Jeremy Bender
Platinum Member
Intereting lessson and presentation-
My dad (a non-musician) made an interesting observation when I was younger....he found that jazz musicians can usually play rock pretty well, but rock musicians rarely could play jazz. I find that fairly true in my experience.
My dad (a non-musician) made an interesting observation when I was younger....he found that jazz musicians can usually play rock pretty well, but rock musicians rarely could play jazz. I find that fairly true in my experience.
Steve is the man. He will go down in drum history.Just yesterday I was reading a thread from C.M. Jones about his new A Avedis Cymbals and I went on YT listen to their sound and found this video of Steve Smith. For me, he is an example of a Jazz drummer playing rock and that's what I hear totally in the video. First part is a rock groove then jazz.
I think he is amazing.
This is the video of the amazing cymbals too.
It very much depends on the drummer in question. I've known jazz players who just don't grasp the concept of a backbeat. Rather than laying down a rock-solid groove and keeping it simple, they feel obligated to throw in a bunch of accents and chops. Busy playing is the norm for them, and it just doesn't translate well to certain applications.
^^^ nailed itMainly they just move in different communities of musicians, and play different music, except most jazz drummers also play rock gigs at one time or another, and have to play rock tunes on other kinds of gigs, and probably started out as rock drummers.
Jazz isn't really a single genre any more, so maybe "jazz drummer" implies a broader range of skills, including playing rock, than "rock drummer" does.
What the best rock drummers do is a special thing, though, that it's difficult for mainly-jazz drummers to duplicate-- if they're not really serious about pop craft and simplicity. Plus you can't just go into another community and expect to be handed great gigs just because it's easy for you to play the notes.
Is that what he says in the video? I can't really watch his stuff.
I have this problem, hence the reason I started "The Unwavering Drummer" thread a week or so ago. Not stuffing 16ths into everything is an exercise in self control for me.
Just yesterday I was reading a thread from C.M. Jones about his new A Avedis Cymbals and I went on YT listen to their sound and found this video of Steve Smith. For me, he is an example of a Jazz drummer playing rock and that's what I hear totally in the video. First part is a rock groove then jazz.
I just watched this really interesting video where John Riley and Zildjian's Director of Cymbal Innovation discuss the A Avedis range, and compare them to actual vintage As from the 1930s-50s. If you're into cymbal-making and cymbal history, it's definitely worth checking out.Quite pleased with my A Avedis lineup so far. And Steve is one of those guys who can play any genre to perfection. He's a drummer without limits. Those are VERY rare.
Good video. Ed O'Shaughnessy once explained in a clinic that the dominant hand is the "money hand" in jazz. It's used chiefly for timekeeping on the ride, freeing up the non-dominant hand for embellishments. Just the opposite applies in rock, where the non-dominant hand falls like a lever on the backbeat, allowing the dominant hand to embellish. The two styles are somewhat inverted in that sense.
I'm going to partially disagree, with respect. The backbeat is, indeed, extremely important in rock/pop/whathaveyou, but I would by no means discount the dominant hand. For me, the dominant hand is one of the things that makes guys like Steve Jordan, JJ Johnson, Keith Carlock, etc., etc., so great. Focus in on the hihat or rides of one of those guys. They groove so hard, and ooze nuance and subtlety, just like a "jazz" drummer's ride cymbal. That's what is most often carrying the groove.
There is only one way for rock. The Phil Rudd way. And there is only one way for jazz. The Antonio Sanchez way.There are lots of ways to play rock, just as there are lots of ways to play jazz.