Late last week I put out a video discussing Drum Covers…
This was for a couple of reasons –
1. There is a dialogue online that pops up from time to time, and generally from the older crowd, that covers are ‘stupid’, or ‘are a waste of time’ etc. Newsflash… They are not.
2. I teach, and part of what I teach is songs, i.e. drum covers. I teach the importance of honing in on, and honoring someone’s style and feel, and the parts that they have written. I teach the importance of listening, and the importance of learning the details.
There is much much more to go into on this topic, buts lets ust focus on these for now.
Let’s start with number 1.
Story time…
Would you believe it that I have actually seen a world-class, well-known drummer and educator publicly calling out a 16-year-old who DM’d them, simply to let them know they were going to do a drum cover of one of the songs that this drummer in question had played on?
Now look, in typical (and naive) 16-year-old fashion, the teenager did say ‘the cross-promotion could benefit us both.’ Which didn’t help, but the response from the drummer was completely unnecessary.
For the sake of this story, let’s call him David.
David, (to quote Pig The Pug, a book I’m reading to young Maximus at the moment), well, David ‘flipped his lid’.
He screenshot the message, posted it on his wall, and called the kid out, saying “I don’t need anyone covering my music badly, and don’t need ‘cross-promotion’ with a kid either.”
He then went on to say something to the effect of “How about you write your own music and focus on that, rather than copying mine”.
Can you believe that?
I need to make this very clear. This is ALL true. In fact, I even commented on the post, ya know, because I couldn’t help myself…
I simply said “A simple thanks, but no, thanks, would have sufficed.”
Well, once again, he flipped his lid.
I won’t go into what he said to me as his response was in relation to something else between he and I. (That’s another story, for another day).
But anyway, fancy calling a young and hungry kid out – A KID! For wanting to challenge themselves by learning one of your tunes that they are clearly a fan of. Insane. INSANE!
Also, fancy forgetting exactly how you acquired all your skills in the first place, in your most formative years. i.e. Playing along to other people’s music!
There is this strange thing I have noticed with some adults, especially those with a bit of ego and profile – they forget where they started.
It’s almost as though they think they just woke up one day, as a fully formed adult, and with all their drumming skills already plugged into their brain.
Let’s not forget – you were a kid once too, and in order to improve, you also used to play along to your favourite albums for hours and hours on end.
This is how we grow. We copy first, then we take what we have learned, and find ways to make it our own. This is the path to greatness. But, there is nuance to this.
Picasso once said “Good artists copy, great artists steal…”
This is very true, but let’s take it a step further…
Good artists copy, but great artists focus on the details, obsess, master, and then they move on and make it their own.
And that brings me to number 2.
If you are going to go to the trouble of learning someone’s material, then get detail-orientated.
This is what I stress to my students. Don’t be lazy, learn the details!
Learning covers is so good for growth, but IMO, only really if you are willing to go that extra mile and focus on the details of what that song and drummer have to offer.
There is sooooo much to gain by really getting into the head of a player, and learning exactly what they did, and then in turn, you start to understand why they did it.
Benefits of learning drum covers verbatim –
1. New stickings and phrasings
2. A different feel
3. Your pocket will improve.
4. Your songwriting will improve.
5. Your creativity will improve.
6. Your memory will improve.
7. Your ability to focus will improve.
8. Your internal clock will improve.
I mean the list goes on, but the point is, there are ONLY gains to be made, but only if you are willing to be detail-oriented, as I mentioned.
Even as someone who has been playing for 27 years now, I STILL take the time to learn songs and specific parts I come across from my favourite drummers, because I know how valuable it is.
- I was in a Tool Tribute band when I was 18. This had a profound impact on my playing.
- 14 years ago, I spent 3 months learning all my favourite Tomas Haake moments to record as a single piece of music. This had a profound impact on my playing.
- 13 years ago, I also spent 3 months learning all my favourite Jon Theodore moments to record as a single piece of music. This also had a profound impact on my playing.
There are many more examples I could mention here, but you get the idea.
All of these projects required an extreme amount of focus and attention. And for all three, I had to dramatically improve aspects of my playing to be able to pull them off.
The gains were HUGE!
So yeah, don’t ever underestimate the value and power of learning drum covers, and sure, if you want to put it online, go for it! But the main thing above all, is that you do the work and honour the artist and the parts they wrote.
For you, yes, but also, for them!
Remember, their song had an intention behind it when it was written and recorded. Take the time to pinpoint exactly what that intention was, learn it, obsess over it, honour it, and then move on and make it your own.
I’ll leave you with this…
I think that only partially learning a drum cover is really just an overall attitude towards life. It’s just laziness.
You need to set a challenge for yourself so you can grow, but you also need to set a standard for how you approach everything in your life – of the highest quality.
Pull your socks up, get focused, be specific, and do the work. You’ll be better off for it.
Let’s leave it there this week.
As always, thanks for taking the time. I appreciate it.
If you have anything you’d like to add, or have any questions in general, fire them through. I love chatting with you all.
Stay hungry (and healthy),
Stan