This is a really fun 10-minute compilation of drum solos.
Lots of incredibly talented drummers using a variety
of drumming techniques in this YouTube drum solo video!
Leave your comments below…
This is a really fun 10-minute compilation of drum solos.
Lots of incredibly talented drummers using a variety
of drumming techniques in this YouTube drum solo video!
Leave your comments below…
Thomas Lang – This is a great example of a fun, funky drum solo performed at a drum clinic. Leave your comments below! :-D

This is an excellent list of thirteen reasons given by John Bryant (a session drummer who has played with artists such as Ray Charles) why Ringo Starr was much more than “an average drummer,” as he is often labelled by music critics.
Always serving the song without showing off, Ringo was an integral and indispensable part of The Beatles. Ringo’s intuitive feel and creative big beat style is still hugely influential to contemporary musicians of diverse musical genres, either directly or indirectly. His feel was so consistent and solid that even the drum parts he played for songs in odd time signatures seem simpler than they truly are. Many technically great drummers could never hope to reproduce Ringo’s distinctive style.
Ringo Starr is one of the most consistent, song-oriented drummers of all time. He is the perfect example of a drummer playing economically (without ever overplaying) to make each song as powerful as possible. He has a relaxed, dynamic, and solid feel that even more technically advanced drummers should strive for. His drumming was consistently in-the-pocket, emotive, creative, and musical.
Beyond that, he was always the egoless grounding force of The Beatles, even during the band’s most tumultuous times. John Lennon referred to Ringo as the heart of The Beatles. I honestly do not believe The Beatles would have developed into as musically innovative a band if they had played with any other drummer.

Source URL: http://web2.airmail.net/gshultz
Ringo Starr, the luckiest no-talent on earth. All he had to do was smile and bob his head. Oh yes, and keep a beat for three of the most talented musicians/songwriters of this century. What other impression could one have when judging the role that Ringo played in the success of the Beatles?
Did Ringo really make a difference? Upon listening to the latest release by The Beatles, Anthology 1, you get a chance to listen to Pete Best and two other drummers play on over twenty songs. Was Ringo simply in the right place at the right time? The following items may help in going beyond the image:
(1) Ringo was the first true rock drummer seen on TV. All the Rock & Roll drummers featured with Elvis, Bill Haley, Little Richard, Fats Domino and Jerry Lee Lewis were mostly R&B drummers that were making the transition from a swing drumming style of the 40′s and 50′s toward the louder and more “rocking” sound that is associated with “I Want To Hold Your Hand”. They were dressed in tuxedos and suits and held the drumsticks in the “traditional” manner of military, orchestra, and jazz drummers. Ringo showed the world that power was needed to put the emphasis on the “rock” in Rock & Roll music, so he gripped both sticks like hammers and proceeded to build a foundation for rock music.
(2) Ringo changed the way drummers hold their sticks by making popular the “matched” grip of holding drumsticks. Nearly all drummers in the Western World prior to Ringo held their sticks in what is termed the “traditional” grip, with the left hand stick held like a chopstick. This grip was originally developed by military drummers to accommodate the angle of the drum when strapped over the shoulder. Ringo’s grip changes the odd left hand to match the right hand, so that both sticks are held like a fly swatter. Rock drummers along with marching band and orchestral percussionists now mostly play with a “matched” grip, and drum companies have developed straps and accessories to accommodate them.

(3) Ringo started a trend of placing drummers on high risers so that they would be as visible as the other musicians. When Ringo appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964, he immediately caught the attention of thousands of “drummers-to-be” by towering over the other three Beatles. Elvis’s drummer was looking at a collection of backs.
(4) These same “wannabe” drummers also noticed that Ringo was playing Ludwig drums and they immediately went out and bought thousands of these drum sets, thus establishing Ludwig as the definitive name in Rock & Roll drums at that time.
(5) Ringo changed the sound of recorded drums. About the time of Rubber Soul (released Dec. 6,1965), the sound of the drum set started to become more distinct. Along with help from the engineers at Abbey Road studios, Ringo popularized a new sound for the drums by tuning them lower, deadening the tonal ring with muffling materials, and making them sound “closer” by putting a microphone on each drum.
(6) Ringo has nearly perfect tempo. This allowed the Beatles to record a song 50 or 60 times, and then be able to edit together different parts of many takes of the same song for the best possible version. Today an electronic metronome is used for the same purpose, but the Beatles had to depend on Ringo to keep the tempo consistent throughout the dozens of takes of the songs that you know and love so well. Had he not had this ability, the Beatles recordings would sound completely different today.
(7) Ringo’s “feel” for the beat serves as a standard for pop-rock record producers and drummers alike. It is relaxed, but never dragging. Solid, yet always breathing. And yes, there is a great amount of musical taste in his decisions of what to play and when to play it. In most recording sessions, the drummer’s performance acts as a barometer for the rest of the musicians. The stylistic direction, dynamics, and emotions are filtered through the drummer. He is the catcher to whom the pitcher/songwriter is throwing. If the drumming doesn’t feel good, the performance of any additional musicians is doomed from the start. The Beatles rarely if ever had this problem with Ringo.
(8 ) Ringo hated drum solos, which should win points with quite a few people. He only took one solo while with the Beatles. His eight measure solo appears during “The End” on the “B” side of Abbey Road. Some might say that it is not a great display of technical virtuosity, but they would be at least partly mistaken. You can set an electronic metronome to a perfect 126 beats per minute, then play it along with Ringo’s solo and the two will stay exactly together.
(9) Ringo’s ability to play odd time signatures helped to push popular songwriting into uncharted areas. Two examples are “All you Need is Love” in 7/4 time, and “Here Comes the Sun” with repeating 11/8, 4/4, and 7/8 passages in the chorus.
(10) Ringo’s proficiency in many different styles such as two beat swing (“When I’m Sixty-Four”), ballads (“Something”), R&B (“Leave My Kitten Alone” and “Taxman”) and country (the Rubber Soul album) helped the Beatles to explore many musical directions with ease. His pre-Beatles experience as a versatile and hard-working nightclub musician served him well.
(11) The idea that Ringo was a lucky Johnny-on-the-spot-with-a-showbiz-stage-name is wrong. In fact, when The Beatles producer George Martin expressed his unhappiness after the first session with original drummer Pete Best, the decision was made by Paul, George, and John to hire who they considered the best drummer in Liverpool – Ringo Starr. His personality was a bonus.
(12) The rumors that Ringo did not play on many of The Beatles songs because he was not good enough are also false. In fact, he played on every released Beatles recording (not including Anthology 1) that include drums except for the following: “Back In The USSR” and “Dear Prudence”, on which Paul played drums due to Ringo temporarily quitting the band, “The Ballad of John and Yoko”, again featuring Paul on drums because Ringo was off making a movie, and a 1962 release of “Love Me Do” featuring session drummer Andy White.
(13) When the Beatles broke up and they were all trying to get away from each other, John Lennon chose Ringo to play drums on his first solo record. As John once said, “If I get a thing going Ringo knows where to go, just like that…” A great songwriter could ask no more of a drummer. Except maybe to smile and bob his head.
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John Bryant is a 43-year-old session drummer and producer in Dallas, Texas. He has recorded and toured with Ray Charles, the Paul Winter Consort, and is currently a member of the percussion ensemble, D’Drum. In 1976, Mr. Bryant played a rehearsal with Paul McCartney and Wings when regular drummer Joe English became ill and could not make it. Mr. Bryant started playing drums after seeing Ringo Starr on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964.
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JOHN BRYANT NOTES: This story was written in reply to a previous story for The Dallas Morning News which described Ringo as an average drummer who got lucky. It is written within the context of modern Pop music; not to compare Ringo with jazz drummers of the 30′s, 40′s, and 50′s. Certainly Ringo was not the first drummer on a riser, but his visibility did proclaim him as an equal member of the band. This is significant because the earlier drummers were sidemen. Ringo was not the “first” drummer to play matched grip or to muffle his drums, but his exposure as a Beatle made him the leader to the masses.
url source: http://web2.airmail.net/gshultz/
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Quotes from Ringo’s band mates in The Beatles:
“Ringo is Ringo, that’s all there is to it. And he’s every bloody bit as warm, unassuming, funny, and kind as he seems. He was quite simply the heart of the Beatles.” – John Lennon
“Ringo’s just a lad. Everybody always loved him. And now that he’s all dried out, he’s just a lovable, interesting, intelligent bloke.” – Paul McCartney
“I didn’t like the look of Rory’s drummer myself. He looked the nasty one, with his little grey streak of hair. But the nastier one turned out to be Ringo, the nicest of them all. Playing without Ringo is like driving a car on three wheels.” - George Harrison

Kermit interviews Animal, discussing his influences and his love of drums. When animal mentions that he likes to eat his drums, Kermit says, “How ‘cymballic’,” prompting Animal to yell, “Bad pun! Bad pun!” Kermit decides not to replace Animal with a new drummer, Tony Checkers, after Animal beats Kermit senseless.
Attributes that Bands/Musicians Seek in a Drummer:
During the first drum solo on this compilation, Animal plays so fast that his drums go up in flames. The second drum duet is a classic drum-off between the great Buddy Rich and Animal. Buddy Rich’s talents cause Animal’s jaw to drop open, before he throws a drum at Buddy’s head in a fit of rage. This is one of the best Sesame Street sketches of all-time, AND it displays examples of rudimental techniques combined with great showmanship.
Animal shows how overplaying can annoy the other musicians in the band (and the audience). The singer Rita Moreno, is not impressed with Animal’s hilariously out-of-control playing during the song, “Fever.” When an aggravated Rita tells Animal to chill, he decides to play in an even louder and out of control manner.
Ringo Starr of the Beatles is an excellent example of an understated drummer who always supported the song structure with his drumming.
Mitch Mitchell of The Jimi Hendrix Experience is one of my favorite examples of a drummer who played more improvisationally while still maintaining a flowing groove. His creative and dynamic jazz fusion style relied more on interplay between the guitar and drums than is typical of most music. Listen to The Jimi Hendrix Experience album “Axis: Bold As Love” or “Live at Monterey” to hear Mitchell and Hendrix playing beautifully off of each other. The drum parts would be over the top in many other styles of music, but they mesh perfectly with Hendrix’s improvisational guitar style. Mitch Mitchell effectively combined improvisational jazz techniques with rock and blues guitar-oriented song structures.
Bert thinks of himself as one groovacious hepcat when he plays the bass drum. This was originally aired on the first season of Sesame Street (1969-1970). Ernie convinces Bert to jazz up his drum beat, and they play a duet of “Green Grass & High Tides.” I remember playing this very song in elementary band class, and it took a great deal of restraint to not start attacking the snare drum like Animal.
This update of a Sesame Street classic is GREAT! Bert tells Ernie that he is heading to the post office to mail a letter, and Ernie replies, “Okay, Bert. While you’re gone, I’m going to practice my drums.”
This video of Animal playing a large gong with his head was an acidental blooper from The Muppets Show.
Here is another drum battle featuring the percussive stylings of Animal. This time Animal is playing with Harry Belafonte. The expressions on Animal’s face while he watches Harry play are priceless. This is yet another example of why the original Sesame Street that started in 1969 is creatively superior to the supposedly “new and improved” Sesame Street. I realize now that my eclectic tastes in music were at least somewhat shaped by the music of Sesame Street. The fact that my parents listened to Led Zeppelin, The Grateful Dead, The Rolling Stones, The Doors, The Allman Brothers, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Ten Years After, Van Morrison, Frank Zappa, and all kinds of other great music during my formative years may have been another contributing factor. Animal became famous playing with Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem on the Muppets Show. Animal’s wild and loose drumming style is based on that of Keith Moon of the Who.
James Coburn attempts to teach Animal the importance of relaxation and meditation.
Animal prefers to exuberantly attack the drums, foregoing any relaxation techniques. He uses his inner turmoil and aggression to attack the drums (and occasionally Kermit and other innocent bystanders). I really can’t blame the guy, seeing as how he is locked up in cuffs and chains between gigs…

Dave, Josh, & John circling around and locking into the groove… ~ THEM CROOKED VULTURES
Watch & Listen!: INTERVIEW with Dave Grohl about his new band…
Watch & Listen!: “REPTILES” (Live)
Watch & Listen!: “ELEPHANTS” (Live)
Watch & Listen!: “NEW FANG” (Live @ The Reading Festival, 2009)
Watch & Listen!: “DAFFODILS” (Live @ The Lowlands, 2009)
Listen!: “CALIGULOVE” (Studio version)
One of the BEST Supergroups of All-Time in this Universe: THEM CROOKED VULTURES
Josh Homme ~ Guitar, Vocals (Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, The Desert Sessions, Eagles of Death Metal drummer, Screaming Trees ’96 Lollapalooza tour, many other collaborations)
John Paul Jones ~ Bass Guitar (Led Zeppelin, accomplished producer, The Man, The Myth, The Legend…)
Dave Grohl ~ Drums (Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, Probot, Tenacious D, Nine Inch Nails)
COMMENT BELOW with your opinions about this monstrous creation of a band. THEM CROOKED VULTURES… Circling around a town near you soon. The planets and the stars aligned perfectly to create this Uber-Band oozing talent, groove, & raw energy…
Click on each band member’s name for interesting background information about their history in various bands, collaborations, projects, & lives!
April 6, 2010 – Berlin (Germany)
venue: Quasimodo
www.quasimodo.de
April 7, 2010 – Hamburg (Germany)
venue: Fabrik
www.fabrik.de
April 8, 2010 – Amsterdam (Holland)
venue: Paradiso
www.paradiso.nl
April 9, 2010 – Zoetermeer (Holland)
venue: Boerderij
www.boerderij.org
April 10, 2010 – Münster (Germany)
venue: Jovel
www.jovel.de
April 11, 2010 – Groningen (Holland)
venue: Oosterpoort
www.de-oosterpoort.nl
April 12, 2010 – Limbourg (Belgium)
venue: Salle Le Kursaal
www.lekursaal.be,
April 13, 2010 – Bonn (Germany)
venue: Harmonie
www.harmonie-bonn.de
April 14, 2010 – Ludwigshafen (Germany)
venue: KUZ Dashaus
www.dashaus-lu.de
April 15, 2010 – Eindhoven (Holland)
venue: Muziek Centrum Frits Philips
www.muziekcentrum.nl
April 16, 2010 – Karlsruhe (Germany)
venue: Tollhaus
www.tollhaus.de
April 17, 2010 – Dornbirn (Austria)
venue: Das Haus Spielboden
www.spielboden.at
April 18, 2010 – Trezzo Sull’Adda, Milano (Italy)
venue: Live Club
www.liveclub.it
April 19, 2010 – Zurich (Switzerland))
venue: Moods
www.moods.ch
April 21, 2010 – Vienna (Austria)
venue: Planet.tt
www.planet.tt
April 22, 2010 – Ostrava (Czech Republik)
venue: Fabric Club
www.fabric.cz
April 23, 2010 – Prague (Czech Republik)
venue: Lucerna Music Bar
www.musicbar.cz
April 24, 2010 – Opole (Poland)
open air festival venue: TO BE ANNOUNCED
April 25, 2010 – Katowice (Poland)
venue: Mega Club
www.megaclub.pl