02/05/2007
Mix Disc Monday Home / Music Home / Bullz-Eye Home
Q: What do you call a guy that hangs out with a bunch of musicians? A: A drummer. Guitarists love this joke, but the secret truth is that a band is only as good as its drummer. Look at all of the truly great bands, from the Beatles (I will fight anyone who says Ringo sucks), the Stones, the Who and Zeppelin to U2, the Police, Green Day and Dave Matthews Band. They all had/have great drummers. REM had a great drummer, and when he left the band, they went into a tailspin. Coincidence? I think not.
Below you will find the songs that cause me to break out the air drums wherever I am, even if it’s behind the wheel of an automobile (you’ve been warned, residents of Columbus, Ohio). They’re not exactly the most difficult drum tracks ever put to tape; they’re just songs that made me wish I could play drums better than, say, Lenny Kravitz.
“Rain,” The Beatles (Past Masters, Volume
II)
Ringo said it himself: there are all of his other
performances in his career, and then there is “Rain.”
To listen to “Rain” is to listen to the future.
Watch
on Youtube.
“Stockholm Syndrome,” Muse (Absolution)
I am on
a campaign to get Rush to cover this song,
and I will not stop until my demands are met. Of course,
Neil Peart could probably play this with one hand.
Watch
on Youtube.
“Double Agent,” Rush (Counterparts)
While we’re at it, I’d love to hear Muse cover this
song. Peart has put flashier drum tracks to tape, but
what I love about “Double Agent” is its unusual time
signature and the back-and-forth from crash cymbal
to splash cymbal during the verses.
Watch
on Youtube.
“D’Yer Ma’ker,” Led Zeppelin (Houses of
the Holy)
If you were ever unsure of what made “Jer’maker” such
a popular song, I’ll settle it for you right here:
Bonzo’s fills. My personal favorite comes at the end
of the last bridge, where he does a big snare run and
then, when you least expect it, he pounds his hi-hat,
stalls for a beat, then hits his snare and goes back
into the song. Sweeeeet.
“Territorial Pissings,” Nirvana (Nevermind)
I once heard Kurt and Krist say that if they had their
choice of any drummer in history, living or dead, they’d
take Dave Grohl over anyone, even Bonzo. That’s probably
because, while Bonzo could certainly hit the skins
as hard as Grohl, he couldn’t play anywhere near this
fast. Watch on Youtube.
“Angel of Death,” Slayer (Reign in Blood)
While we’re talking about Nirvana, Kurt Cobain chose
Andy Wallace to engineer Nevermind based on
his work on this song and album. Combine that with
the fact that Public Enemy found this song both hard
enough and funky enough to sample for the fabtabulous It
Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, and
you have a song with one hell of an awesomeness problem.
Watch
on Youtube.
“One World (Not Three),” The Police (Ghost
in the Machine)
I actually had “Demolition Man” in this spot, but
while I was writing it up, “One World” started playing,
and I realized I was about to make a fatal mistake.
Stewart Copeland is off da hook on this one. Watch
on Youtube.
“Happy Jack,” The Who (A
Quick One (Happy Jack))
Keith Moon’s drumming is like watching “Whose Line
Is It Anyway?” You just never know what he’s going
to do next, and you get the sense that Keith doesn’t
know, either. Watch
on Youtube.
“Up on the Catwalk,” Simple Minds (Sparkle
in the Rain)
Steve Lillywhite Production #1. Arguably
the simplest of the drums riffs included in this list,
that doesn’t make it any less cool. The eight-count
is just a teaser, and when that first double-snare
drops, just try not drumming along. I will be there,
I will be there, I will be there, indeed.
“Block Rockin’ Beats,” Chemical Brothers (Dig
Your Own Hole)
Not a fucking word about the fact that these drums
are completely synthetic. This song won a Grammy for
its badass drumosity, okay? If I had a band, and we
just lost our drummer, the first call I’d place would
be to the Chemical Brothers. And the thing is, I bet
they’d be up for the job. Watch
on Youtube.
“Drive In, Drive Out,” Dave Matthews Band
(Crash)
Steve Lillywhite Production #2. Carter
Beauford is an octopus. You’ll hear him hit a drum
and think, “How the hell did he have a free hand to
do that?” Don’t be fooled by the song’s Rush-like,
descending chord progression in the finale: when Carter
is finally allowed to let loose, the song doesn’t descend.
It explodes into outer space. Watch
on Youtube.
“Pledge Pin,” Robert Plant (Pictures at
Eleven)
Don’t think of it as Led Zeppelin Moment #2 as
much as Phil Collins Moment #1. Collins’
work with Genesis was fine but generally confined to
within the limitations of what made for acceptable
pop music. However, when he’s backing up Plant, Phil
lets his jam flag fly, and it’s a glorious thing. “In
the Air Tonight” and “I Don’t Care Anymore” had their
moments, but for my money, this is his finest hour
behind the drums.
“The Bleeding Heart Show,” New Pornographers
(Twin Cinema)
This is one where patience is a virtue. Kurt Dahle
barely lifts a finger for the first three minutes,
but when the bridge hits…well, even then he’s just
biding his time for the massive hey-la-hey-la finale.
Once the hey-la’s arrive, you’d be wise to just get
the hell out of the way.
Watch
on Youtube.
“The Last Polka,” Ben Folds Five (Ben
Folds Five)
You can blame me for the breakup of Ben Folds Five,
and it was because I looked over at my buddy Tim while
watching the band in concert in 1997 and said, “You
know, Ben Folds is never going to break up this band.
He has the best drummer and the best bass player he
could possibly ask for. Why would he want to play with
anyone else?” My bad. Watch
on Youtube.
“Like a Song,” U2 (War)
Steve Lillywhite Production #3. Had
to finish the list with this one, given the thunderous
drum outro that the song boasts. Again, it’s not particularly
hard to play, but damn, it sounds cool when
the right people are behind the boards. I bet dollars
to donuts that few things give Larry Mullen Jr. greater
pleasure than the ending to this song.