Love these examples and your explanations, especially the backbeat explanation on Rock Steady and Sheila E's solo.
About Jim Gordon, I've been reading autobiographies and it seems that the psychotic behavior was already happening as early as spring 1970. According to Rita Coolidge, she and Jim were involved with one another on the Mad Dogs tour when he called her out of someone's room into the hotel hallway and without any explanation hit her so hard she went unconscious. They didn't let Jim near her the rest of the tour. That summer Jim got involved with Chris O'Dell when he was part of Derek and the Dominos and chased her with a butcher knife. He only stopped because Robert Stigwood showed up just in time. Rita said his 'empty' and 'chilling' look was becoming more prevalent, and Chris described it as 'crazy, crazy mad' changing to 'blank' when Stigwood showed up. It wasn't a time when people talked about or recognized these things, and very unfortunate that Jim didn't get help with both the drugs and the psychosis.
Kyle Poole, who is a member of Emmet Cohen's trio (along with the fantastic bassist, Phil Norris), is hugely talented and exciting to watch. I know it's not rock but . . .
Won’t get into a discussion about Mickey Waller other than to say if he’s the drummer on “Cut Across Shorty”, bravo! I think he plays loopier than Tony gives him credit. Lately I’ve been thinking that whoever plays drums on Bill Wither’s “Use Me” (James Gadson?) is better than a-okay too.
Greil. I know drumming. I played the drums for 20 years, and got to be a pretty good funk drummer; Bernard Purdie was my model. Mickey Waller was an enthusiastic but not exceptional drummer. He stands out on both Rod's cover of the Tempts' "I'm Losing You" and on "Every Picture"'s title song. But if you listen closely, on up-tempo songs Waller almost resorts to a slogging, unvarying four-beats-to-the-bar bass drum part. Listen especially to the portion of "I'm Losing You" speeds up. Four-to-the-bar. BoRING!! A drummer like Jim Keltner wouldn't be caught dead doing this (unless the producer demanded it), although, highly atypically, Keltner plays a portion of a song that I'm going to Substack on Part Two of this drum piece—the song is "The Very Thing That Makes Her Rich..."—with a heavy, four-to-the-bar bass drum. A PORTION, that is. Jim no doubt decided that this was what was needed. Otherwise, you could hardly catch Keltner, or Steve Gadd, or Dennis Chambers, or Levon Helm, or most top drummers, falling into Waller's unimaginative rut, all but banging a nail into the floor with that lead-footed four-to-bar (or eight-to-the-bar, in speedier versions) bass-drum part.
PS. "Maggie May," from "Every Picture," is one of the all-time great rock songs. Mickey Waller's leaden foot (leaden hands, too, in this case) happens to fit the song well.
Love these examples and your explanations, especially the backbeat explanation on Rock Steady and Sheila E's solo.
About Jim Gordon, I've been reading autobiographies and it seems that the psychotic behavior was already happening as early as spring 1970. According to Rita Coolidge, she and Jim were involved with one another on the Mad Dogs tour when he called her out of someone's room into the hotel hallway and without any explanation hit her so hard she went unconscious. They didn't let Jim near her the rest of the tour. That summer Jim got involved with Chris O'Dell when he was part of Derek and the Dominos and chased her with a butcher knife. He only stopped because Robert Stigwood showed up just in time. Rita said his 'empty' and 'chilling' look was becoming more prevalent, and Chris described it as 'crazy, crazy mad' changing to 'blank' when Stigwood showed up. It wasn't a time when people talked about or recognized these things, and very unfortunate that Jim didn't get help with both the drugs and the psychosis.
Read Joel Selvin's harrowing new Gordon biography, "Drums and Demons"
Kyle Poole, who is a member of Emmet Cohen's trio (along with the fantastic bassist, Phil Norris), is hugely talented and exciting to watch. I know it's not rock but . . .
I shall check him out! Good to reaquaint myself with younger jazz drummers. Thanx
Won’t get into a discussion about Mickey Waller other than to say if he’s the drummer on “Cut Across Shorty”, bravo! I think he plays loopier than Tony gives him credit. Lately I’ve been thinking that whoever plays drums on Bill Wither’s “Use Me” (James Gadson?) is better than a-okay too.
Yes, I’ve thought about that “Use Me” drum part. I have to check and see who it is.
Correct, it's Gadson on "Use Me." And (aargh), Waller plays on "Cut Across Shorty"
No. Mickey Waller on Rod Stewart’s ‘Every Picture Tells a Story.’ I’ve always thought it deserved a Nobel Prize. In physics.
Greil. I know drumming. I played the drums for 20 years, and got to be a pretty good funk drummer; Bernard Purdie was my model. Mickey Waller was an enthusiastic but not exceptional drummer. He stands out on both Rod's cover of the Tempts' "I'm Losing You" and on "Every Picture"'s title song. But if you listen closely, on up-tempo songs Waller almost resorts to a slogging, unvarying four-beats-to-the-bar bass drum part. Listen especially to the portion of "I'm Losing You" speeds up. Four-to-the-bar. BoRING!! A drummer like Jim Keltner wouldn't be caught dead doing this (unless the producer demanded it), although, highly atypically, Keltner plays a portion of a song that I'm going to Substack on Part Two of this drum piece—the song is "The Very Thing That Makes Her Rich..."—with a heavy, four-to-the-bar bass drum. A PORTION, that is. Jim no doubt decided that this was what was needed. Otherwise, you could hardly catch Keltner, or Steve Gadd, or Dennis Chambers, or Levon Helm, or most top drummers, falling into Waller's unimaginative rut, all but banging a nail into the floor with that lead-footed four-to-bar (or eight-to-the-bar, in speedier versions) bass-drum part.
PS. "Maggie May," from "Every Picture," is one of the all-time great rock songs. Mickey Waller's leaden foot (leaden hands, too, in this case) happens to fit the song well.
But don't ask (the late) Waller to play on a funk song. I'm done.