Eric Starr - The Everything Drums Book: From Tuning and Timing to Fills and Solos-All You Need to Keep the Beat

The
EVERYTHING
Drums Book

Dear Reader:

Welcome to The EverythingDrums Book! If you want to learn to play Dear the drums, but dont know where to begin, look no further. This text is a comprehensive guide that will teach you a step-by-step approach to drumming.

Contrary to popular belief, playing the drums is no easy task. You cant just sit down at a drum set and whale away like a pro. Like any instrument, drumming requires a lot of dedication and hard work. The good news is that you can play the drums no matter what your age, and no matter what your musical background. Music has no restrictions; anybody can learn given the right educational tools and the proper motivation.

What you put in is what you get out. If you spend even a little time each day going through this book and practicing the various exercises found in each chapter, you will find that drumming is not only enjoyable, it is very rewarding.

By learning to play the drums, you will learn a great deal about who you are. This is the gift of music. Hopefully, this book will help you to tap into your creative side and to learn a little bit about what could be called the great conversation of music.

Notes on a page are and always will be silent. Its the individual that sets them to music. Dont be notes; be a song.

Thanks for reading,

The EVERYTHING Series

Editorial

Production

Visit the entire EverythingSeries at everything.com

THE
EVERYTHING
DRUMS
BOOK

From tuning and timing to fills and
solos all you need to keep the beat

Eric Starr

In memory of Don Atkinson

Copyright 2003, F+W Publications, Inc.
All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced
in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions
are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

An Everything Series Book.
Everything and everything.com are registered trademarks of F+W Publications, Inc.

Published by Adams Media, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
57 Littlefield Street, Avon, MA 02322 U.S.A.
www.adamsmedia.com

ISBN 10: 1-58062-886-9
ISBN 13: 978-1-58062-886-0
eISBN 13: 978-1-44052-261-1
Printed in the United States of America.

J I H G F E

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Starr, Eric.
The everything drums book / Eric Starr.
p. cm. (An everything series book)
Includes discography (p. ).
ISBN 1-58062-886-9 1.
Percussion instruments--Instruction and study. I. Title.
II. Series: Everything series.
MT655.S73 2003
786.9'193 dc21
2003001928

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the
American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations

This book is available at quantity discounts for bulk purchases.
For information, call 1-800-289-0963.

Contents

Appendix A
Drummer Discography

Appendix B
Resources

Acknowledgments

Thanks to all my teachers past and present, to Dave Meyers for his knowledge of Latin music, Mark Norris for his knowledge of rock history, and to Marc Schonbrun for his cogency and computer acumen. Also, a big thanks to my brothers Nelson and Jeffrey and to my patient wife Katherine (Rin). Special thanks to my parents and to my late grandparents, Charles and Ruth Freeman.

Recording

Audio engineered, mixed, and edited by Nelson M. Starr at

Gardenwood Studios. All performances by Eric Starr.

Top Ten Reasons
to Take Up Drumming

No one can rock out like a drummer.

Schlepping your gear from gig to gig is cheaper than a membership to a gym, and it is an even better workout.

Percussion is a vital element of every musical style from rock and blues to R & B to Caribbean.

Good drumming has always been the hallmark of hit songs.

You have always had great rhythm and musical interest, and now you want to put it to some good use.

Drumming will sharpen your concentration and hone your listening skills.

You dont need a Ph.D. in music theory to play the drums.

Drumming relieves stress and allows you to explore creative expression.

Practicing the drums will help you to develop your sense of time and reflexes.

Drummers are the heartbeat of any band.

Introduction

DRUMS AND DRUMMING GO VERY FAR BACK into human history and have been used in virtually every major culture from Asia to the Americas, Africa to the Middle East. Drums unearthed from Mesopotamia date back to around 3000 B.C. Still other excavations around the world have produced drums twice this old.

In most early cultures, drums were used for both religious and civic purposes, and to this day, tribal and nontribal communities still use drums in religious rites or as accompaniment to everyday song and dance. North American, African, and Australian tribal communities all tell of drums in stories; this mythology is said to be thousands of years old.

If you go to a powwow anywhere in North America, you will hear Indians singing and dancing with percussive accompaniment.

Powwows are mostly for recreation, but beyond the power lines, deep into Indian country, you will find Indians of various tribes using drums as a medium between worshippers and the spirit world. This has been going on since time immemorial.

As previously mentioned, drums are not only used in tribal culture. They are and have been a part of the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religions for centuries. However, some religious groups for instance, early Calvinists feared that the drum would give rise to evil forces. This produced movements throughout history that saw the mass banning of music and drumming altogether. Fortunately, these movements did not last.