An honest take on Everybody Wants To Rule The World by Tears for Fears

Robin

Robin

Senior Member
Hi everybody! I recently listened to this song, and noticed the drums in this is deceptively difficult. I watched some videos where they debate the drum part, and saw the different challenges that people do with this song etc. I wanted to try and (mostly 😂) get the drum part correct. Didn’t quite get it, but still satisfied with the results, did my own little spin on it. Link down below!

Tears For Fears - Everbody Wants To Rule The World
 
We used to play this in my old wedding band.....it isn't as easy as people think, but once the triplet feel hits home, it sticks with you as an "a ha!" moment.

It was one of those tunes that an occasional random drummer in the audience would talk to me about afterwards about how deceptive it is......

Well played
 
Great job and it makes me happy to see you playing the hats how we hear it. Every, and I mean every video ive ever watched the drummer lacks there. I did a cover of this a couple years ago and play it on the hats, the same exact way.
 
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Moejo said:
Great job and it makes me happy to see you playing the hats how we hear it. Every, and I mean every video ive ever watched the drummer lacks there. I did a cover of this a couple years ago and play it the hats, the same exact way.
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Yeah, that’s the thing, everybody seems to have a different opinion on how the hats are actually played. I feel like just playing the accents is taking the easy way out.
 
Robin said:
Yeah, that’s the thing, everybody seems to have a different opinion on how the hats are actually played. I feel like just playing the accents is taking the easy way out.
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I disagree. For one, on the original recording you don’t hear the hi hats between the accents - so I don’t think it’s an interpretation thing. They’re just not there. And I think to only play the accents is harder because you’re not using the crutch of the non-accented notes to keep your placement of the accented ones. The groove is really established between the bass drum pattern and the hi hat accents - that’s why it feels more open while propelling the song forward.
 
Robin said:
Hi everybody! I recently listened to this song, and noticed the drums in this is deceptively difficult. I watched some videos where they debate the drum part, and saw the different challenges that people do with this song etc. I wanted to try and (mostly 😂) get the drum part correct. Didn’t quite get it, but still satisfied with the results, did my own little spin on it. Link down below!

Tears For Fears - Everbody Wants To Rule The World
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I think he plays it correctly:


He plays the main part correctly then he goes on a tangent.
 
I think the problem is there are different videos of the song with different drummers. Like I think one of the first videos is this one where you only see the drummer a bit and I wonder is he playing on video what he played on recording.
I think this drummer was following what he could make of that on hats. But what I hear on recording don't match that-I think he's looking at bleep of drummer on video.
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Our band is leaning it now. I've really enjoyed working it up, it's such a tasteful drum part.
 
I've never thought for one second that those triplet hats were actually played as part of the live drum track. To my ears, it just screams "Overdub!" Or more specifically "Drum Machine Programmed Part That Plays From Beginning To End - Only Being Turned Down A Bit During The Bridge".

I think it is cool how folks have tried to cop something similar as a single performance - but just don't her that as being what's on the record.
 
Chris Whitten said:
The actual drum part is simple. There is a 3 against 4 shaker part, which sounds like hi-hat, programmed.
Since it's release most drummers have tried to combine the main drums with the programmed shaker/hat.
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And that (the shaker part) is what everybody is counting as a Hi Hat part. No, the drummer doesn't play that (at least the drummer doesn't play that at the same time as the hi hats) Although... given the speed of the song you could technically play the shaker with the left hand and the rest of the kit with the right. But I still believe the shaker was separate.
 
I was shedding on this couple of years ago and this take from an early effort trying to figure it out from just listening (so it's real messy) -I didn't have a transcription. At this point I had the impression of a quick double kick driving shuffle, but then later I'm thinking no that's all wrong and it's just quarters on kick. Now I just found this transcription on Amazon and I can see why the confusion (I have no idea of veracity of transription). https://s3.amazonaws.com/sdssheetmusic/2018/June/Everybody+Wants+to+Rule+the+World.pdf
 
Chris Whitten said:
The actual drum part is simple. There is a 3 against 4 shaker part, which sounds like hi-hat, programmed.
Since it's release most drummers have tried to combine the main drums with the programmed shaker/hat.
Click to expand...

From a recording perspective, this makes a ton of sense to me. From a live gig perspective I think anything that captures the "feel" of the song is all that matters from a "cover" perspective and that is the approach I took with it when I had to play it. I created the 3 against 4 feel by approaching it in a Garibaldi style (at least that approach was in my head) with the right hand playing hats and the left staying on the snare ghosting the non 2 & 4 triplets which leaves the hats largely playing that shaker/hat 3 against 4 piece.
 
I only hear the accents on the original version too. Something else to remember is the bass drum part is a drum machine - I've actually heard the multitracks, it's amazing what you can find on the internet. :ROFLMAO:
 
I've never heard it as a straight note thing, and I guess I'm in the "accent" camp, though I almost wouldn't call them that in this context because they aren't really louder than any un-accented notes as they are in OP's interpretation.

I've also played it two-handed 16th-value style like that and I always go back to the more interesting pattern, what some of us are thinking of as the accents. It just sounds better and has the right feel from the record. To be fully honest I think when I play it there's a sort of shuffly feel I impart on the hat stuff cause I like it that way.
 
GetAgrippa said:
I think the problem is there are different videos of the song with different drummers.
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If you watch a live video (enclosed), if you consider they play the song in 4/4, the drummer plays the hihat in 1/4 note triplets, you hear on top the 1/8 note triplets but it´s a drum computer...

I think all the examples posted sounded fine to me starting with the drummer from Sweeden to the one from Estepario with the most audacity and creativity, all good!

An addition, talking about creativity!:
 
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If I was going to play it as a cover I'd play 4 on the kick, or 1 & 3, with 2 & 4 on snare. 12/8 hi-hat, with an accent on 2, 4, 6 - 8. 10, 12.
The fills should be two handed as it sounds smoother with better dynamics.
 
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