Make Some Noise – It Is May!

Welcome to May! Were you aware that May is International Drum Month? Cheers to the instrument that keeps the music in time.

Anyone who has played in a school band or any band really knows that there are plenty of jokes made about the percussionists and the percussion section:

What do you say to a drummer in a three-piece suit?
“Will the defendant please rise?”

Hey, did you hear about the drummer who finished high school?
Me neither.

What is the difference between a drummer and a savings bond?
One will mature and make money.

What is the difference between a bad drummer and a vacuum cleaner?
You have to plug one of them in before it sucks.

There are hundreds of jokes like that. Honestly, though, without the percussion section (or percussionist) the rest of the group would fight to keep time. I can’t imagine marching in a parade without a solid drum cadence and so many great bands had well known drummers.

So in honor of International Drum Month – I wanted to share some of my favorite drum songs, drum solos, and songs about drums.

First, let’s head back to 1936 and the fantastic song by Benny Goodman – Sing, Sing, Sing. The song was written by Louis Prima and became one of Benny’s signature songs.

In 1941, legendary drummer Gene Krupa had a hit with Drum Boogie (with Irene Day on the vocals). There are many videos of him performing this.

Instrumentals were big in the 50’s and 60’s. My dad introduced me to 1958’s Topsy Part 2 by Cozy Cole. He worked with great artists like Louis Armstrong and Cab Calloway.

Preston Epps learned how to play the bongos when he was in the Korean War. His big hit was Bongo Rock, but I liked 1960’s Bongo, Bongo, Bongo a bit better (Though it never broke the top 40). I often used this as background music when I was on the radio.

If you have ever heard To Know Him Is to Love Him (Teddy Bears), Alley Opp (Hollywood Argyles), or A Thousand Stars (Kathy Young and the Innocents), then you’ve heard Sandy Nelson. He was a session drummer and played on a lot of songs. He even had some solo hits, including 1961’s Let The Be Drums.

Johnny Smith recorded Walk, Don’t Run in 1954. Chet Atkins covered it in 1957 and when the Ventures heard it, they recorded their own version in 1960. While many consider it more of a guitar tune, the drums are a key part of the song.

Probably one of the most famous drum songs was from 1963. The Surfaris took Wipe Out! all the way to #2 on the Hot 100 chart. It is a song that continues to pop up on TV and in movies and has even made a few reentries on the charts because of that.

In 1967, Michael Nesmith of the Monkees penned a percussion tune for Linda Ronstadt and her group The Stone Poneys. Linda has a birthday coming up and I was going to feature this song on that day, but it fits better here. This was her first single and it reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

In 1969, The Beatles released Abbey Road, which contains a song that has a drum lick that famous drummers everywhere still talk about. It is often called “genius” and I couldn’t agree more. The drum line from Come Together is just an amazing thing to listen to. Atta Boy, Ringo!

In 1972, Gary Glitter had a hit with the B-side of Rock and Roll Part 1, which was appropriately called Rock and Roll Part 2. Most folks remember this one as simply, “The Hey Song.” This was his only top 10 hit in the US. It used to be big at sporting events, but it went away after some sexual crimes in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. It was featured in the recent Joker movie.

1972 also brought one of my favorite drum intros by way of Stevie Wonder. I’ve written about this one before, but you know I had to hear it again as I wrote this.

1977 brought another great drum tune that is still used at sporting events today. I couldn’t do a piece about drum songs without Queen’s We Will Rock You.

So many songs can be instantly recognized by the drum intros and the next one from 1980 is no exception. It is a classic rock and party staple. I am, of course, talking about AC/DC’s Back in Black.

When you talk about drums and drum solos, there seems to be one song that always comes up – In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins. It’s not my favorite song, but you can’t deny the very cool drum solo.

The next drum song has become sort of a Monday morning anthem for anyone who works for a living. Todd Rundgren’s 1983 Bang On The Drum All Day is unique in that he plays every instrument on the track.

I am sure I could feature many more songs, but I have decided to conclude with a song that was very unusual. It was unusual, because there are very few songs that begin with a 30 second drum solo. In 1984, Van Halen did just that. Alex Van Halen kicks off Hot for Teacher with an amazing double bass drum performance and a song remembered not only for his drum work, but a steamy video.

This month, I salute drummers like Ringo Starr, John Bonham, Keith Moon, Buddy Rich, Sheila E, Dave Grohl, Alex Van Halen, Phil Collins, Charlie Watts, Gene Krupa, Questlove, Hal Blaine, Max Weinberg, Lars Ulrich, Neil Peart, Levon Helm, Chad Smith, Ed Shaughnessy, and so many others!! Thanks for keeping the beat!

What songs do you remember for drum solos or great drum work?

Turntable Talk #24 – This Woman’s Work

For two solid years Dave Ruch from A Sound Day has been hosting a monthly feature called “Turntable Talk.” Each month he provides a topic to me and other musical bloggers to write about. I have been honored to have participated in every one of them. Each of the participants look forward to not only writing our piece, but anxiously await reading the other contributions.

As I stated in a previous blog, this month is International Women’s Month. Dave offered us an easy topic to write about this month. His instructions state “we’re going to turn our tables and sights to the women of music. Pick one you like and write about her. Whoever you want (that might sound creepier than I intended it), singer, songwriter, band member, the lady on the ‘Breakfast in America’ cover, whoever.”

I wrote a blog that teased this topic earlier in the week. In that post, I said, “I really struggled to pick one (female singer). I even posted on Facebook asking my friends to offer up their three favorite singers. I guess I hoped that they would offer up someone that I hadn’t considered (and they did). The results surprised me. The singers that came up the most were (1) Stevie Nicks, (2) Etta James, and (3 – tie) Pink and Karen Carpenter. Etta was the only one that was in my list of considerations. After looking at the list (and the suggestions) I finally chose who I am writing about and NO ONE mentioned her.“

Along with Etta James, I featured a song from my other considerations: Ella Fitzgerald, Alison Krauss, Aretha Franklin, Billie Holiday, Dusty Springfield, Sarah Vaughn, Diana Krall, Norah Jones, Linda Ronstandt, Pat Benatar, Peggy Lee, Jewel, and Keely Smith in that blog. So how did I finally come up with my choice?

My friend, Dawn, from high school actually helped me make my decision. She said, “There are so many talented vocalists, I’d have a hard time picking. if you’re going to write an impactful piece, I think you have to go with somebody you admire because they knocked down boundaries or overcame obstacles. That’s how I’d pick my vocalist.” That really struck me. Now, I am not saying that the ladies I mentioned already did not knock down boundaries or overcome obstacles – heck, Jewel was living in her van before she made it big!

My featured female singer is a talented woman named Diane Schuur.

I was introduced to Diane Schuur back in the late 80’s. I was talking about music with a gal I was dating at the time. We started talking about jazz singers and she asked if I had ever heard of Schuur. I hadn’t. If memory serves me correct, she loaned me a cassette (or maybe a CD) with some songs on it and I really enjoyed it.

One of her biographies online says this: “Diane Schuur is as eclectic as she is brilliant.” In my opinion, this statement could not be more true. While many of her songs would fall into the jazz category, she could easily be filed in the blues or pop categories, too. While preparing to write this, I picked a playlist on YouTube and it was fun to hear the different sounds of each of the songs.

My friend Dawn said to pick someone who “overcame obstacles.” Diane certainly has done that! She was born prematurely in 1953. She has been blind since birth because of Retinopathy of Prematurity. This disorder affected premature newborns who received high-oxygen therapy during neonatal intensive care. This was a standard practice until 1954.

She learned to play piano by ear. She would listen to Dinah Washington songs and began to pound out the melodies at age 3. Dinah was a big influence to Diane as she began singing her songs as a toddler and worked on her own vocal style. She once stated, “As far back as I can remember, singing was in my blood. My parents loved music, and I loved to sing. I was scatting at an early age.” She scats right up there with Ella and Mel Torme’! She also has perfect pitch!

Blindness was not her only obstacle. When she was a young adult, she began drinking and struggled with alcoholism. She also battled an eating disorder. Those obstacles were so much that she actually contemplated and attempted suicide. Thankfully, her brother-in-law stopped her from jumping out a third-story window. She got help and has been sober for several decades.

Diane got her big break when she was 22 years old. She auditioned for drummer/bandleader Ed Shaughnessy (of the Tonight Show Band) after he finished a concert with Doc Severinsen. Ed said, “this young blind girl comes in and sits down at the Fender Rhodes keyboard and starts singing the blues. Well, my hair stood on end!”

He hired her to be the vocalist in his orchestra. This led many other musicians to hear her. Those included Dizzy Gillespie and the great Stan Getz. Stan was so impressed that he became an advisor and coach to her. She stated that it was Stan who taught her that “less is more.” This was important because she had many critics that said she often “oversang” when she first started out. Stan once said, “She’s just like Sarah (Vaughn) or Ella (Fitzgerald) to me. She’s taking from the tradition, and what comes out is her own conception and advancement of the tradition.”

In 1985, she met B.B. King at a music festival in Tokyo. The two really hit it off and later made an album together entitled “Heart to Heart.” It was released in 1994 and it entered the Billboard Jazz Charts at number one!

In 1988, Frank Sinatra asked her to sing with him at a benefit concert when Liza Minnelli was unable to perform. She was a guest at Sinatra’s home and also performed at a concert with him and Quincy Jones. Frank gave her an abstract oil painting that he had created for her afterwards. When Frank passed away, Schuur recorded a tribute album for her late friends (Frank and Stan).

Other inspirations to Schuur include George Shearing, Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles who are all blind as well. She has said that one of her fondest memories was performing with Ray Charles in 1998 for a PBS concert (some of which is available on YouTube).

Her career has brought her two Grammy awards – both for Best Jazz Vocal Performance (1986 & 1987). She is still recording and touring today. She says, “For the future I plan to continue my reading of American song, paying respect to celebrated writers and polishing the gems in the jazz tradition.”

I’ve never had the chance to see her in person, but there are some fantastic live albums available.

All About Jazz says, “Ms. Schuur surely is among the very best jazz vocalists, and she exemplifies, if not redefines the “diva” category with her warm, often humorous and relaxed interactions with the audience and the musicians. Her mere presence is enough to make for a memorable evening.” I hope to be able to see her perform one day.

I will include just a couple of my favorite cuts at the end of this blog, but before I do, I want to again thank Dave for hosting this monthly feature. I hope that you enjoy reading this as much as I did writing it. I love that with each topic, I am not only enjoying old favorites, but I am introduced to new songs and singers. Perhaps this blog is your introduction to Diane Schuur?

Here is a classic – Come Rain or Come Shine