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Do you need to be an allround drummer?

I try to stretch myself too. My main gig for the past 10 years or so is a traditional Chicago blues band. On the surface, it seems like an easy gig, but there are tons of nuances to get under your belt. I don't pretend to know I have all that mastered but I get compliments from local musicians whom I respect and in turn get hired for random depping gigs.

My band leader's brother is very skilled jazz drummer who has no interest in playing anything else but he has filled in for me on a couple occasions and mentioned i have a difficult seat to fill. I took that as major props...

However, I have still sought to expand my skills beyond that gig. But...I have also left side projects that did the same tired cover songs (Mustang Sally, Sweet Caroline, Margaritaville...) not because the entire set list didn't challenge me, but I wanted something that I actually ENJOYED playing, which brings me to the OPs comment on limited practice time. There are a lot of things I don't practice because I know I will NEVER need them but I do work on things that can be universally adapted to the situations I expect to be in. Fluidity around the kit and solid bass drum work can be applied in every genre...

Like others have said, simply putting your spin on something-based on the kind of drummer you are now-instead of copying the original note for note might be just what the band needs. I recently saw a video of Dave Weckl playing Use Me. While he didn't played Gadson's groove exactly, it was Dave's version of it...and it was awesome.
 
I started taking lessons ~10 years ago. Over this time, he taught me a number of different generes (Rock. Swing, Shuffle, Jazz, Latin, etc.). He must feel it's important to be an all-around drummer. Every week he has me play the standard beats for all of those generes.
Honestly, it quite comfortable having all those beats in your back pocket.
 
I play in a "covers" band where 3 of us are over 60, the lead guitarist is late 30's & the singer is early 50's.

Without a doubt, the lead singer has an outstanding voice; consequently ( although we all have completely different musical tastes/influences), we have agreed that our set should be designed to showcase his voice, on the basis that an audience will (generally) judge us on HIS performance, with the lead guitarist/drums/bass & rhythm guitar noticed as "backing" musicians, other than possibly by other musicians watching.

As such, we have agreed that he has the deciding vote on what we play.

As such, when one of us suggests new songs, we have the following issues to deal with:

a) Does it suit Mark's vocal style & range?

b) Are we all capable of playing the individual parts? ( Bear in mind that there's a bit of a gulf in musicianship between the five of us, but we'll skip over the details of that...)

c) Is it something where the end result is greater than the sum of it's parts?

d) Do we ENJOY learning/playing it. & can we learn it in a few takes? Or is it something that MAY be good, eventually, but needs a lot of practice?

ALL of the above, & more, I'm pretty sure that many bands (especially at our level) face all the time.

Most of the stuff we play is NOT the stuff I listen to, but the reward is when it all comes together, & it's c) above- greater than the sum of its parts.

In summary, I think to be an all-round drummer makes you more employable; like reading music & mastering rudiments, no drummer ever disadvantaged themselves by having more tools in their toolbox.;)
 
GSL said:
I think to be an all-round drummer makes you more employable; like reading music & mastering rudiments, no drummer ever disadvantaged themselves by having more tools in their toolbox.;)
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Great point! May not be necessary for all, but it's never a disadvantage to have/acquire those skills.
 
Aquisition of Knowledge Is Never A Waste Of Time

I joined my country band on purpose to expose my self to that world of music. Do I listen to that music away from those band rehearsals? No. But having to learn all of those songs, and study the musicians who wrote them has been an awesome journey. A dive into the history of where a lot of American pop music came from.

there has never been a time where I was playing, say, prog metal, where my work on jazz, pop, marching band, marimba etc did not come into play. Having to learn La Grange by ZZ Top totally improved my right hand swing pattern for Cottontail in my jazz band. My single bass drum foot development playing along to Losfer Words by Maiden absolutely helped my stamina to play the 4 on the floor parts of the surf punk songs I do for my surf punk band.

I encourage all of my student to learn the foundational rhythms/aspects of as many genres as they can. Then, dig deeper in tot he ones that excite you more at first. Add other depth as time allows, or gigs require.

on the flip side, don't get frustrated that you can't play every sub genre of Latin, or metal, or jazz. Our instrument is still evolving...quicker than most others, so new things pop up every month. I used to beat my self up becasue I could not play along to grind core, tabla patterns, and most Latin beats. One of my mentors gave me the advice above, and said: "as long as you are having fun when it is time to have fun, and getting paid when it is time to get paid, you will be alright"
 
Thanks for the feedback, some good points being made, esp. @GSL about which songs (not) to play as a cover band, we used a similar approach in my 1st band.

An important factor is available time. If you have a lot of it, I agree sticking to your comfort zone is limiting you.

But I have a busy (not 9 to 5) job, am an active sporter and have a lot to do in and around my house. So I have to make choices how I spend my free time.
So for now I focus on being able to play most of the 60+ songs with my band so we can fill an afternoon or evening, the 1st gig is already booked.
If that means dropping a couple of complex drumming songs now, then so be it.
The band doesn't mind, on the contrary, they also want to do a good performance so each member should be able to perform their parts well.
 
eric_B said:
An important factor is available time. If you have a lot of it, I agree sticking to your comfort zone is limiting you.

But I have a busy (not 9 to 5) job, am an active sporter and have a lot to do in and around my house. So I have to make choices how I spend my free time.
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So do I but you'd be amazed at what you can learn with a practice pad on the sofa and a pair of sticks. I learn best by ear so there's always music on in the car and when I'm at the gym.

Don't get me wrong if there's a request for a gig that's just a crap song my BS filter makes that song a thousand times harder to learn.
 
All round well I'm not fat shaming but obesity is classified as a disease now with severe health consequences. So don't be all round. So now my new emoji 9829ac9ab41a213ab507486d4bff5ae6-sticker.png No seriously I agree with Chris-there were certain songs I just hated-I mean hated but I saw them as a challenge that I would not let my personal bias interfere with doing a good job. It's a lot like any job with the things (or even people you have issues) you dislike but you still have to do them (or work with said person you may not get along with). I thought this was going to be all round like every genre thread again. The things I don't like to do or even people that bug me I see as my problem so I try to step up my game of trying harder and showing people some grace. I realize people give me a lot. Reminds me of meeting this fella at church. He was super nice but I surmised we had little in common and I didn't see he and I would ever be friends-well I when I put aside that bias I discovered I was all wrong (close cousin to all round). I guess in my 40s I developed a fear of height-which I've never had. Well anyways we visiting the Grand Canyon on my birthday trip recently and I have to admit trepidation of being thrown in the lions den with my fear of heights. Well it wasn't bad at all and in fact the hiking and views were almost mystical experience-in fact my old redneck lil boy self surfaced and I wanted to pee off the cliffs -the family said no I'd get arrested. I replied what again LOL.
 
eric_B said:
In a follow up to threads about keep on working on / always learning new technique or songs: do you feel the need to be an allround, versatile 'can-play-(almost)-everything' drummer?

The thought occurred to me after joining a band a couple of months ago and I'm still working on nailing their 60+ list of songs - pop / (classic) rock / some oldies / some Dutch/local songs / so rather varied.
I've played a big part of them before so they are going fine but others require more work and some a lot.

When I learn or play songs for my own entertainment (also tricky ones), I seem to nail those better or want to put more effort into them to get there.
More than the songs on oursetlist I don't like so much or struggle with playing.

So, should I play those 'stubborn' songs or just accept there are songs which just don't fit me and suggest the band to skip or replace those?
It seems a lot of drummers are eager to satisfy the playing wishes of others and want to keep on proving we can play any song...but should we?

I guess what also matters is I'm getting older (turning 53 tomorrow) and rather spend my not unlimited playing time on songs I like / like playing than on songs I don't like or take up a lot of my time.
For me drums are a hobby and we just gig occasionally, there is no need to play specific songs.

Any thoughts?
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It depends, do you drum for a living or as a hobby? are those songs main staples of that band or just fillers?
I would tell them straight out I don't enjoy playing those songs so I am having a hard time trying to learn them. (The truth) because forcing yourself to play them is only going to make you miserable. I can't be in a band where my opinion doesn't count. I have never been "just the drummer", I have always been a main part of the bands I have played with, which is why that last band I played with was not going to be a long term thing based on how much say I had on band's decisions (basically none). That and the band leader being wishy washy about what he wanted and not practicing what he preached (he told me that I needed to spend more time practicing the songs when I made 2 minor mistakes on a 40 song setlist but he made 14 or 18 mistakes, not only that, he didn't have a day job he is retired so he has nothing but time to practice). No, I can't do that to myself, I said before, I don't drum for a living, I do it as a hobby so if there is anything I don't enjoy I will be honest about it, if the rest of the band can't handle it, then they can find another drummer that is willing to do what they want no questions asked.
Now to answer your question about being an all around... it is up to you, I would be able to probably play jazz or progressive rock, but I don't really enjoy listening to them so I have no interest in learning much about them. I can play most of what I want to play because I am interested in it, it comes easy, and I don't need to learn those other styles because I will probably never play them, if I ever do, I will learn them then. I prefer to be proficient on what I do play than trying to cover too much and be less proficient because of that... My opinion of course.
 
mikyok said:
Like my sign off says, "There's good money to be made playing music musicians hate" so it entirely depends on where you want to go with your journey. It's good to push yourself out of your comfort zone, it's a good way to become a better player and for me being a great player is being able to serve a song and keep time whilst staying out of the way.

As for being an all-round drummer it entirely depends on what you've been exposed to and spent the time to learn. Deep down I'm a rock/pop drummer and I've fought hard to get away from that title but it's what I do best. What really helped me is to get good at the basics of other styles and really nailing the feel and groove so if the time comes that you have to play jazz or latin etc you 've got it nailed.

Just remember 99% of the time in any genre you're playing time and that's what most people want from a drummer. In the worst case scenario if something comes along that's way out of my league there's no shame in saying I can't play this. Honesty goes a long way.
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I played with a Mexican music band (was invited by a bass player friend of mine after we left a rock band we were in together). I remember he called me and told me that a friend of his (the Mexican music band guitar player) needed a drummer and asked me to audition.
I told him I knew nothing about Mexican music (because of course I have heard it living In Mexico, but I didn't like it and so never went out of my way to listen to it). He told me: "You can play rock songs, playing cumbias would be easy to you" I said "OK, I will audition", I went to the audition, and they gave me some pointers on how to keep the beat (it is so simple it's mind numbing), so at first I was playing just the drum beat which was overly simplistic and repetitive, then I realized that in those bands they usually have the drummer and 2 other percussionists playing other parts. so, I adapted what I played to play the 3 parts as close to the original as I could, now that cumbia became a quite hard polyrhythm which kept me in my toes, any mistake and the whole thing falls apart, but it made those songs actually fun for me to play.
I had to play very fast playing slow things if that makes any sense, I had to keep the main beat, then in between add the two other beats, so all 3 beats were slow but when combined I had to move from one to the other very fast to keep the proper tempos. I am not sure if you can attempt anything like that with the music you are playing but maybe that could be what makes you at least feel interested in playing them.
 
I personally think that having the extra knowledge can't possibly hurt. Then again, I am mostly in Rock/Metal bands at the end of the day, so I didn't need to go outside of my comfort zone much and learn to be a master at, say, jazz. But yeah, the more versatile you are, the more gigs you are able to play on, that's how I look at it.
 
In general, it’s probably a good idea to pursue all around proficiency. I’ve gone the other way and narrowed my focus down to darn near a one lane road! 🤪 For the last 15 or so years, I’ve been on a quest to simplify my playing to a point that most drummers would be bored out of their skulls.

It’s kinda funny how when I made that decision to Meg White-ify my playing (my terminology), my work calendar picked up dramatically. I still practice all the time and gig/record all the time, but I’ve developed my own curriculum that’ll give me several lifetimes worth of material to work on and yet still keep it so basic that a 12 year old with 2 years of lessons could play everything I play.
 
All good answers; all good approaches; all good perspectives.

I've read and re-read this thread - trying to find some little nugget that struck me wrong and maybe even refute it. But I couldn't. Every opinion is perfectly valid and viable, and to top it off, I can use at least part of everyone's opinion in my daily life and practice.

I'll probably read it again, only to glean more hints and tips.

Thanks, all!
 
I think learning more styles and genres of drumming isn't necessary, but if you do learn more, it can help you come up with new drumming like a rock beat that steals fills from Latin grooves. it could help you make more creative drum parts and stuff
I'm still on my path of learning many Latin drum beats to expand my repertoire of drumming
 
Smoke said:
All good answers; all good approaches; all good perspectives.

I've read and re-read this thread - trying to find some little nugget that struck me wrong and maybe even refute it. But I couldn't. Every opinion is perfectly valid and viable, and to top it off, I can use at least part of everyone's opinion in my daily life and practice.

I'll probably read it again, only to glean more hints and tips.

Thanks, all!
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You know the saying "you don't have to re-invent the wheel"? No, you don't, you just have to improve it.
I say that to say that I don't take advice as a whole from anybody because there will always be something or some part of it that I don't agree with, but the parts that I do agree and can use, I use, so your concept of taking some little nugget from everyone is great, that has worked for me my whole life.
 
RVC said:
In general, it’s probably a good idea to pursue all around proficiency. I’ve gone the other way and narrowed my focus down to darn near a one lane road! 🤪 For the last 15 or so years, I’ve been on a quest to simplify my playing to a point that most drummers would be bored out of their skulls.

It’s kinda funny how when I made that decision to Meg White-ify my playing (my terminology), my work calendar picked up dramatically. I still practice all the time and gig/record all the time, but I’ve developed my own curriculum that’ll give me several lifetimes worth of material to work on and yet still keep it so basic that a 12 year old with 2 years of lessons could play everything I play.
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Were you ever or have you ever listened to a drum part, and in your head played the part better (or better for you)? I still do that all the time.
I listen to any song I know how to play and just as an exercise, I try to play the parts the way I imagine them (90% of the original drumming with my few added nuances), and most of the time they flow well, and a few times (and this has blown my mind) I go see the original drummer in concert and he plays the part not like in the recording but exactly the way I imagined!

I don't enjoy simple drumming and people's definition of "in the pocket" varies greatly, but I also don't enjoy overly complex drumming, I guess the drums have to be present or absent as the song needs it and nothing more, some drummers step out of that and it's cool too but each of us likes what we like.
 
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Skul1Drummer said:
I think learning more styles and genres of drumming isn't necessary, but if you do learn more, it can help you come up with new drumming like a rock beat that steals fills from Latin grooves. it could help you make more creative drum parts and stuff
I'm still on my path of learning many Latin drum beats to expand my repertoire of drumming
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Dave Lombardo (Slayer) stole his signature Slayer beat from polka just plays it faster as stated by him. (ok I found the video this time for that guy that needs me to prove my statements)

 
doggyd69b said:
:ROFLMAO:
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Glad someone got the reference! 🤪

doggyd69b said:
Were you ever or have you ever listened to a drum part, and in your head played the part better (or better for you)? I still do that all the time.
I listen to any song I know how to play and just as an exercise, I try to play the parts the way I imagine them (90% of the original drumming with my few added nuances), and most of the time they flow well, and a few times (and this has blown my mind) I go see the original drummer in concert and he plays the part not like in the recording but exactly the way I imagined!

I don't enjoy simple drumming and people's definition of "in the pocket" varies greatly, but I also don't enjoy overly complex drumming, I guess the drums have to be present or absent as the song needs it and nothing more, some drummers step out of that and it's cool too but each of us likes what we like.
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Mine’s a different situation. I’m usually never called on to play other artists songs like the recording. Most of the time, my duo guy springs a new song on me at the gig, in front of people. Many times it’s a song I’ve never heard before, let alone played before. He’ll give me some generic instruction like, “Play a train beat here.” Or, he’ll mime a beat that I need to interpret on the fly.

As far as simple versus complex playing, the Meg White reference was meant to be humorous but in reality I probably play even simpler parts than she did most of the time. As you said, each of us likes what we like, and over the years I’ve grown to prefer the most basic, elemental grooves possible.

Where someone might use closed hats on verses, open hats on choruses, and ride cymbal in a bridge or solo section (just as one basic example), I’ll often use NO hats on verses, quarter note closed hats on choruses, and eighth note closed hats on bridges or solos. Or sometimes not play cymbals the whole song. I’m talking the kind of stuff we as drummers learn on day one of playing.

I’ve chosen to do that for a number of reasons, but mainly it’s just because I like the way it sounds. I’ve become known for it in my area and get work because of it. Literally anyone else in town could do my gigs, but they refuse to play the way I do. So, I take the gigs because all the songwriters in town love me for it. It’s not for everyone, that’s for sure.
 
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