Butch Miles
I said in my first article for MD last year that sometimes a well placed rim shot in an arrangement has more impact than ten thousand notes. The prime example is Buddy Rich’s two bar silent break in Channel One Suite.
It would probably be difficult to name a big band that swings and pulsates more than the dynamic Count Basie Orchestra. For over forty years. Basie has kept his aggregation alive and swinging with his inimitable brand of big band excitement.
It would probably be difficult to name a big band that swings and pulsates more than the dynamic Count Basie Orchestra. For over forty years. Basie has kept his aggregation alive and swinging with his inimitable brand of big band excitement.
A big band is many things. It can be top-heavy and cumbersome, or to quote a certain well-known world champion, it can float like a butterfly and sting like a bee.
In my last article, I gave nine rules for better big band drumming. As you may recall, they were: (1) Support, (2) Don’t get in the way, (3) Cue (or Direct) the band, (4) Don’t overplay (simplify), (5) Keep the energy up, (6) Know the chart, (7) Phrasing, (8) Keep …
In my last article, I gave nine rules for better big band drumming. As you may recall, they were: (1) Support, (2) Don’t get in the way, (3) Cue (or Direct) the band, (4) Don’t overplay (simplify), (5) Keep the energy up, (6) Know the chart, (7) Phrasing, (8) Keep …
Last time, we discussed the value of underplaying and keeping the energy level high. This article deals with two of the most important of all the nine tips I’ve suggested: learning the chart and phrasing.
In this article, I’ll touch on equipment, various big-band drummers’ set-ups, muffling the set for live and recording situations, and some hints on cymbal technique.
Stephen Perkins, Chris McHugh, Jeff Hamilton, Adam Carson, Mark Guiliana, Paul Motian, Scott Rockenfield, Abe Fogel, Thomas Pridgen, Trevor Friedrich, Jack DeJohnette, Brian Tichy, Myles Heskett, Tony Williams, Jason McGerr, Butch Miles, Ed Shaughnessy, Bruce Gary
Terry Bozzio, Riley Breckenridge, Daniel Erlandsson, Alan Evans, Michael White, Raymond Herrera, Jim Bonfanti, Butch Miles, Frank Vincent, Ignacio Berroa, Vinnie Colaiuta, George Schwindt, Paul Doucette
Anton Fig, Connie Kay, Jerry Kroon, Neil Peart, Elvin Jones, Billy Cobham, Susan Evans, Steve Jordan, Kenny Washington, Buddy Williams, Barrett Deems, Gary Wallis, Butch Miles, Steve Smith
Tommy Lee, Bun E. Carlos, Jerry Carrigan, Ben Riley, Steve Gadd, Max Weinberg, Jerry Mercer, Gary Husband, Butch Miles
Neil Peart, Ralph Cooper, Jon Hiseman, John Steel, Michael Carabello, Dave Weckl, Mark Herndon, Butch Miles, Myron Grombacher, Omar Hakim
Peter Erskine, Chester Thompson, Jim Gordon, Tony Williams, Dennis Elliot, Vic Mastrianni, Tommy Aldridge, Andy Newmark, Butch Miles, Chet McCracken, Ralph Cooper, Sue Hadjopoulos, Tris Imboden, Gene Dunlap, Mike Baird, Ed Tuduri, Bill Ward, Michael Botts, Vinnie Colaiuta, Jim Keltner, Emedin Rivera, Roland Vasquez, Don Murray, Mat Marucci, Don Moye, …
Phil Collins, Joe Morello, Alphonse Mouzon, David Garibaldi, Butch Miles, Lenny DiMuzio, Milk Balter
Lenny White, Badal Roy, Butch Miles, Max Roach, Terri Lyne Carrington, Garry Marshall
Alan Dawson, Butch Miles, Phil Ehart, Ed Shaughnessy, Chick Webb
Posted: February 3, 2023
Butch Miles (1944-2023)
Drummer-bandleader Butch Miles (1944-2023) has died. Butch and his drumming were loved and admired all over the world. Butch Miles was best known for his tenure in the Count Basie Orchestra from 1975 to 1979 and then making a ten-year return to the band from 1997 to 2007. In the 1980s …
Posted: March 2, 2017
Jason Trammell on Sinkane’s Life & Livin’ It
This past February 10, multifaceted producer and pop, funk, and jazz blender Ahmed Gallab released his sixth album, Life & Livin’ It, with his solo project Sinkane. Drummer and longtime Gallab collaborator Jason Trammell lays down tasty, soulful, and world-influenced grooves beneath the contagious hooks and gorgeous harmonies that adorn …
Posted: January 25, 2017
Butch Trucks: 1947–2017
In a week that was already rocked by the deaths of Can’s Jaki Liebezeit and Spooky Tooth’s Mike Kellie, the drum world was shaken for a third time by news this morning of the passing of founding Allman Brothers Band sticksman Butch Trucks.
Posted: September 29, 2016
On Tour: Tony Leone With the Chris Robinson Brotherhood
Longtime New York City drummer Tony Leone is currently on the road with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood.
Posted: November 2, 2015
Count Basie/Tony Bennett Drummer Harold Jones
Harold Jones is a marvel. While some people his age are already living in retirement homes, the seventy-five-year-old drummer is busy globe-hopping with another over-achieving American musical icon, Tony Bennett….
Posted: March 19, 2012
Tim Walsh of the Stepkids
I’m Tim Walsh of the Stepkids, and I’m excited to be on here and hope to add to the wealth of knowledge that is MD’s awesome thirty-five-year history…
Posted: January 20, 2012
25 Great Double-Drumming Tracks
Two drummers working it out, face to face—trading licks, contributing to a massive groove, spurring each other on—it’s one of the great musical traditions, and surely it goes back to the very invention of the drumkit at the beginning of the last century. This group of tunes focuses on tracks …
Posted: December 6, 2011
Rifftide: The Life
and Opinions of
Paoa Jo Jones
As Told To Albert Murray
The father of modern drumming kept his bag of tricks safely hidden. Thank goodness his playing spoke for itself.
Posted: November 22, 2011
November Web Update News
Drumming news for the month of November complied in one place.
Posted: November 13, 2008
Spencer Peterson
My name is Spencer Peterson, and I first took an interest in the drums at an early age, though it wasn't until I was ten years old that I took them seriously.
