Back to Basics & The Next Step

[beat Hit]

- Me2... The keyboard player you mentionned is spelled Otmaro Ruiz, love his playing.

- I've had my season of "Dave Weckl rejection" in the past, dunno why. Then I started going back to some early contributions and yeah!! What a player!!

Dave's got a unique edge that ranks him amongst the Masters. He's definitely improved with time like everyone else. There is a video out there of the first Electric Band Gig in Trio format and Dave's playing on that fits perfectly and is notoriously amazing. T'was a breath of fresh air at the time.

Also, speaking of his musicality, go and check the samples of an early Michel Camilo CD.

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000026NB/102-7871284-2028930"]http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000026NB/102-7871284-2028930[/ame]

[Plaid]

I got a wild hair and pulled out these two vids that I had stashed away for quite some time, and there are certainly some things I have realized after purchasing and getting used to his playing on "How to Practice" (which indeed, as someone said here, should have been called "What to Practice"). Though Weckl is still essentially Weckl, his playing, in my opinion, has become more likeable. The wrist action is certainly less stiff, and I think that's enabled him to think more musically during his songs. (from what I gather on the new vid). You know, if you want to get right down to it, the parts and licks he plays on the older videos seem, in a way, to almost be dated now. (though still ULTRA important). There are plenty of guys out there now that are much faster than he is, but his solos are still very interesting and musical to listen to, and there's still not a cat out there that does it just like him. That's the very reason I said in a previous post that a player like Weckl is absolutely necessary for the drum community. I'm much more inclined to buy his newer solo records after getting this newer video. (I've always liked most of the songs from Master Plan and Heads Up anyway). My fave is still the Vinster, but Weckl has re-impressed me again, and I'm starting to enjoy listening to him all over again. Anyway, just wanted to share my thoughts.

P.S. - This is absolutely NOT a Weckle/Vinnie comparison or arguement post. I know better than that.

[PencilZ]

Originally posted by beat Hit:
- Me2... The keyboard player you mentionned is spelled Otmaro Ruiz, love his playing.

>>I knew i was close Beat, but not THAT far off. [img]wink.gif[/img] >>

There is a video out there of the first Electric Band Gig in Trio format and Dave's playing on that fits perfectly and is notoriously amazing. T'was a breath of fresh air at the time.

>>]If you mean the jazz at the maintainance shop one its excellent! Dave had a white radioking snare.
Theres also a trio concert in spain if i remember correctly? [/i]>>

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[buga]

While speaking about DVD's and drum tutorials, one of the most "essential" modern one's IMO would be Gavin's publications "Rhythmic Illusions/Persepctives"(2 different books)and the DVD that complements the first book "Rhythmic Visions"....

There aren't many books that i've read that are as "player friendly" as this one, you can approach it from a technical standpoint or to build a foundation based on independence(like Reed's "Syncopation" to an extent), but the difference is this one takes a better approach and analyzes things from a "creative" standpoint....

If you're looking for some new ways to turn your beats around gain a new level of rhythmic understanding, this is the one book you need to get a hold of.

to quote Bill Bruford=

.."the most interesting material since the invention of the paradiddle". [img]cool.gif[/img]

These may not be the licks your bandmates will want you pulling out on the next gig without prior consultation. But nothing will make you feel more like Vinne Colaiuta than locking into some of these polyrhythm exercises.

Harrison looks at drumming in terms of "dimensions" and his goal is to get you to play four different polyrhythmic groupings at the same time. As he states in his introduction, it's not a chops-oriented approach as much as one that can open up creative options for drummers in musical ways. His method starts with ostinato patterns on the kick, adding each limb playing different polyrhythms over the top. Helping with this advanced technique are "tool boxes" at the beginning of some chapters, patterns to prime you for what's to come. Gavin's crash course of polyrhythmic theory is a long lesson in itself, as he subdivides measures of 3/4, 4/4, 5/4, and 7/4 by threes, fours, fives, and sevens. This is deep stuff, but it can be taken in slowly, enjoyed, and integrated as it makes musical sense to you.

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<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ July 25, 2003 06:10 PM: Message edited by: Bozzio ]</font>

[five eight]

Mr. Bozzio, I always enjoy what you have to say but am confused by the photo in your post. Is it Gavin (Harrison), you, or who?

I think beat Hit said it all: " . . . amongst the Masters." I like all Weckl's videos, the How To Practice being the best of the lot. Back To Basics and The Next Step rock too.

Sometimes when drummers are young and just making it they play with more fire than any other time in their career. As these drummers mature they don't necessarily lose their punch like an old boxer but they usually dial it back as time goes by. Case in point: Gadd began disappointing me in the early 80s after abandoning hip approaches to tunes like '50 Ways' and 'Nite Sprite'. Dave hasn't let me down as much as Gadd, he smokes to this day, but he sure was ballsy as kid. Read that pre-Gruber.

Gruber didn't improve Neil Peart either, I think Steve Smith is the only guy who actually took giant steps after studying with Freddie.

Anyhow Weckl was, is and always will be a Master as far as I'm concerned; he's unarguably a great drummer. The Carl Fischer 'Natural Evolutions' series has a fourth video called How To Set Up Your Yamaha Drum Kit. Don't know if it's commercially available because the video came with the new Yammer kits a while back. A friend in a music store turned me on to this freebie video. It runs about 45 minutes and Dave assembles a beginner level kit out of the box, tunes it immaculately and makes it sound great. It's Weckl wailing, as usual.

[ptrack]

I used to watch "Back to Basics" alot when I got into jazz-fusion...It became a bible..I watched it so much that I ruined the tape !!

"Next Step" is absolutely phenomenal..Weckl's playing on that video is insane...I STILL havent figured out some that stuff..
I havent had the chance to see any of the later stuff that came out on video..I when i worked at Guitar Center I saw bits and peices of the latin with Walfredo Reyes Jr....Quite incredible...Yes Weckl has gotten only better with time..

beat your right...Weckl kills on Michel Camilo's "On Fire" disk....Also the Bill Connors album that Weckl played on was phenomenal

[BennyAndTheSkins]

5/8, I agree with your assessment of Neil's playing. I didn't see a whole lot of improvement in Neil last year when I saw them. Don't get me wrong. He still plays slamming drums, and I have more respect for him as an intellectual, more than anything else. However from a technical standpoint, his traditional grip was OK, but he played trad. grip only on the tunes that he recorded playing trad. grip. I still think that he was working way too hard to reach up to those toms, where a Gruber approach certainly would have been to somehow bring them down, so there was more economy of motion.

But he looks really cool with his African skullcap on...

[buga]

5/8 that would be Gavin....It's quite unfortunate Harrison's call to fame came from writing those books instead of being known for his playing, but that's understandable considering he mostly does session work, up until now when he joined Porcupine Tree to record "In Absentia", he's also touring with them [img]cool.gif[/img]