The Monday Morning Paradiddle

Welcome back and looks like this is our first official Monday Morning Paradiddle column of 2015. Now that we are all settled into the New Year, here's a few things bouncing around the office to check out:

- Here are "The Elvin Tapes", some bootlegs of Elvin working with some VERY lucky students in a masterclass, circa. 1984:

https://michaelwelch.bandcamp.com/album/1984-the-elvin-tapes-2


- Ralph Peterson Jr. is featured here in this two-part interview:

http://www.feisworld.com/2015/01/04/ralph-peterson-jr/


- Looking for something interesting to practice? Download Pete Lockett's FREE .pdf technique book "Symmetrical Stickings for the Snare Drum"at his website over here:

http://www.petelockett.com/2006/pages/symet%20stick.html


-  Blogger Vinnie Sperezza recounts some honest and amusing stories about approaching Paul Motian over the years:

http://www.vinniesperrazza.org/blog/2014/12/15/five-awkward-conversations-with-paul-motian


- It was "Beat Week" over at NPR and they featured a week's worth of drum/rhythm-centric stories a couple of weeks ago worth checking out:

"Mystic Rhythms: Rush's Neil Peart on the First Rock Drummer"

http://www.npr.org/2015/01/06/375171736/mystic-rhythms-rushs-neil-peart-on-the-first-rock-drummer

"The Original Funky Drummers on Life with James Brown"

http://www.npr.org/2015/01/05/374818384/the-original-funky-drummers-on-life-with-james-brown

"How Santeria Seeped Into Latin Music"

http://www.npr.org/2015/01/07/375389153/how-santer-a-seeped-into-latin-music

"The Tabla Master Who Jammed with The Grateful Dead"

http://www.npr.org/2015/01/08/375637915/the-tabla-master-who-jammed-with-the-grateful-dead

"Female percussionist Bobbye Hall is a Liner Note Legend"

http://www.npr.org/2015/01/09/376045541/female-percussionist-bobbye-hall-is-a-liner-note-legend


- Eric Harland is featured here on this podcast episode:

http://idhitthatpodcast.podomatic.com/entry/2013-09-14T08_53_38-07_00


- Carl Allen recently performed at the Percussive Arts Society PASIC 2014 Convention last November and offered some interesting approaches to melodic drumming:






- Dan Weiss performs an impressive drum set rendition of the North Indian tabla composition Teen Tal:




- I really dug this footage of Portland's Alan Jones from an on-air radio interview (sorry I can't seem to embed this one!):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMWI_bjYqd0#t=20

Alan has really become a favorite drummer of mine recently. In particular his playing with CDN saxophonist Phil Dwyer and bassist Rodney Whitaker on the album "Let Me Tell You About My Day" is one of my personal favourites. Jones brings a really intense, rolling, and fiery passion to the drum set that I really appreciate. I hope to work with him some day!


- New Orleans' Geoff Clapp is another great drummer who's only recently been on my radar but I really dig his playing. I love his feel and over all vibe that he brings to the music. His album "Bend in the River" is highly recommended. Here's a couple shots of Clapp to check out:



And here in a duet with guitarist Charlie Hunter:




- Some nice guitar trio action with New York/Toronto drummer Mark McLean at Small's:




- Great drumming from Victor Lewis!




- Canadian drummer Claude Ranger has been on my mind a lot lately. Here's a good one of Claude with vibraphonist Peter Appleyard and special guests Hank Jones and Slam Stewart. Dig Ranger's articulate brush playing in this one:




- What am I reading/listening to these days?

Mark Miller - "Herbie Nichols: A Jazzist's Life"

Roswell Rudd - "Herbie Nichols: The Unpublished Works"

Herbie Nichols "The Complete Blue Note Recordings" - Art Blakey, Max Roach (drums)

Herbie Nichols "Love, Gloom, Cash, Love" - Dannie Richmond (drums)

Kirk MacDonald "Kirk's Blues" - Claude Ranger (drums)

Al McLean and Azar Lawrence "Conduit" - Andre White (drums)

Don Thompson "Some Other Spring" - Don Thompson (vibraphone)

Barry Harris "at the Jazz Workshop" - Louis Hayes (drums)



- And today's Last Word comes from pianist/composer/arranger Jim McNeely (via Norway's Roger Johansen):

"There's a sound of a drummer reading a chart that I hate. There's that term that a lot of people use: "Oh, he's so good, man. He can read fly shit." And my experience is that a guy that reads fly shit, all you get is fly shit. You know they nail it the first time and they nail it, nail and nail it. I prefer players that can read fairly well, they may fuck up a little in the beginning, but then you hear the tenth time through and the twelfth time through and all of a sudden the lights are going on and they are internalizing the stuff. They're not just reading, they're just using the printed page as a reference from that point on and then it gets really deep." - Jim McNeely