Saturday, November 19, 2011

Are you Serious?

The first band I joined (in 1973) was a Rock 4-piece by the name of Renegade Jones.  I was the "baby" of the band, being a mere 18 years old.  The rest of the guys were around 25, which (for me at the time) was OLD!  It's all relative, of course!

Adrian Pearce was the lead singer, guitarist, Neil Beshuri on lead guitar & vocals,  and Paul Dunne on bass/vocals. We had a manager: Laurie Jay (ex-drummer of 60's group, The Echos and replaced in that group by a certain Ringo Starr!).  He really fit well into that stereotypical manager image: larger-than-life, effusive, cigar-smoking impresario-type.  A loveable rogue.  But he was also a networker.

One of the first "gigs" he got for us was a residency at Hatchett's, a West-End night club owned by a friend of his (of course).  We played there 6 nights a week for several months - from 9pm until 2am. I can tell you it was an eye-opener for me!

Just an interesting side note: about a block away from Hatchett's was the only place you could get a bite to eat late at night.  It was an American-Style diner - and there was a 1950's cadillac sticking out of the front of the building!  The name of this place?  The Hard Rock Cafe.  Yes,  this was the original Hard Rock. The one that started it all. It was ideally located to serve hungry people on their way from all the theatres & clubs in the West End of London.  What a piece of genius: judge the market and exploit it!

SO, there I was, barely 18 and playing a night club with a rock band.  I must say, I was pretty happy with things.  of course the pay was derisory, but that didn't worry me in the slightest. I was a professional musician!

I must admit, though, the novelty soon wore off (for us all). Hatchett's was one of the many "pick-up" joints in London.  The crowd were not exactly interested in us.  Playing for hours on end to a motley group of people, drinking, talking and ignoring us wasn't what we had in mind when we turned Pro.  We were wallpaper, background, decoration. After a few weeks we got a little lackadaisical about our playing: jaded, tired, slapdash (no more so than the Beatles did at the Star Club in Hamburg, by the way.  If you've heard any of the recordings of their time there, they weren't exactly being serious about their craft, either).

One night, Laurie paid us a visit (for the first time since he'd installed us there).  He sat at the bar & watched a set.  When we got back to the minute dressing room for a break, he burst in, face purple with anger: "Are you serious?" he said.  We laughed, embarrassed and unsure.  We didn't really know how to interpret what he was saying.  He repeated: "Are you SERIOUS?"   "About what?" said one of us.  "About this crappy place?"  Laurie's face turned an even darker shade of purple: "No, you idiots, about being professional musicians! You look like a bunch of jokers out there.  You're not entertaining anyone."  "But they're not interested in us." we said.   Well I thought Laurie was going to burst a blood vessel! "No, you fools! Of course they aren't!  But if YOU are serious about being entertainers, then that's what you must do:  ENTERTAIN!  It's up to them if they listen or not, but at least you could give them something to LISTEN TO!"

At that moment, I got it!  I think we all did.  The next set was a considerable step UP on what we had been doing before.  I watched Laurie at the bar - he gave us the thumbs-up, as if to say "That's what I meant!" We played as if we were at Wembley Arena, performing to packed house of dedicated fans, all there to see us, and only us!

Later that year, we got a tour of American bases in Germany.  In fact we spent Christmas & New Year of 1973/74 in West Germany, playing 6 nights a week, 5 hours a night to American soldiers.  Apart from the van breaking down on the way to the first gig - on the German autobahn in a freezing blizzard (and having to airfreight parts out to fix it), and the roach-infested hotels we were put in, we had an amazing time.  First, the GI's listened.  They "dug" us, they befriended us, and they wined & dined us. We learned a huge number of extra songs they requested, specifically because they'd buy us drinks & burgers to say "thanks" when we did.  They would accompany us to the PX store, where we could buy heavily discounted goods (US military subsidised). Wed been seriously ripped off by the agency that booked us, and our pay wasn't exactly enough to get by on,  so this was really welcome. In fact we would not have made it through those months if it hadn't been for the soldiers' generosity.  And every show we played was fully-committed entertainment.

So... "Are you serious?"  -That stuck with me forever.

Laurie went on to manage a number of artists, including Billy Ocean & Shirley Bassey.
Renegade Jones ended up splitting due to "Musical Differences" (actually more like not being able to make ends meet). We were driven (literally) off the road by mounting gas prices eroding our weekly wage until it was no longer viable for us to tour. But it was an amazing grounding for what was to come - for me anyway. 

Friday, November 18, 2011

To publicise or not to publicise...

Having been in this business for over 38 years now, I have become accustomed to a system that pretty-well relies on referrals for work.

I've had a manager: he did nothing but price me out of the market and annoy my existing clients (much of which I only found out later).  So I gave up that idea.

When I first moved to Nashville, I hired a publicist.  She did a lot of great work, introducing me to all kinds of people - none of whom ever booked me for anything!  In fact most of the time they crossed their arms and said: "I don't care who you are, it's going to take you 5 years to establish yourself in THIS town!" As a side note, I actually got the Trisha Yearwood 2000 tour by auditioning for the gig.  even then, I wasn't originally chosen (it went to a "younger person"). When things didn't work out with that person, I rushed in to fill the gap at 3 days' notice. I suppose it was some small testimony to my abilities at the time that I was able to walk into a gig like that with no rehearsal: simply 3 days of "woodshedding" the tunes, followed by a long sound check on the first show!

I have had an agent (I have one now, but mainly for photographic/acting jobs, which is another kettle of fish altogether).  My "agent" failed to get anyone interested in me in the slightest.

Looking back over nearly four decades of life as a professional musician, I can honestly say that just about 100% of my work has been through first-hand referrals.  In other words, the ultimate viral-marketing exercise.

I remember something one of my early benefactors (Muff Winwood, manager of Island Studios at the time) once said to me: "Never turn ANYTHING down!  You never know where it might lead."  And I took him at his word.  I did pub gigs, club dates, small demo sessions, cabaret backing gigs, anything I was offered.  Sure enough, within the space of 5 years my reputation had grown exponentially.  I was starting to get some high-end recording sessions, people were contacting me for tours.  In short, the word had spread.  By 1978 I was recording master sessions.  In 1979 I was offered a position in the the Tom Robinson Band: a time I will always cherish. We toured Europe, then the USA, and I gained an incredible insight into the workings of the Biz! Even though the band was tearing itself apart, I had the time of my life.

SO, by the late 70's I was experiencing life at the top end of the industry: major gigs, top sessions etc. I was on the books of several session "fixers" (as they are known in the UK - Union approved bookers who set up sessions for clients). By 1981, I had recorded sessions for Kate Bush, Judie Tzuke, the Tom Robinson Band, all of which had seen chart success.  All of these referrals were by word-of-mouth.

By 1983 I was one of the busiest session drummers in the UK.  I could work non-stop, if I chose.  Clients were "fitting me in" based on availability.  I was probably in the studio an average of 80 hours a week.

When I met Elton in early 1985 it was mainly because he had heard my work on Nik Kershaw's multi-million-selling "Human racing" album. Nik appeared as a guest on his "Ice on Fire" album, and during the session Elton asked Nik about me.  Nik gave me a glowing reference, and the rest was history.  I ended up recording 3 tracks for Elton in April of 1985. During those sessions, he asked if I would consider being in his band for a "little charity event I'm playing at Wembley."  That turned out to be Live Aid!  Later that year we went into rehearsals, and toured the world with that lineup for the next 18 months!

Basically speaking, all these referrals were almost exclusively by word-of-mouth. Of course, they were also "performance-based" - I couldn't get the work if I didn't have some ability to achieve what my client had in mind.
--------------------------------------
Scrolling on..... to now(-ish).

The one thing I've never really been good at through all this is SELF-publicity.  Because the vast majority of what I did was based on third-party referrals, MY part was to simply do my job to the best of my ability.  The rest just slotted into place. My resumé simply spoke for itself.

But that is not enough in the modern-day chaos of Internet publicity, social media and viral-marketing.  So this old dog is learning a few tricks.  For me to tap the truly enormous market out there, I have to be pro-active about it.  This goes against the grain for we Brits!

I have a web site, two actually.  My "fan" site is www.manicdrums.com.  My work-related site is www.manicdrumsproductions.com. I also have FaceBook pages, both personal and a "Band" page, but I haven't really done much with either.  I'm also on Google+, MySpace (who goes there anymore?), LinkedIn, Plaxo (whatever that's worth) and Manta.  You'd think I would be flooded with referrals, but apparently it is not enough to simply HAVE these sites.  You have to work them - intelligently.  Which is why I am now learning all about how to drive people TO these places, and how to coordinate them to do the job for which they were intended.

This is one of the steepest learning curves I have encountered in almost 4 decades!
Back to work!!!

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Rick Springfield: Hard Rock Velvet Sessions

How to tap into the pulse of the People?  Deliver Rock & Roll in its purest form to them.

This is what Rick Springfield did on Friday night at the Hard Rock Hotel.

As a songwriter, Springfield has always piqued my interest. He writes Pop songs in the truest sense of the word: riff-based Rock with lyrics about everyday life.  Stuff his fans relate to - understand. But it's the whole package that they really go for: he is living that Rock & Roll dream to which they aspire.

Friday's "Velvet Sessions" in the lobby of the Orlando Hard Rock Hotel was packed to bursting point.  The tickets were at a premium, but I managed to pull a few strings (having played the Velvet Sessions a couple of times, myself).

The excitement was tangible. This was a huge draw, not that they haven't had great acts here in the past, but this was as big as I've seen in a long time (especially given the current state of the economy).

Rick didn't leave his fans waiting for long.  He came on just a few minutes past the posted showtime, heralded by an opening pre-roll that built to a climax. It was LOUD! Not painful, but enough to turn everybody's attention to the stage. And he delivered: from the very opening guitar riff, to the last dying chord. he was accessible to the crowd, too. He reached out to them - laughing, cracking jokes, chatting with the people squeezed into the front few rows. He kept teasing the fans with the opening riff to "Jessie's Girl" - then, with a cheeky smile and a sideways glance, he'd launch into something else. Of course, he saved that song until last, not that he's a one-hit-wonder: there were plenty of recognisable tunes beforehand.  He's written his fair share of great songs (at least in my opinion).

His band were totally committed: delivering high energy, enthusiasm and tightness. Backup vocals were spot-on. They changed tempo and pace in slick, well-rehearsed fashion, backing up their "star" the entire time. And he was laughing & joking with them: they were an integral part of the whole spectacle.  He brought them into his world, if only for a few minutes. They were living the Rock & Roll dream.

This is the key: Entertainment.  He never once forgot that he was there to entertain those who had taken the trouble to come and see him.  He's been in this business since the 1960's, and yet his attitude is fresh, flirty and fun! His fans left the Velvet Sessions on Friday night,  feeling satisfied.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

DrumLoops as downloads

I've just posted two albums of drum loops on vibedeck.com 
You can download individual loops (after reviewing them using the streaming player) or each of the collections as albums.  Let me know what you think. also let me know what you'd like to hear in the way of future drum loops

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Natal Drums

I have recently been approached by Natal Drums, who have expressed an interest in me endorsing their product line.  After a very positive talk with their artist liaison, I am pleased to announce I am to become part of their roster.  I am very excited.  They have a wonderful new drum product line, and great support worldwide.  I hope to be pro-active in the development of new drums,  and also hope to be able to promote their product with clinics and master classes.

After 31 years as an official Premier endorsee (is this a record?), I realised that they were no longer able to provide the support I needed in the USA. I have watched their recent progress with mixed emotions.  I wish everyone at Premier well, and thank them for everything.

MIke Dolbear's recent review


The Drum Decade: Stories from the 1950's

Friday, January 14, 2011

Ringo Starr: more thoughts

After the dust settled on last night's first performance of the "new" Mystery Trip band, in Woodbury Tennessee, I had time to reflect on it.  While I was driving home in the freezing conditions, I mused that it took a kit with 4 toms and 2 snares to even come CLOSE to re-creating the different drums sounds Ringo had on those albums, which were, when you look at it, all recorded in a mere 7 year period.



It still amazes me just how much the Beatles changed the way we listen to (and record) music in such a short time.  The same goes for Ringo (and to a certain extent, engineer Geoff Emerick).  If the truth be known, I would probably have to have had at least 3 kits to accurately recreate the evolution of Ringo's drum sound.  From the relatively standard drum sound of the early sixties, to the experimental sounds from Rubber Soul onwards, Emerick and Starr were constantly trying new methods of miking, damping tuning etc...

We owe them everything we do now!

Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles
All You Need Is Ears: The inside personal story of the genius who created The Beatles
British Audio Engineers: Geoff Emerick, Glyn Johns, Steven Wilson, Alan Parsons, James Guthrie, Nigel Godrich, George Shilling, Nick Launay

Ringo Starr: A Life
The Ringo Starr Encyclopedia
Ringo Starr, Second Edition (Beatles)

Friday, January 7, 2011

drum machines vs real drums

My early session career spanned the era of the first drum machines: LinnDrum, Oberheim DMX etc...  In fact I was involved with Simmons Electronics on the development of their drum sequencer she SDS6.  For quite a large part of the 1980's I programmed drums almost as much as I played them.  I remember all kinds of dire predictions that "drums were dead" and "the age of the drum machine is here" and other such omens of disaster for drummer everywhere.  The funny thing is, we didn't disappear!

As with any new fad, it eventually reached an equilibrium.  In fact I would say things started to come back the other way.  In an attempt to stop everything from sounding the same (which was the case with a lot of 80's Synth-driven Pop music), people started adding real drums on top of synth sequences.

In fact there was a lot of work for those of us who were able to play in time with clicks and sequences,  and I really started to get a lot of session work, overdubbing drums onto existing tracks. Nik Kershaw's first album, Human Racing,  was almost entirely finished (using an Oberheim DMX as "drummer") before the producer (Peter Collins) and engineer (Julian Mendelsohn) decided it was feeling a bit "stodgy" and Julian persuaded Peter to draft me in to play drums on top of the existing tracks.  This somehow breathed a new lease of life into the album. At one point in the sessions, they were curious as to WHY real drums 'felt' better than the beautifully programmed drum machine.  So Julian ran a few tests, and this is what he discovered.

While the drum machine kept perfect time, and was totally locked with the sequenced synths, there were also a number of guitar parts, as well as real bass on a lot of the tracks.  These were played by humans (mostly Nik, actually), and had a natural tendency to push ahead of the sequenced instruments in places (like going into choruses, for instance).  When Julian analyzed my drums, he discovered I was subconsciously going with the minute timing differences:  I would play behind the beat in the verse, then push slightly into the chorus, falling back in the next verse.  Now we are talking milliseconds here,  but it made all the difference.  In fact the real drums became the interface between the (unmovable) sequences and the ever-shifting human beings on each track.

Even today, with all the amazing advances that have occurred in drum machines and sequencers, I maintain there's still nothing quite as dynamic or inventive as a REAL drummer.  And I STILL get lots of work "replacing" sequenced drums.  Until artificial intelligence is perfected, I reckon I still have a gig!
So all you aspiring programmers out there,  Have at IT!  But keep my web site  address on hand, in case you need me to add some inspiration!

Essential
Wouldn't It Be Good
Human Racing

Drum Programming Basics (Ultimate Beginner Tech Start Series)
Complete Guide to Synthesizers, Sequencers, and Drum Machines

Alesis SR16 Drum Machine
iDrum 1.7
Toontrack EZdrummer Multi Layer Drum Sampler

Thursday, January 6, 2011

It's all about the groove

Seriously, though.  If you can't keep TIME through that amazing fill,  what use will it be (other than to simply show off)?

Remember,  the band are relying on we drummers to keep it in the pocket.  That's what Ringo was all about.  With such a solid player behind them, the rest of the Beatles were able to concentrate on their own contribution.

Beginning Drums - Essential Grooves, Beats, & Fills DVD.
Drum Lesson: Coordination and Groove Learn how to play intermediate to advanced drums instructional drum lessons video
Tommy Igoe Groove Essentials
Drum Lessons: Extreme Drum Set Techniques. Essential drum grooves, fills, dynamics and more

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Ian Paice

When I was starting to get serious about drumming, one of the first major influences was Deep Purple drummer, Ian Paice.  He had an amazing combination of technique (Jazz trained), attitude and originality unlike any other drummer around at the time.

I spent days sitting with my old Koss headphones on, analyzing Deep Purple tracks on my old Dansette record player. I had "hot wired" my headphones directly into the speaker output of the amplifier, so I could listen without annoying my parents (or siblings).  Of course,  when I practiced the drums it was another thing altogether.  I shudder to think of the noise I was making practicing in my bedroom (which was over the living room), headphones on, oblivious to anything else that was going on!  In the end I was limited to a "window" of time, normally just after I came home from school, and before dinner.

But back to Ian Paice.  Most of the early Heavy Rock drummers were all about volume and attitude.  But Paice had a certain finesse along with that attitude.  I remember going to see Deep Purple at the Rainbow Theatre in the early 70's (one of the many times).  Their opening act was Nazareth. They were unbelievably loud (even for a young aspiring rock drummer)!  I remember thinking to my self: "If they are that loud, what are Deep Purple going to be like?"  Well no-one was more surprised than me when Purple started up with no more than a whisper.  True,  they built to a crescendo during their set,  but what they displayed was a real sense of dynamics & subtlety which totally floored me.  It was then that I realised there could be no light without shade, no day without night.  Led Zeppelin were masters of this, too.  In fact all the great forefathers of today's Heavy Metal genre understood you had to have "quiet bits" to help make the "loud bits" seem louder.  Sadly, this has become lost to may of the modern day Metal performers.  Now it seems to simply be all about how LOUD they can play.

But back to Ian Paice.  His drum solos were legendary.  Interestingly enough, for those brought up in the Big-Band era, quite a lot of his solo would be recognizable, because Ian was a huge Buddy Rich fan, and certainly let this particular influence show in his soloing.  But for me, the one thing that never ceased to amaze me was his incredible (single) bass drum technique.  He managed to achieve, using a single bass drum pedal, what many drummers failed to achieve with TWO!  I sat for hours trying to recreate some of his ridiculous kick pedal patterns. It wasn't until much later that I discovered he DID actually use double kick drums on some recordings!  That being said, he was STILL the fastest single-kick player around.

What amazed me about seeing Ian play live was the relative ease and smoothness with which he played such amazingly incendiary fills.  Of course, his jazz training helped him tremendously.  This was also the case with John Bonham, although he took it down a different path altogether (more of that in another posting).

I remember reading an interview in Modern Drummer where Paice cited the single-stroke roll as being his favourite rudiment (plenty of evidence of this in his solo work).  Needless to say that got me practicing single-stroke rolls like a maniac.  But at least it got me practicing!

I'll leave you with a story: early in 2001, I played the House of Blues in LA with John Jorgenson's electric band (a spinoff from the Hellecasters) opening for the Dixie Dregs (featuring Steve Morse).
It was one of those NAMM show affiliated dates.  One of my old buddies is Dregs drummer, Rod Morgenstein (we were both long-term Premier endorsees).  We played our 45 minute set and came off stage, and Rod appeared in our dressing room to say "hi" and chew the fat.  According to him, Deep Purple (with Steve Morse, of course) were in LA to record an album, and Ian Paice had come down to see the Dregs play.  During John's opening number (a tricky little thing with some interesting bass drum work), Ian walked to the front of the stage to get a closer look at exactly what I was doing on the kick drum!  Talk about tables turning.  Here was the man I idolized for his bas drum technique, watching my right foot like a hawk!

Deep Purple Live in Concert 72/73
Deep Purple - Machine Head

Deep Purple: The Illustrated Biography
Ian Paice

Practice makes perfect?

OK, so many people ask me about practicing.
I have to admit I have never practiced as much as I think I should (especially when I was on the road: I always figured that sound check followed by a gig was enough practice).  But in the studio, I always take the time to warm up a little before.  This mostly involves stretches (using my sticks: more details at a later date), and some basic rudiments on a pad.

For me, though, the single most useful method of practice has been to play along with some favourite songs.  These days, I set iTunes to random play and hit the button.  Then I try to keep up (this can be somewhat arbitrary: in the case of Gino Vanelli's "Brother to Brother" album, for instance!).

I'm always really interested in new grooves,  feels, rhythm techniques.  For some reason I've never really been into blindingly fast drum fills and mind-blowing technical doo-dads!  But I've always been known as a "groove" player anyway.  That's where I'm happiest: in the middle of the groove, holding it down for the band.  So practicing to my iTunes really appeals to me.  Sometimes I create a play list of some new tunes I want to master.  But most of the time, I simply put it on random and try to stay in the pocket.  After all,  if you really can't keep up (or the muse is not there) you can simply hit the "forward" button and scroll on to the next song!


Mel Bay Complete Funk Drumming Book
The New Method for Afro-Cuban Drumming Book with Audio CD (Percussion)
Getting Started on Drums Featuring Tommy Igoe DVD - Setting Up / Start Playing
John Riley: The Master Drummer - How to Practice, Play and Think Like a Pro (DVD)

Ringo Starr

I have just joined a Beatle Band!  Yes,  "Mystery Trip"  are a group of Nashville based session musicians who share a love of all things Beatles,  and they recently asked if I would be interested in joining.

Needless to say, they didn't beed to ask twice.  Having been brought up on the Beatles (my parents were big fans of popular music, and introduced us to a wonderfully varied diet of all things musical: and yes, I am very lucky).

In the process of learning the tunes,  I had to really get in deep and analyze Ringo's playing style, which turned out to be something of a revelation!  I always loved his solid approach, his sense of timing, and even his technique (yes, Ringo had technique).  But until now I had never really appreciated the sheer musicality of what he did.  It's as if every note he played was designed to compliment the song he was playing.

Now this might have been carefully thought out, or it might have simply been a "gut reaction" - the reason is irrelevant.  The result is what matters.

No aspiring drummer should even try to embark of a career in the music industry without first dissecting some of Ringo's key drum tracks.  To that end,  here are some of my personal favourites (this is not so say they are definitive, just a personal choice, OK?)

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Penny Lane
In My Life
With A Little Help from My Friends
Magical Mystery Tour
Strawberry Fields
I Want You (She's So Heavy)
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
A Day In The Life

Have At It!

Ringo Starr: A Life
The Ringo Starr Encyclopedia

The Beatles [USB]
The Beatles Mono Box Set
Photograph: The Very Best of 
And His All Starr Band
Ringo