EPIC drum fills...

Supernoodle

Senior Member
They probably aren't done in pop music anymore, but what are the most epic fills ever recorded?

First one I would think of: Alone by Heart, at 2:00... (Denny Carmassi)
 
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I had to find the Heart song to determine what you considered epic, so the two I can think of off hand that fit within the current definition would be:
Jack and Diane - John Meloncamp at 2:30
In The Air Tonight - Phil Collins at 3:40

Oh, a couple more:
Final Countdown - Europe at 3:12
Rio - Duran Duran - Intro
 
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YYZ has some pretty epic drum fills, plenty of Rush does, remembering back 30 years or so. Lately Ive been checking out some live 70's Jethro Tull and Barriemore can do those type of fills and more....improvised! Now thats what Im talking about. The energy level and technique required for that gig on that 30 piece vista light kit is mind blowing to me.
 
My go-to for this questions, and one of my personal favorites for it's simplistic, yet profound impact on the tune has been the fill after guitar\organ "solo" on "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf (drummer: Jerry Edmonton I believe).

At 2:14 here:
 
Hard to say if considered "epic" or not, but I think notable/memorable describes lots of these mentioned.

(to me- Epic is sorta like HUGE sounding as well as memorable/cool etc.)


And on that note, here's one that sounds so cool, coming in after a more mellow part (relatively, of course).

That would be this part. Start at about 2:40 (Or even earlier for best results/feel).

Simple minds_ don't you forget bout me (you know the part- the snare/hat dealio just sounds awesome to me.):


I absolutely kill it - (while listening in my car) - behind the kit, not so much :/


T.
 
This story of how Kenny Aronoff kept his job thanks to his largely unplanned part on "Jack and Diane" may be well-known to others, but I only read about it for the first time a few months back:

John didn’t like anything I did. I went into the control room to discuss what I was playing. Everyone was trying to make suggestions to me about what to play, and it actually was more confusing than helpful. As I walked back to my kit I realized that if I didn’t come up with a part, John would bring someone else into the studio to play the drums. There was no way I wanted that to happen.

I had twenty-five feet to walk over to my kit and figure it out…twenty…fifteen…ten…5…. I still wasn’t sure what I was going to play. I sat at my drums, and—bam
 
Yeah that one!!!!

My go-to for this questions, and one of my personal favorites for it's simplistic, yet profound impact on the tune has been the fill after guitar\organ "solo" on "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf (drummer: Jerry Edmonton I believe).

At 2:14 here:
 
3:50



2:50

 
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I always liked all the fills during Jimi's "Hey Joe"
Paice-ey
 
o snap, how could I forget Carter ..


The "fills" start at 11:00 min (to be safe).. Now, yea, it sounds sorta like a solo there for a min, but I like to think of it a series of small "EPIC" fills. ;)




Now that I'm thinkin bout it, I think most songs Carter plays have epic fills in them. I'm not really a DMB fan (my wife is) but Im a huuuge Carter fan. Strange, I know. I never know the names of songs, so its hard for me to search out the EPIC-est fills, but they are out there. Baleedat!

T.
 
Ya they are a wicked band, seen DMB live a few times.. fun party band - but none of the tunes stick in your head. They are almost impossible to sing.. all his melody lines are built on weird inflections of semi-tones. I don't know how he does it..
 
The intro to 'Owner of a Lonely Heart' by Yes. Alan White on drums.
 
At 3:22, Mickey Curry on this Hall & Oates track..

In my opinion a perfect example of a simple but hugely effective fill..

 
Hotel California Eagles
Fat Bottom Girls (final chorus fill) Queen
The Kid is Hot Tonite (Solo ending fill) Loverboy
We’re an American band (fill intro) Grand Funk
Shandi Kiss
Questions 67 and 68 intro Chicago
le Grange ZZ Top

I don’t know why but I always liked the snare sound on Tommy Roe’s “Dizzy” - so I could never get enough of the fills if that makes sense.
 
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