In most of the groups I have played in, I served both roles, and the drummer was there for fills.
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Double Bass Why don't drummers get more love here? (mostly a jazz rant - DB Forum Thread)
- Thread starter RBrownBass
- Start date
I have loved some Drummers dearly, never wanting to let them go, and some have broken my heart in just five bars.
Most Jazz drummers IMHO have skills in one vital area that others do not: Dynamics
Bass players in particular need to connect with the drummer(s), as a bass player we have options if we are off a little (keep on the root, turn down, etc...). If the drummer is lost or off, there's no where to hide or run to. I would think this is the source of the many jokes... It took me a while to understand that drumming and bass playing are not about showing your chops, it's about being consistent (think Charley Watts and Bill Wyman, or Stan Lynch and Howie Epstein, and how many great bands there are that the bass player is "bassically" unknown). That's the job... Where do bass players take out their issues? On the drummer of course, it's not us 
JazznFunk
Supporting Member
JazznFunk
Supporting Member
Just a note to all: this thread, posted in the DB forums, seems to have been intended to initiate a discussion of great drummers and their effect on the music in a jazz setting. And yet it seems to be inundated with generic jokes about drummers, mostly from members who most often frequent the bass guitar forums.
It would be nice to get thread back on track by talking about some great jazz drummers we have heard and/or played with. I’ll start with some of my favorites that I’ve played with:
Jason Tiemann: we came up together back when I was still playing piano, and hit our stride once I joined him as a bassist. He’s playing with everyone in the NYC scene these days. Immaculate technique, a great ear for dynamics, and a great feel for where the tune is going and helping it get there.
Mike Hyman: one of the most creative musicians I have ever played with. He has no fear, and jumps in and shapes the music, supercharging every single band he plays in. It’s no wonder he was chosen to tour with Joe Henderson, Getz, and Gary Burton among others when he was just a teenager. Just a tremendous musician.
Ari Hoenig: a metric mastermind. He plays effortlessly against the time while still keeping it. He can get you lost, but he will get you found if you follow him too far. Just a rhythmic genius of the first order.
Steve Barnes: the sweetest quarter note and lockup of anyone I know. This guy listens like crazy, and hears where the tune is going. Maybe the easiest guy to play with Ive ever met.
Adam Nussbaum: his playing is like flowing water. To play with him, you have to enter the flow. A real force of nature, and one of the funniest human beings I have ever met. Pure joy.
Danny Gottlieb: as solid a groove as you will ever hear. A real servant of the music. Total clarity - you can always hear every detail, and it’s always on.
I would love to hear about some favorites, either from experience or from performances/recordings, from others who want to actually give great drummers some love.
It would be nice to get thread back on track by talking about some great jazz drummers we have heard and/or played with. I’ll start with some of my favorites that I’ve played with:
Jason Tiemann: we came up together back when I was still playing piano, and hit our stride once I joined him as a bassist. He’s playing with everyone in the NYC scene these days. Immaculate technique, a great ear for dynamics, and a great feel for where the tune is going and helping it get there.
Mike Hyman: one of the most creative musicians I have ever played with. He has no fear, and jumps in and shapes the music, supercharging every single band he plays in. It’s no wonder he was chosen to tour with Joe Henderson, Getz, and Gary Burton among others when he was just a teenager. Just a tremendous musician.
Ari Hoenig: a metric mastermind. He plays effortlessly against the time while still keeping it. He can get you lost, but he will get you found if you follow him too far. Just a rhythmic genius of the first order.
Steve Barnes: the sweetest quarter note and lockup of anyone I know. This guy listens like crazy, and hears where the tune is going. Maybe the easiest guy to play with Ive ever met.
Adam Nussbaum: his playing is like flowing water. To play with him, you have to enter the flow. A real force of nature, and one of the funniest human beings I have ever met. Pure joy.
Danny Gottlieb: as solid a groove as you will ever hear. A real servant of the music. Total clarity - you can always hear every detail, and it’s always on.
I would love to hear about some favorites, either from experience or from performances/recordings, from others who want to actually give great drummers some love.
I don't think so. It's the double bass section, and I'm specifically speaking about jazz. I can't imagine why a bassist would feel this way about a drummer. Singers, guitarists, sure. A drummer?
Thinking of guys like Tony Williams and how much fun and how much of a musical experience it would have been to play with him. Trying to imagine a truly heavy Impressions without a drummer.
Just a note to all: this thread, posted in the DB forums, seems to have been intended to initiate a discussion of great drummers and their effect on the music in a jazz setting. And yet it seems to be inundated with generic jokes about drummers, mostly from members who most often frequent the bass guitar forums.
It would be nice to get thread back on track by talking about some great jazz drummers we have heard and/or played with. I’ll start with some of my favorites that I’ve played with:
Jason Tiemann: we came up together back when I was still playing piano, and hit our stride once I joined him as a bassist. He’s playing with everyone in the NYC scene these days. Immaculate technique, a great ear for dynamics, and a great feel for where the tune is going and helping it get there.
Mike Hyman: one of the most creative musicians I have ever played with. He has no fear, and jumps in and shapes the music, supercharging every single band he plays in. It’s no wonder he was chosen to tour with Joe Henderson, Getz, and Gary Burton among others when he was just a teenager. Just a tremendous musician.
Ari Hoenig: a metric mastermind. He plays effortlessly against the time while still keeping it. He can get you lost, but he will get you found if you follow him too far. Just a rhythmic genius of the first order.
Steve Barnes: the sweetest quarter note and lockup of anyone I know. This guy listens like crazy, and hears where the tune is going. Maybe the easiest guy to play with Ive ever met.
Adam Nussbaum: his playing is like flowing water. To play with him, you have to enter the flow. A real force of nature, and one of the funniest human beings I have ever met. Pure joy.
Danny Gottlieb: as solid a groove as you will ever hear. A real servant of the music. Total clarity - you can always hear every detail, and it’s always on.
I would love to hear about some favorites, either from experience or from performances/recordings, from others who want to actually give great drummers some love.
Thank you, Chris.
Hoenig is an incredible player. I picked this up from this one fantastic take on Nardis
Add Antonio Sanchez to this list. Caught him with Pat Metheny (and Linda Oh!) a few years ago. Seemed everyone mailed it in, but Sanchez redeemed himself with the video below.
also Justin Faulkner. There's a video out there of Faulkner's father's memorial service with him and Branford Marsalis, Mike Boone, Tim Warfield, and Orrin Evans, doing Take the Coltrane. It's VERY poorly recorded and from the side, but JF is KILLING it, and so is Warfield. It's one video that I wish had been recorded from the front. They keep up with his power just fine.
Yep, seen that guy a few times, It didn't sour me on everyone who plays the instrument.
Full disclosure, I am a former HS/Uni timpanist and marching snare drummer. Never tried to play jazz during that period of my life, so totally separate.
I got to play 3 nights with Pilc and Hoenig back in 2008, playing their music and then a few standards each night. It was a life changing experience. Those guys are on a whole other level!
Trvia: that quote came from a standup comic.
Post in thread 'Why don't drummers get more love here? (mostly a jazz rant - DB Forum Thread)' https://www.talkbass.com/threads/wh...z-rant-db-forum-thread.1658273/#post-28619888
I was never and am still not sure about this. If you browse, you'll see plenty of posts talking about how much more fun they have at drummerless gigs, too.
One who got fired by the drummer leading the last band he was in...
Anyhow... Tony Williams from 1:55 or so to about 2:15.
