what cowbell to buy?

Mike7300

Member
Im looking for a cowbell so i can play i break everything i touch by Jason Aldean, and possibly use it for a few other country songs that use it. What do you recommend for cowbell and mount?

Also is there a way to play the cowbell, high hat, and snare at the same time? Im new to drumming, so i wasn't sure if that is possible.
 
I use this for some of my gigs. Its the Pearl PPS20 percussion pedal mount. You can play the cowbell with your hi hat foot while you groove like normal with you other limbs.
 

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I have an LP cowbell and I think it's great. But honestly, no two cowbells are the same. I would start shopping at local drum shops and hit them all to see which one best suites your needs. Happy shopping!
 
I have an LP cowbell and I think it's great. But honestly, no two cowbells are the same. I would start shopping at local drum shops and hit them all to see which one best suites your needs. Happy shopping!

i will second this.

LP is a band you should definitely look at too, i feel like they specialize in misc. percussion gear like this hah
 
Agreed, cowbells span a wide range of sounds. You'll find the sound you want with Rhythm Tech or LP, both have a nice assortment if you go to a well stocked shop.

Bermuda
 
I'm a cowbell junkie...I have at least 10 of them. I started collecting them before the SNL skit, thank you very much.

You're gonna want an LP Classic Rock Ridge Rider. It's quite possibly the best "drumset" cowbell you can buy. Nice deep tone and will last forever. This is an especially good bell for a new drummer who doesn't have cowbell technique yet and would probably crush in any other bell. Yeah, it's more expensive, buy will save you from buying several other cowbells.

I also have a couple LPs in 4.5", 7", 8". Some that are handmade, some that are literally cow bells, a generic bell that was $5 brand new that sounds every bit as good as my LP bells (but will crush if you play it wrong).
 
LP was my first cowbell and it had that classic, deep tone. I bought a Pearl Anarchy because it looked cool with spikes on it but I hate the tone of it, its too hight pitched. If I do the intro to American Band it sounds crappy to me now.
 
I have found that a short cowbell such as the LP Black Beauty works well for Latin rhythms, and I have used the LP Timbale model for more rock-type stuff. It has a nice low note and plenty of projection.
 
I bought a Pearl Anarchy because it looked cool with spikes on it but I hate the tone of it, its too hight pitched.
i got one of those things, and i, too, hated the sound- until i made a startling discovery. there is a FOAM DAMPER inside. i removed the damper, and it now sounds like hoped it would. why would they do such a thing?
 
Im looking for a cowbell so i can play i break everything i touch by Jason Aldean, and possibly use it for a few other country songs that use it. What do you recommend for cowbell and mount?

Also is there a way to play the cowbell, high hat, and snare at the same time? Im new to drumming, so i wasn't sure if that is possible.

When you go to the Guitar Center, check out the cowbell mounts they have. Usually they have two kinds, one to mount on the hoop of your bass drum, and one that's like a multi-clamp you can use on a cymbal stand. The poster who posted the foot-mounted cowbell mount picture, yes, there's those too, but it sounds like you don't need that.

I use an LP Mambo cowbell for pretty everything because it's low-pitched enough, but when you play it towards the mount end, the pitch goes up a little. I think all cowbells do that. That one is about 7" long, cost me about $27 fifteen years ago. A good rule of thumb is to get a fairly heavy duty cowbell mount because the bells are a bit heavier than they look, adn if you mount it on your bass drum hoop, that's alot of weight and over time you can start to bend the hoop, but not always.

As far as playing, I rarely play both hi-hat and cowbell at the same time, so it's either going to be one or the other. If you ever listened to the Rolling Stones' Honky Tonk Woman (who hasn't?) you'll hear hi-hat in the background, which means someone else was playing the cowbell, or it was an overdub. But if the cowbell part is the important part, then you play that, and it becomes your hi-hat part. Good luck!
 
...As far as playing, I rarely play both hi-hat and cowbell at the same time, so it's either going to be one or the other. If you ever listened to the Rolling Stones' Honky Tonk Woman (who hasn't?) you'll hear hi-hat in the background, which means someone else was playing the cowbell, or it was an overdub. But if the cowbell part is the important part, then you play that, and it becomes your hi-hat part. Good luck!

Sorry for swerving the thread, but I have a question for Bo.

When you play Honky Tonk Woman, after you get past the intro (cowbell: 1 and, and 3, 4) do you play the cowbell:
- al through the whole song?
- 1/8 notes?
- same as the intro?
- something different?

Thanks, in advance, for the advice.
 
Sorry for swerving the thread, but I have a question for Bo.

When you play Honky Tonk Woman, after you get past the intro (cowbell: 1 and, and 3, 4) do you play the cowbell:
- al through the whole song?
- 1/8 notes?
- same as the intro?
- something different?

Thanks, in advance, for the advice.

Sorry to contribute to the swerve, but when I play the cowbell part, I play that pattern through the verses, but on the choruses I'll go to a slightly sloshy hi-hat to phatten it up a bit depending on the band playing it, but yeah, it's integral to the song so I stay on it. Figuring out the intro when I was younger was such an achievement! Who knew I'd also have to sing the song at the same time in later years!
 
What mount do most people use, and where do they mount it? Im a beginner, so i need some direction. thanks

More cowbell! http://www.laughness.com/snl-gotta-have-more-cowbell-original-skit.1126

No but seriously you can mount it on your bass drum hoop
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Meinl-Bass-Drum-Cowbell-Holder-445083-i1138427.gc

cymbal stand
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gibraltar-SC-AM1-Cowbell-Mount-100319466-i1139075.gc

just go to guitar center and search for cowbell mount or ask at your local drum shop. I mounted mine on a cymbal stand because I do not like mounting anything on my bass drum hoops and it has a wider variety of applications. I got this one http://www.guitarcenter.com/Pearl-P...h-Quick-Release-Bracket-101178697-i1140462.gc
 
Try and hit the devil´s cowbell... It might take you from here to eternity! :´)
 

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What cowbell did Gene Frenkle play on "Don't Fear The Reaper"?
 
I have found that a short cowbell such as the LP Black Beauty works well for Latin rhythms, and I have used the LP Timbale model for more rock-type stuff. It has a nice low note and plenty of projection.

Same here except I use the LP Mambo cowbell for the lower pitched stuff.

I have both the Mambo and Black Beauty on my kit. BB on the bass drum and the Mambo mounted to the right of my floor tom.
 
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