Drum-Related Blathering and Minutiae
Posts tagged funk/groove
Goofin’
Apr 18th
Me and Mike Richardson screwing around a couple months ago. As he did in JCO, Mike still loves throwing out his takes on random pop, funk, and jazz tunes.
Review » Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs: God Willin’ & the Creek Don’t Rise
Sep 7th
Artist: Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs
Drums: Jay Bellerose
Album: God Willin’ and the Creek Don’t Rise
Label: Stone Dwarf – RCA
Release Date: 17-Aug-2010
DD Rating: 
Based on the content of late, this may seem like an odd review. My musical tastes are all over the map, and I go through phases of contrast as stark as an Impressionist painter’s. So, yes, Avenged Sevenfold yesterday, Ray LaMontagne today. Hell, maybe in the same car ride.
The music of Ray LaMontagne was another happy discovery while I worked at Newbury Comics. We had boxes and boxes of promo CDs up for grabs before they went into the trash. Most of it was utter crap for which the dumpster was a fate too good, but I would regularly grab a handful, never knowing when I’d stumble upon something like Ray’s 2004 album Trouble. I was immediately—and continue to be—a fan.
I saw him live in Boston in support of 2008′s Gossip in the Grain. It was a terrific show. On drums was Ethan Johns, Ray’s multi-instrumentalist and producer for the first three albums. Ethan’s playing has an amazing feel that was very inspiring to me. When I’m not dreaming that I can play blast beats like a machine, I dream that I can have that sort of deep, “sloppy” groove that sits so perfectly in the music.
Jay Bellerose’s playing is cut from the same cloth, and on the new album he perfectly fills the role of groove keeper and texture creator. The standout track is “Repo Man”, which is a gritty, funky tune in the vein of “How Come”, “Three More Days”, and “You Are the Best Thing” on prior albums. The title track has dynamic fills throughout that begin bombastically and end on a subtle decrescendo with a big, thin crash cymbal that is more sensed than heard as it bleeds into the next phrase. But some of the most interesting stuff is barely audible, like the delicate, elusive grooves on “New York City’s Killing Me”, “Beg Steal or Borrow”, and “For The Summer”.
Ray’s voice is as distinctive and emotive as ever. The songwriting isn’t quite as strong on this album as on his first three, but God Willin’ & the Creek Don’t Rise is nonetheless another great offering from Ray LaMontagne.
Dennis Chambers: “So You Say” Groove
Aug 30th
Another Dennis Chambers transcription from Lee Jeffryes’ website Respect the Groove. This one is from Dennis’ instructional video In the Pocket, featuring John Scofield, Gary Grainger, and Jim Beard.
Here’s Dennis:
Here’s Lee breaking it down:
Click to enlarge | PDF version
Find the original post on Respect the Groove here.
Dennis Chambers Shuffle
Aug 23rd
Here’s a transcription of a really neat Dennis Chambers shuffle groove from Lee Jeffryes’ website Respect the Groove.
Here’s the original Dennis Chambers clip:
Here’s Lee playing it:
Click to enlarge | PDF version
Find the original post on Respect the Groove here.
Omar Hakim Groove Transcription
Aug 19th
As a follow-up to yesterday’s Omar Hakim video post, check out this transcription of a Omar’s groove from Weather Report’s “Molasses Run” (listen here on Grooveshark). The content below is from Lee Jeffryes’ website Respect the Groove.
Find the original post on Respect the Groove here.
Omar Hakim
Aug 18th
The first time I heard Omar Hakim was on the Burning for Buddy tribute. I was 15 then, and “Slow Funk” remains one of my favorite tracks on that album. Beyond technical ability and “groove”, there’s just a certain energy to Omar’s playing that I’ve always really liked.
These aren’t necessarily the best clips of Omar out there, just a few I hadn’t seen before and found enjoyable.
With Sting:
Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Stanley Clarke, and Omar Hakim with “Footprints” in 1991, Montreax:
Omar Hakim in Weather Report – “Where the Moon Goes”
Omar Hakim with Bobby McFerrin (too bad Richard Bona doesn’t get in on the action in this clip):
Review » Robert Randolph & the Family Band: We Walk This Road
Aug 3rd
Band: Robert Randolph & the Family Band
Drums: Marcus Randolph
Album: We Walk This Road
Label: Warner Bros.
Release Date: 22-Jun-2010
DD Rating: 
I’m relatively new to the music of Robert Randolph & the Family Band. I’d heard of them while working at Newbury Comics a few years ago, but kept forgetting to actually check them out. It wasn’t until I saw a live concert on HDNET that I became a fan. Within a few days of seeing that I picked up Unclassified and Colorblind. These are great funky, soulful albums that manage to capture some of the raw energy of the live concert I saw on TV.
This is my only complaint about the new album, We Walk This Road. Produced by T Bone Burnett, it is a much more polished offering than the previous albums. This is, of course, most evident to may ears in the recording of drummer Marcus Randolph. On the majority of the tracks, the drums function more as background percussion than an equal speaking voice. An actual drum set (e.g. hi-hat, kick, snare) isn’t present on most tracks. This is used appropriately and to great textural effect, but it gives the whole album a lighter feel. There aren’t any songs that kick like Colorblind‘s “Ain’t Nothing Wrong With That” or “Homecoming”, for instance. One may argue that bombastic fills like the double-bass sextuplets Marcus Randolph employed on the last album were a bit too “drummy” for mass consumption, but it kept the aforementioned “raw” and live feel of a band playing its ass off in front of a festival crowd.
This is not to say the new album is boring or not good. As a whole, it’s very well written and has an enjoyable and logical flow from beginning to end. Highlights include “Traveling Shoes”; “Back to the Wall”; “If I Had My Way”, which features Ben Harper and a traditional-but-hip train beat; John Lennon’s “I Don’t Wanna Be a Soldier Mama”; and “I’m Not Listening”, which has some simple but neat syncopation.
We Walk This Road is aimed at a wider audience for sure, and I have no doubt the Family Band will keep their usual energy on the supporting tour. It just would have been nice to get at least a slight inkling of that captured on the new album.
