paradiddles, flam-based, and drag-based. After you learn the 40 patterns, Mike demonstrates how to incorporate the six most popular rudiment patterns within your everyday drumming."

pack bundle - 48 Lessons  

Foot Techniques

This module covers a variety of foot techniques including slide technique, heel toe technique, heels down technique, and heels up technique. This module also includes bass drum independence, hi-hat foot technique, double bass drumming, and more!

pack bundle - 13 Lessons  

Heavy Rock Lessons

This module includes beginner, intermediate, and advanced grooves from genres including punk rock, heavy metal, speed metal, hard rock, grunge rock, and progressive rock.

pack bundle - 28 Lessons  

Mixed Rock Lessons

The groove rock module covers styles of rock including blues, funk, reggae, and shuffles. These styles will be slightly more challenging than the previous ones in the previous modules!

pack bundle - 20 Lessons  

Groove Rock Lessons

"Want to learn to play the drums with more groove? This module covers some of the more groovy styles of rock including: blues, funk, reggae, and shuffle beats. Though these lessons are more ideal for intermediate and advanced drummers, they do start with patterns that are easy enough for beginners to learn and master. As with all the beat training modules, the patterns covered here are also featured in the workbooks and have companion play-along songs on the CDs. Start by learning the beats, and then apply them to real music!"

pack bundle - 21 Lessons  

Jazz & Latin Lessons

This module will teach you how to play jazz and a variety of Latin styles including bossa nova, samba, songo, and many others! Learning these styles will take your drumming independence to the next level.

pack bundle - 10 Lessons  

Drum Fills

Do you want to learn how to play drum fills like some of your favorite drummers? This module will teach you how to create your own drum fills, as well as provide you with TONS of beginner, intermediate, and advanced level drum fills!

pack bundle - 8 Lessons  

Dynamic Drumming

This module covers important topics like dynamics, ghost notes, accented notes, and more! These lessons will allow you to play many of the beats and fills that you already know in a brand new way!

pack bundle - 6 Lessons  

How To Build Speed

Mike takes a closer look at hand technique and shares some insider tips on how to build speed in this section. He covers topics like pillow practice, rudiments, and finger control!

pack bundle - 7 Lessons  

Drum Setup, Tuning & Gear

In this module, you'll learn how to set up and tune your drum-set. Mike will also share some of his gear tips that have worked for him over the years.

pack bundle - 8 Lessons  

Live Gig & Studio Drumming

This module is packed with valuable tips for both live and studio playing. Mike covers topics including how to get gigs, reading drum charts, working with a band, sound-checking tips, and studio drumming tips.

pack bundle - 6 Lessons  

Drum Soloing

Have you ever wanted to play an amazing drum solo? This module will show you many different aspects of creating and playing a unique drum solo.

pack bundle - 16 Lessons  

Drum Play-Alongs 1

Half of the fun of learning the drums is being able to play with a band - so we've included a large selection of play-along tracks with the Drumming System! There are play-alongs for every style of music you've worked on in the lesson modules!

pack bundle - 28 Lessons  

Drum Play-Alongs 2

Continuing on where the last module left off, this module includes even more play-along tracks!

pack bundle - 20 Lessons  

Writing With A Band

Have you ever wondered what it takes to create a song? In this module, you'll be able to watch the entire writing process from start to finish, as the band creates and then performs six new tracks.

pack bundle - 13 Lessons  

Hand Drumming

In this final module, you'll find step-by-step lessons on how to play a wide range of percussion instruments including congas, djembe, cajon, shakers, tambourines, and more!

pack bundle - 44 Lessons

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