It’s been said that a band is only as good as the drummer. With the studio recording environment magnifying all that is good and bad in any artist, we turn our attention to the qualities that make some drummers such an asset.
In Summary
The very best drummers strike a fine balance where they hold down the whole band, while bringing their unique personality and sound. At the same time they serve the element of the song that is paramount, and never encroach upon it.
Going Deeper
The World’s Oldest Instrument
Aside from the voice itself, the drum is one of humanity’s oldest instruments, and its development over millennia certainly makes the modern drum kit look almost entirely removed from its probable beginnings as a hollowed-out log with some animal skin stretched over the top! Along with its relative the piano, the instrument holds a pivotal status across an incredible range of music regardless of era or culture.
For engineers, many recordings involve the modern drum kit. Capturing its power and sound accurately is a skill no engineer should be without, with highly rewarding results there for the taking. With so much discussion about the recording and mixing of drums, the biggest element of the sound is of course brought by the drummer themself, with musicality, touch, and tuning skills far outweighing the effect of all but the most poorly executed recording. Here we bring together the things that we feel are the magic traits belonging to the best studio drummers out there.
Getting The Sounds
Great sounding drums can almost record themselves, and the drummer who knows how to produce sounds that are well-tuned and genre-appropriate is the one who can elevate the whole aesthetic of the production. That way, the engineer can employ the lightest of touches at the recording and mixing stages working with sounds that sing.
Many players used to session work will own more than one drum kit (with a favourite one often getting the majority of outings), and more still will have a choice of two or three snare drums, with depth and shell material being the likely variables. This is where the engineer can lean more on the drummer’s experiences of recording, tapping into their instrument knowledge to save time. Those who know their way around a drum key are perhaps the most capable when it comes to honing sounds upstream of the mics. Armed with little more than drums of any type, they will serve the recording infinitely better than those feeding the familiar trope: “All the gear but no idea”...
Serving The Song
Some preconceptions have a basis in reality, with the old jokes surrounding “drummers” versus “musicians” being a case in point. Some very ‘good’ drummers can sound convincing due to a large vocabulary of well-executed fills, licks, and tricks, but while this can dazzle it isn’t always necessarily related to the music. This type of playing can arise from self-gratification (for drummers, it is fun to fly around the kit), or a perceived need to show others what they can do. This type of performance is not restricted to the drums, with singing, and guitar playing also suffering from sometimes being played as though it is an Olympic sport.
Contrasted with the ‘show’ drummer, the very best drummers all do the same thing: They serve the song at all times. This type of drummer can astound with what they don’t play and make the listener do a double-take when flashes of finesse do happen when they’re needed. The best out there can be heard to play The Song rather than just The Drums.
Below is Ndugu Chancler’s masterclass in musical instinct and economy on one of the biggest hits of all time:
Being Unique
It’s been said that if you give ten drummers the same snare drum to play, they will all make it sound different. There is at least some scientific truth in this, thanks to the almost limitless number of variables in the playing of such a physical instrument. Technique will dictate where and how hard the drum is struck. Stick material, bead profile and material, and angle of attack all contribute. Certainly some drummers seem to sound almost the same regardless of which kit they’re on after the briefest of pre-flight tweaks to the seat and hardware.
Some highly distinctive drum parts result from the playing and the sound, which can sometimes form part of the writing as well. Clyde Stubblefield’s seminal work on Funky Drummer (above) is instantly recognisable, as is Ringo Starr’s on The Beatles’ Ticket To Ride which certainly constitutes part of the writing. The drums of Motown, New Wave and many 1980’s sounds would be recognisable even without the rest of the music that they underpin. Some of these may not be metronomic or blessed with perfect audio fidelity, but ultimately they possess flair and personality, two qualities that other records would kill for.
Playing For The Team
Much is said about the micro-timings that inject feel and define the interplay between other rhythmic elements, but more fundamentally being on time at the studio as well as in it is always a bonus, especially when time is money. Bands in the studio can present an interesting mix of ‘personalities’ to work with. Long-haul projects can put a strain on relations, and the drummer’s diplomacy (or that of any band member) is always welcome. In the case of hired hands such as those on a session for the solo artist, drummers who understand when to take direction or how to step forward when others cannot articulate what the song needs are an asset. Carrying drum spares and heads can save the day when recording in remote locations.
Whose Drummer?
It was once pointed out by a drummer friend how strange it is that singers often refer to “my drummer”, yet the drummer less so to “my singer”. Taking this on-board, and on the understanding that no-one actually owns their own drummer (that we’re aware of!), what are the qualities in the drummer that can make or break a recording? Let us know below in the comments.
A Word About This Article
As the Experts team considered how we could better help the community we thought that some of you are time poor and don’t have the time to read a long article or a watch a long video. In 2023 we are going to be trying out articles that have the fast takeaway right at the start and then an opportunity to go deeper if you wish. Let us know if you like this idea in the comments.
Main image by Aliane Schwartzhaupt on Unsplash