FUNKLET

welcomevelcomewilcum
 NOTES
Every drummer in this book has great feel — duh. Beyond feel, they are also
great composers.
Think of the drum set as a three key piano. Instead of strings, the hammers hit
tubular wooden shells covered with stretched animal hides. Actually, just think
of a drum set.
These beats are clever melodic phrases that translate across different timbers.
You can play “Yesterday” on the oboe. You can play “Cold Sweat” on an 808.
Dig?
If you are looking for more anecdotes and technical advice, check out Jim
Payne’s Give The Drummers Some! and Stanton Moore’s Groove Alchemy, respec-
tively.
Enjoy the booklet. I enjoyed making it. If you do anything creative with it, let
me know.

NOTATION NOTATION CONTD.

Each grid line is a sixteenth note. The color is the velocity of the hit.

hard

hi-hat less hard

snare softer
kick soft
(one bar)
All the beats are written as two bars. A means open the hi-hat.
01 CLYDE STUBBLEFIELD
I GOT THE FEELIN'
JAMES BROWN
1968

As a kid, I saw pictures of James Brown on stage with two drummers. That was It’s Clyde’s fast left hand that makes him sound like two drummers.
cool, and it let me off the hook when I couldn’t play the grooves from the His groups of three 16th notes on the snare are funky and righteously difficult.
records. I figured, “If I can get close to the original using only four limbs, that’s Trying to make his grooves happen — even at slow tempos — takes time,
pretty good.” repetition and repetition.
Turns out it was four limbs playing those grooves. Clyde Stubblefield’s four
limbs.
I wasn’t the only one fooled. When “I Got the Feelin’” dropped, drummers
everywhere retreated to their basements.
02 CLYDE STUBBLEFIELD
MOTHER POPCORN
JAMES BROWN
1969

Most funky field trips make a stop at this landmark beat. It’s fun to ballpark the dates of funk tracks based on hi-hat parts. Invite over
Clyde started a new type of groove by playing quarter notes on the hi-hat. It some friends, order some pizza and try it sometime.
gives the groove a jerky, all-broke-up feel.
This innovation wasn’t a highly conscious decision; Clyde just went in the
studio and started up a groove.
Because of the quarters on the hat, the kick and snare part sound totally fresh,
even though it is similar to some past Stubblefield grooves.
03 ZIGABOO MODELISTE
CISSY STRUT
THE METERS
1969

Fact: Zigaboo used two hands on the hat when recording “Cissy Strut.”
Among drummers, that factoid is becoming as ubiquitous as “‘White Christ-
mas’ was written by a Jew!”
Still, when I first got the memo, everything got a little lighter.
It never crossed my mind Zig could be using two hands on the hat. Plus, he was
breaking one of Gabriel Roth’s (Daptone Records) rules: Never use two hands on
the hat unless you are actually in Ghana and it’s still 1970.
After I got remotely schooled by Stanton Moore’s book, the groove felt better.
That said, it’s still fun to play with one hand.

L R L R L L R L L L R L R L L R L L
04 JAMES GADSON
LET A WOMAN BE A WOMAN, LET A MAN BE A MAN
DYKE & THE BLAZERS
1969

This cut is the Usain Bolt of funk. Evolutionarily speaking, it shouldn’t have Rhythm Band, but Charles Watts was a controlling dude and wouldn’t really let
been possible for another twenty years. the musicians do their thing. So when they would do “scab” dates (non-union)
These cats were getting so funky more than forty years ago, and here we are with Dyke — and had creative freedom — things got indulgently funky.
thinking we’re so fresh because we record to tape.
Dyke & the Blazers was a perfect storm. It was the hottest players in L.A.
unleashing their pent-up syncopation during underground sessions.
You see, Dyke & the Blazers was the same rhythm section as the Watts 103rd St.
05 JABO STARKS
GET UP (I FEEL LIKE BEING A) SEX MACHINE
JAMES BROWN
1970

“I had never played with a bass player who was that funky,” Jabo said about sounded fresh. So James took an idea that had been around (“Sex Machine”)
Bootsy Collins. and put it down with his new backing band.
James Brown’s “old band” quit after James refused to meet their demand for Jabo swings this beat like mad.
better treatment. Jabo stuck around though.
James sent his jet to Cincinnati to pick up his “new band” that included a
teenage Bootsy and his brother, Catfish (guitar).
The new band was doing a new thing with James’ sound. Even the old material Note: the original was sped up a half step.
06 JAMES GADSON
EXPRESS YOURSELF
CHARLES WRIGHT AND THE WATTS 103RD STREET
RHYTHM BAND
1970

Melvin Dunlap’s bass line is what you hum after listening to this tune, but
Gadson’s groove is so funky and deceptively complex.
This particular pattern comes at the top of the tune before the vocals come in.
Gadson was experimenting with 16th-note grooves and the syncopated left
hand.
This phrase requires some tricky coordination, like cracking the snare while
playing a soft note on the hat. The drum break really flips the beat around too.
“Frankly, I like to groove,” said James.
07 BERNARD PURDIE
O-O-H CHILD
FIVE STAIRSTEPS
1970

When Purdie wasn’t feeling a track, he let it show. the bus, getting directions over the phone, and sniping that lollypop-sucking kid
“O-o-h Child” wasn’t clicking. They were trying everything — all the engineer- in the mirror.
ing tricks. Then Purdie took over. Purdie heightens each key change without hitting harder.
Purdie explains: “In the last twenty minutes of the session, Vince (Stan He always manages to take it higher, to the point of cracking every beat on the
Vincent, writer) gave me my head. Bam! Fifteen minutes later, we have ‘O-o-h snare near the end of the tune.
Child.’ My way.” The phrase below comes in at the first key change. It has that disco hi-hat with
“O-o-h Child” is Purdie’s magnum opus. a busy snare and kick part. It’s a good starting point for getting into this song.
My high school jazz teacher would tell me to “drive the bus.” Purdie is driving
08 ROGER HAWKINS
RESPECT YOURSELF
THE STAPLE SINGERS
1971

The simplest groove in the book. It’s also the baddest.

09 BERNARD PURDIE
ROCK STEADY
ARETHA FRANKLIN
1971

Jerry Wexler recounts: “It was also in Miami that, on a humid night that has of the same take, and the kick drum was mixed much clearer.
stayed with me forever, Aretha set down a ‘Rock Steady’ that will keep rocking My suspicion was right! The original mix blends Purdie’s kick with a percus-
as long as electricity wires sound.” sionist hitting a second bass drum with a stick.
This groove was the hardest to transcribe. The hands are classic Purdie, but The tune was actually tracked pretty crisply (as you hear on alt-mix), but the
the kick drum was hard to pick out of the mix and didn’t sound like a foot. tune called for some roughness when it got to mixing.
As fate would have it, when I was trying to decipher the kick part, my Dr. John played percussion and Donny Hathaway played keys. No wonder
roommate hipped me to the What It Is! compilation (rare funk from Warner- Wexler remembered it.
distributed labels). On it was an alternate mix of “Rock Steady.” The alt-mix was
10 ZIGABOO MODELISTE
CHUG CHUG CHUG-A-LUG (PUSH AND SHOVE)
THE METERS
1972

Every year at the Passover Seder, Jews ask, “What makes Zigaboo’s drumming b) The most unique — and the biggest jump in it — I would say is Zigaboo.
different from all other drumming?” You’ll see an asterisk above a hit in the transcription below. It might be the
Even amongst New Orleans drummers, Zigaboo brings something different. funkiest hit in the book, compositionally speaking.
A rough progression of New Orleans drumming: Earl Palmer, Charlie Williams, That hit won’t happen unless you practice a little. It is not a naturally
John Boudreaux, Smokey Johnson, Zigaboo Modeliste. When presented with occurring hit, and it might feel uncomfortable at first.
this evolution, Allen Toussaint made two points: But dig, that single hit — cracking the snare and kicking the bass — makes this
a) Earl Palmer is a marvelous place to start. groove different from all other grooves.

*
11 JAMES GADSON
USE ME
BILL WITHERS
1972

Grooving is a spiritual thing for James Gadson.

On this track, the band grooved for about ten minutes straight. After that, Bill
Withers put down his vocal part and the engineer manufactured a breakdown
by soloing vocals and drums for certain sections.
If you listen closely, you can hear the bass bleeding into the drum mics during
the breakdowns.
I dig this work-flow. When the album version starts, the musicians have
already been deep in the groove for a few minutes.
12 BERNARD PURDIE
SYNTHETIC SUBSTITUTION
MELVIN BLISS
1973

The scene: I’m in my basement with a cassette recording I dubbed off the “Big The Dust Brothers were familiar with classic drum breaks like Melvin Bliss’
Nine at 9” on Jammin 92.3FM. It’s 1997, and I’m trying to play the intro to “Synthetic Substitution” and threw it in during the intro before Abe Laboriel Jr.
Hanson’s “MMMbop.” layered huge drums over the rest of the track.
I give up, embarrassed that I can’t keep up with a drummer my age (10) and The original “Synthetic Substitution” was a quickly cut B-side that doesn’t
who, furthermore, looks like a girl. make much sense. Purdie’s fast-footed drum intro has kept the track relevant as
There were two truths that I was unaware of at the time: a) the intro was a one of the most sampled beats.
Bernard Purdie sample and b) I also looked like a girl. He swings his foot a little after the first phrase.
“MMMbop” was produced by the Dust Borthers — hip-hop producers at heart.
13 HERMAN “ROSCOE” ERNEST III
LADY MARMALADE
LABELLE
1974
I thought this was Zigaboo because someone said The Meters played It started like many influential beats — a session stuck in the mud. Toussaint
rhythm on it. told the band to take a break and met with Herman. Toussaint asked, “How can
Close. Three of the four Meters did play, but the drummer was Herman the we make this song dance?” Herman played a little lick on his legs with that
German. double snare and Toussaint knew there was some magic.
Allen Toussaint (producer) liked having Herman on pop sessions. Dwight The band started playing and Toussaint told Herman to add in a kick. “Answer
Richards explains, “He gave them a groove that appealed to the masses instead your snare drum,” he said.
of that purely New Orleans funk thing you could only understand if you drink There was a new energy in the room. People knew something was going down.
our water.” “One more thing, Herman. Throw in a hi-hat before you answer your snare.”
This groove is a beautiful collaboration between Herman and Toussaint.
14 BERNARD PURDIE
THE FEZ
STEELY DAN
1976

I could write a lengthy essay on the seemingly parallel rise of linear funk for his sound, so he gave them his sound.
grooves and cryptic condom-usage lyrics in the mid-seventies. But that’s a Nailing this snare part will really help with other Purdie grooves. Also, invite a
whole other Kickstarter. friend to play shaker.
Steely Dan sessions were quite stressful for the musicians. Many of the
drummers mention the absurd level of perfection Fagan and Becker expected.
However, years later, we are left with some timeless, classy performances.
Purdie says he overdubbed the drum parts on this album. He was brought in
15 BERNARD PURDIE
HAITIAN DIVORCE
STEELY DAN
1976

When Purdie decides to simply, no one is safe.

16 NARADA MICHAEL WALDEN
COME DANCING
JEFF BECK
1976

Narada wrote this tune. Wilbur Bascomb’s bass playing will break your neck.
(If you want to hear Wilbur and Purdie lock up, check out Hair: Original
Soundtrack Recording — the soundtrack from the movie version of Hair.)
This particular pattern only happens during the drum intro.
Graphically, it’s one of the more symmetrical patterns. However, when playing
it, rather than thinking about the symmetry or the clever dialog between kick
and snare, you should imagine an overweight Daffy Duck grumbling his way
into a strip club.
This imagery has helped a lot of my students nail the swing of this groove.
17 BERNARD PURDIE
HOT SWEAT
MASTER DRUMMERS VOLUME 1
1996

Purdie’s take on Stubblefield’s “Cold Sweat.”

18 BERNARD PURDIE
THE MOST IMPORTANT EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION
WITH BERNARD "PRETTY" PURDIE IN JAPAN 2000
2000

This beat comes from one of Purdie’s Japanese instructional VHS tapes.
To see the clip, YouTube “Purdie.”
The top line of the pattern is played on cowbell.
This beat is used in a Science Olympiad challenge. Participants are given thirty
minutes to create something not funky using the transcription below.
No one has succeeded.
19 JAMES GADSON
SKIP SPENCE “BOOKS OF MOSES”
BECK’S RECORD CLUB
2010

The formula: drum hit. By taking away a hit, Gadson gives the beat some serious propulsion.
fantastic drumming + creative audio engineering = fantastic drumming with creative Try playing the second bar first. It changes the feeling.
audio engineering The engineer is also adding to the groove by side-chaining the room mic to the
“Holy shit, that’s heavy,” says Jamie Lidell during the first two bars of this quarter-note. Meaning, if you had your hand on the volume knob for the room
groove. mic, you would turn it down on the beat and swell it up until the next beat.
Google “beck books of moses” to find the original video. “That is the easiest thing ever to play to,” Lidell says right after cutting.
Dig how similar the first and second bars are. The only difference is one bass
20 THE UNKNOWN DRUMMER

Welcome to the Tomb of the Unknowns.

I was listening to a friend’s remix and heard a funky drum break. I asked if he
knew where the break was from, and he said it was part of a library of loops he
had bought. He sent me the one-bar cut.
I Shazamed it. I played it for some funky friends. No one had any leads.
Between poor crediting (common during the sixties and seventies) and
nameless loop libraries, it has become difficult to identify who played some of
the funkiest beats.
We shall call this beat by its file name: Strt Bts DC Gogo 100.