“I could definitely hear right away that this was going to be one of the baddest motherfuckers who had ever played a set of drums.”
- Miles Davis
The always colourful Miles Davis.
Say It Again – Tony on learning
“I’ve studied all my musical life, but learning is only good if you do something constructive with it”
- Tony Williams
Relentlessly pushing things forward.
Killer Videos – Absolutely shredding Tony solo
Here’s another quick one, and it’s a complete stunner. Tony rips it so hard, showing both his explosive rock chops and his extreme dynamics.
This is a video I always come back to whenever I need a serious mind melt.
Tony has an all-star cast burning with him here too – a young Stanley Clarke is holding it down on the bass and the mighty Chick Corea is manning the keys.
These were the guys Stan Getz called when he needed to shake up his career, dipping into the fusion sound for his “Captain Marvel” record and tour. You’ll find loads of ridiculous playing by everyone involved if you check that one out.
Killer Videos – Great shot of Tony’s ride technique
You can see how truly smoking Tony’s ride playing was in this video. He pushes hard, with big crashes and his famous 5-stroke-pattern.
Study this one deeply – loop it or slow it down, and learn as much as you can from one of the all-time masters.
Say It Again – Elvin on jazz drumming
“The greatest contribution jazz has made in music has been to replace the role of the conductor with a member of the ensemble who, instead of waving his arms to keep time and convey mood is an active member of the musical statement. That person is the drummer.”
- Elvin Jones
Elvin getting into it.
Killer Videos – Afro Blue on Jazz Casual
Here’s a part of a classic John Coltrane appearance on the show Jazz Casual. I love many things about this video:
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There’s a nice over-Elvin’s-shoulder camera angle.
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There’s some outstanding close-up footage of McCoy Tyner lighting it up.
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Ralph Gleason tells it like it is – the points at the end are totally fundamental.
This particular version is darkened out a bit, but the audio is a little crisper and I think that wins out.
Killer Videos – Harry Hood, Omaha ’96
This is an old school two-part’er from one of the most wild Phish performances. The first vid is a great rendition of this gargantuan song, complete with some classic Phish-mischief with the lyrics (they’re shouting out a member of their crew).
The second part starts up right at the beginning of the jam, and this is some seriously crazy stuff here. It’s all a build-up to “THE NOTE” – three straight minutes on one sweet guitar tone, while the rest of the band furiously shreds it up.
This is the kind of stuff that makes you want to scream – it’s that good!
Intense jamming after the break:
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