Free Drum Lessons: Steve Gadd's Ultimate 16th Note Hihat Groove

[@properboy]

As a drummer who has played for almost 40 years I will tell you this is incredibly hard to do with the same feel. I could listen to this beat looped all day. Steve is sublime!

[@GoodLifeMedicine]

Listen to the Steve Gadd band some time. At first I was bored with his background playing. Now I am amazed by it. Every strike of a drum or cymbal is absolutely full of meaning. he knows exactly what he is doing and the more you listen the more you appreciate his depth.

[@GoodLifeMedicine]

Steve Gadd sends me to a higher level. Every strike of the drum is a lesson in itself. His drumming speaks truth.

[@mrskinszszs]

It seems like he sent himself to a higher level before this recording lol

[@fritzbalinsky7549]

the steve gadd one is a good reminder of how important it is to rehearse slow and simple and to keep a steady time. take it easy! and thanx a lot for a lesson by one of the greats. cheers.alex

[@slickingdom]

Steve has gotten so much mileage off of that groove with it's variations!! Never underestimate simplicity!! It's what keeps us working!!

[@flddoc2]

slickingdom Dude you are entirely too correct. I think everyone who sticks with any instrument for a long time goes through phases of feeding the ego monster rather than the music. Usually we gain something useful from those times but mostly what I gain is the comfort of new ways to express and use the basics. I’m never out of work and I enjoy the rep of a solid pocket drummer. Basics.

[@richdefazio2497]

What can I say? Thank you! Steve's stuff is so elegant, and fun to play. Magnificent! He is definitely the drum guru

[@joecaluorie3452]

Years ago Steve, I use to thumb a ride to your house from Leroy. You gave me pointers. You and your mom treated me great. I will always remember you and your mother. Tks for the memory's 😅

[@vr6jettar]

That pattern with the Ride at 5:45 is so damn tasty! 👍💯

[@ottohesslein3230]

Fabulous lesson to work out! My favorite drummer of all time for a teacher.

[@salchaos]

He's amazing. This lesson shows how much he communicates with his playing. He's not much of a talker, but, God, his playing is amazing. Especially when he goes off on tangents with those great fills. I love this guy's playing so much.

[@wolffoley6330]

Really great stuff... Fell in love with the 16th note Hi Hat Rhythm as a kid and have used it often for that shuffle feel which works in so many form of music from Jazz to Rock, Etc... It's great to see one of my All Time Drum Heros break it down just because I just love Steve Gadd "play/sound/performance/etc...". He had Timing and Rhythm which was what brought my love affair to drums and I haven't lost ever since. Great series, just subscribed... Looking forward to more. Thanks, Wolfy :)

[@3dogdog]

I am a professional bassist. This guy is one of the legends of them all. The second he plays it reaps with GROOVE man. Damn would I love to lay down just 2 and 4 with this guy.

[@frankburdodrums8984]

He don't do 2 and 4. He does 32 and 64.

[@TheDrummaboy78]

As a drummer Gadd is one of the greats. His stuff with Steely Dan is Legendary

[@BST-lm4po]

There's a nice clip on YT of Steve Gadd & Bass player Willie Weeks playing "Going Down" with Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood. Talk about a stage full of Heavyweights!!

[@danielavinash]

Steve Gadd is a great example of someone who plays the music! Nothing fancy, just play the music! Great video Drum Guru. More of Steve Gadd!!

[@davidcurtis4478]

I could watch Steve just play quarters on the Hi Hat all day and be mesmerized, the soul of a groove is what it's all about! Keep Groovin' Steve! DC 🥁😎

[@rayfrazier8657]

Thank you so much for Great teaching. There is so little teaching on hihat patterns & grooves it makes this teaching so valued & important to drummers. Mr. Gadd's time is fantastic & his dynamics are nice & smooth around the kit which makes it flow very nice & steady. Thank you so much for the lesson.

[@robertfetherlin7757]

Have followed Steve since the 70’s. Truly inspirational player. I’ve seen him live a bunch of times, but most memorable was a show in Pittsburgh in the early 80’s with Chuck Mangione… his solo was truly unbelievable. Mind blowing🥁👏👏👏🙏

[@adamglasser-t1s]

Great video even for non drummers .. I like that Steve Gadd just play’s very simple pattern clearly for a long time .. that’s the route for many students to gain muscle memory ❤🙏🏽

[@hoodiedee4828]

Thank you for the time to show us the technique. My favorite tune you played is still Humpty Dumpty with Chick and Eddie Gomez

[@darnell828]

This is so simple and beautiful. Thank you for providing this.

[@johnz4412]

Such a rudimental master, combined with excellent taste and creativity.

[@brockgarrison3691]

Steve Gadd makes drumming seem easy. I practice hard and seek to one day be spot on. These tutorials are helpful and inspirational. Brock Garrison NYC

[@msmichydo]

Wow, this was incredibly helpful. Couldn't figure this out on my own, thanks for this awesome vid!

[@ericwilhelm2941]

Love that concept of adding the note on 2 + 4 with the left hand . makes It feel really good and more round with an extra lil tilt

[@zappancojoey2277]

That was very nice to see this variation. It these little things that contribute to smooth soulful playing. Darryl johnson Panco

[@electricbillyland]

phenomenal...I especially like the sticking with the 3 consecutive lefts that he started with and that you notated in the beginning. I never used it specifically... (but I will now). Thank you Rob, I didn't know that you were 'Drum Guru"...but I'm not surprised (I was at NTSU ion 78, and studied at DC-NYC in the mid to late 80s). I'm 54 this year and still improving, and I have a long list of people to thank for that, but YOU, Paul S., and of course Steve are at the top of that list :-)

[@oscarm.6912]

Love the sympathetic snare buzz from the high tom!

[@franciscozen1149]

Thanks from Brasil ! Great lesson for all the drummers that love groove .

[@TheGurner1]

Great lesson, very clear explanation - Steve is a dancer on those drums!

[@Lektuerekurs]

This video probably has helped me more in starting on the drums than anything else!! This is just so tasteful and repetitively well explained and presented for a beginner. Plus Steve Gadd plays really well, of course

[@PaulChesnut]

Steve Gadd is always a clinic on rudimentary and groove

[@funklover24]

It seems to be easy, but Steve grooves like hell and nobody can do it as musically as him.

[@noelhaddad5673]

Steve is a beautiful musician Feelings comes first with a lot of techniques behind it and thats where the art is .

[@francescorivabene1417]

absolutely amazing, such a big difference in the groove between this and a normal 16th notes hi -hat pattern without the unisons...

[@normparker5289]

he is the man,always knows what is the drummers role,thanks norm.

[@frankburdodrums8984]

I'll tell you what to do.... Make as many video of Steve Gadd as you can. True Drum Master. King of 32nd note grooves.

[@cadrums9]

Outstanding!! Beautiful demo of a simple concept explained perfectly! Not to mention, the gorgeous Gadd grooves!! Thank you!

[@jeraldcuccurullo2497]

Hey Rob very happy to see this cool lesson and I told Ricky Kravitz don't buy a restaurant and sell Drummers Collective it's going to be a gold mine once it's not on 42nd street any longer÷!! I was so right! I was the first student at dci and you Rob and Paul gave me a lesson but I taught Paul and you more than you showed me and I never forgot that you and Paul said we don't want to charge you after I sort of blew your minds but you had to charge me the 19 bucks for the lesson, and you Rob were telling me all about how much you love liberty from Billy Joel and I agreed! Some of my fondest year's with studying at the collective longer than anyone in your schools history...12 year's with some very famous drummers and I studied with Kim for a decade and we spoke 1 month before he sadly passed on.....Devastated me,we were going to get together and I wanted him to hear what I'm playing 35 years after he heard me last! !! P.S you've aged like fine wine and thanks for all the memories! !!!

[@dtpadge]

Great start to the series.Of course who other than Steve gadd. The lesson is clear and concise,camera angles are excellent. A++...to borrow a quote...I'll be back...:-)

[@天倉正裕]

Ooooh this is the very groove on Al Jarreau's song, "My Old Friend"! I love it!

[@gdrums7733]

What i like about this demo is that he plays the groove for a long while at a a good tempo so you can follow it and get comfy with it unlike other demo that only have a few bars then into show off mode so you cant follow the groove or they refer you to charts ok if you read really well so cheers for this one, from the master.

[@greenforddrums]

He never seems to speak so well but the Gaddster has a groove so sublime as to make a brave man weep.x

[@alexanderderbyshire5212]

Perhaps you could do some paradiddle stuff

[@a.j.wilkes6352]

Love the teachings of sticking rather than licks.

[@dannydescalzo]

Some people say that Mr. Steve Gadd has played the same "licks" for 20 years. It matters not IMHO...it all about the feel and heart in which he plays....and he is still evolving. Knows how to use silence as music. ;)

[@mauromastraccidrummer]

the groove of steve gadd is something unique, I love it

[@MrBassab]

Such a simple idea, but is adds SOOO much!!!

[@tonevarone]

good to see brother steve is still doing his thing

[@Gretsch0997]

I never realized until now how far away he sits from the kit. His knees are not even on either side of the snare.

[@gonzalodominguez229]

Thanks.. i never thougt in closing the gap Like this. Useful 👍

[@aleksejkolesnikov7610]

Really cool groove! It's like hihat, snare, bass and ride are played by different people and then mixed live, so that it would sound nice. I couldn't spot how the swinging was done, but on his hitting the ride I see that it takes lots of efforts, especially during the live session.

[@vintagemxer9165]

Shoulda had a ride on his left to make it easier.

[@kingbeastie]

The sticking notation on the screen confused me, then when he was playing, I couldn't work out the relevance of the flam on the 2 and 4, as opposed to a single stroke. As soon as he explained and demonstrated the difference between playing at as the standard RLRL RLRL it immediately all fell into place. What a difference it makes to the groove and feel. The man's amazing!

[@drummerdaveshouse5848]

Why would anybody give Steve a thumbs down? When you even as much as 1/16th as he does by demand, then tell us what you are doing thats so superior to him here? Please.

[@garyclark608]

Great video, nice to be able to learn from such a great drummer like Steve Gadd. He is one of the very top drummers of all time and I have always really loved his deep pocket , solid groove playing. More Please!!

[@johngeorges1510]

Ton of music in his groove. Thank you!

[@seekingwisdom8]

I believe he played this groove on the Al Jarreau song "Easy". It sounds much more complicated than he makes it look. Of course the song had a much faster tempo. I finally settled to playing variations of paradiddles, but was convinced he must have over dubbed the ride. Now I see why it sounded like that! Then again, I could be way off and he may have played a completely different groove. When I grow up, I hope basic rudiments are so ingrained within me that I can play instinctively like Steve does. When he takes time to think what he has played, reveals how deeply rooted they are in him.

[@frankburdodrums8984]

There's no way to know for sure unless you watch it live. You might be right thou.

[@johnrogers9481]

I hear you! I loved learning rudiments and playing them spread out all over the kit! Things like that were what I called my category of "digging into the drums". Then there was the playing on top keeping ride beats going category of practise focus. They do get ingrained inside a drummer. Rudiments contain things, stickings, that that will come out naturally when a drummer starts playing live with other musicians. Especially creating drumming for new original music. I remember realizing, ah yeah, I see where that thing I played came from! All the things that come out in playing, had to first be put in. Ha, sometimes there is a great big surprise when things have combined inside and they come out!

[@megafonrecords]

i love steve gadd. calm and wise human

[@AubreyDrumLessons]

Steve Gadd's advice is clear and to the point. Thanks!

[@nol_clss]

30 years lay off from my kit. Thanks to my all time fav- this helps.

[@bretdorton]

if you heard records in the 1970's and up you heard steve gadd. Indeed the master. i love all of it.

[@eyescandeceive]

+bret dorton Aja. Nuff sed.

[@steveweiss9971]

A perfect exercise along with the others Steve shares with us.

[@fredfalcon1347]

hi Im more or less a beginner, so if you can present rudiments ... Ied like to see what they are and how they are played and how they work into playing them on a kit. paradiddle with the beat in different places... but what should I know as a beginner... even after a year... the Steve Gadd video was great... thanks for you videos...

[@frankburdodrums8984]

What can you do? Make more videos with Steve Gadd just freestylin and talking about drums. Classic. Great. Unique. Precious. Inspiring.

[@jornfleischer4183]

He's amazing !

[@khandrum]

Checkout the album FRIENDS with Chick Corea Steve Gadd is in top form I used to play that album until the vinyl wore out

[@thibodaux3424]

A good example of why rudiments are so important. When you know them well you can do anything.

[@RodrigoRaez]

Everything that Steve Gadd plays is the grooviest thing that you'll hear in your life.

[@mat4410]

It is impossible to play this groove without genuine signature Steve Gadd drumsticks by Vic Firth.

[@ronsambrano1295]

Thanks! I can’t do the one handed Jeff P groove, Steve lights it up. Thanks Mr Gadd

[@josephgurzynski1053]

My God, he teaches and great as he plays!!!

[@rafilasker7293]

Three of my favorite Steve Gadd recordings are: 1) Lenore- From the Chick Corea album 'The Leprechaun', 2) Aja- title cut from Steely Dans' Aja album and 3) Spain- from the late Al Jarreau album 'This Time'. If you can find the time, listen to those three tunes, and you get to hear how spectacular, gifted, and blessed Steve Gadd truly is!

[@ninjavigilante5311]

Anything that he played with stuff is awesome as well.

[@johnrogers9481]

Oh yeah! Steve's playing on that Chic Corea album changed my life! It brought me to a halt and a reevaluation of my life as a drummer! I kept going, until injuries took me out.

[@josephalbertgonzales1543]

One of the greatest drummer in the world Steve Gadd

[@danielroik6065]

Remo Drum skins, i use them, there great Skin's never break, also on i never hit that hard, and Pro Tone Drum Skin's, are good 2, i like drum's all together they rock the nation.

[@untold_beast7409]

just listening to this groove...I came up with a melody.

[@22morse77]

a great addition to any drummers repertoire...go gadd

[@crisp5925]

What an amazing drummer

[@u2006]

Thanks Rob! How about a Steve Jordan episode?

[@randyjustrandy9937]

Good vid. I'm glad to see his groove incorporated into the song at the end. That helps. I'm a leftie drummer playing a right handed setup. I hit the hi-hat with my left hand and the ride cymbal is with my left as well. Also, I play traditional grip with my right hand. Do you know of any drummers who could show us oddballs a few things? Furio Chirico is the only drummer I know of who plays like me.

[@Bankai2169]

Carter Beauford does it too. That is a guy you need to watch

[@randyjustrandy9937]

I think Carter plays with matched grip, though. I may be wrong...

[@Bankai2169]

Randall Riley He does, but the concept of playing lefty on a right handed kit is there tho

[@randyjustrandy9937]

That's true. Thanks for the reply. I played matched left for many years before I switched to traditional. I appreciate the reply!

[@Bankai2169]

Randall Riley I found both matched and traditional to have pluses and minuses depending on the gig so I personally would try to become efficient in both. And you're welcome!

[@tonylewis3472]

amazing drummer - thank you for the insights

[@virgilcane]

Such feel and groove even when just by himself. What do you suppose he is thinking in his head when doing this? Is he thinking of an accompanying melody or bass groove? Or is he just simply thinking groove for it's own sake?

[@TheProfessorWilliam]

All of the above. I do that myself when I am free flowing.

[@nowawakened1720]

I did this on my own but I'm glad its used by the great Steve Gadd

[@garethparr9482]

Wow steve gadd. A true master!!

[@tobydogloser3128]

I'm a huge Gadd fan. Thanks to youtube I've gotten to study with everyone from Gadd, to Royster, and just about I've wanted to rip something off from. Maybe someone can help me out here. What advantage does playing that flam give? What could I do playing a 16th groove this way over "normal" 2 handed 16th note patterns?

[@samm1809]

He's ever so slightly swinging it, like in brazilian music. Also when he says flam, he means flam. The hi hat of 2 and 4 land on the beat in true metronome fashion, and the snare lags behind slightly.

[@vernonsteinkamp1088]

I'm not hearing the slight lag on the snare.

[@samm1809]

Well he even says he's doing it, but it is most easily noticed when he is doing the entire sticking on the snare. If he were doing unison strokes, it would sound very choked.

[@vernonsteinkamp1088]

It seems much more exaggerated on the snare. He does not exaggerate it like that on the HH. Just saying. I've used this method for years without the glam, at least I never noticed a glam.

[@drewper73]

uʍop ǝpᴉsdn ǝʇoɹ ǝuop ᴉ zlol First of all, kudos on your username! Very unique. Secondly, there’s no flam on the music that’s provided. I think it’s more of a double stop, which is just the right and left hands hitting a drum at the same time with no grace note, unlike a flam. He uses a flam when explaining the part on the snare drum but when playing the part I don’t think he uses a flam. Explaining it one way and then playing it another way could be very confusing to a beginner drummer. If you play it as written then there’s no flam.

[@sectionq1]

@@drewper73 No, really there is a flam. The idea is that normally when the hat and snare notes are played simultaneously the sound of the one or the other is masked slightly and you get a bit of a drop out. Doing it this way means that neither masks the other, the hat remains clear and on its own, I think for recording especially this is brilliant. Written down of course there would be no flam as the flam, albeit a very slight/fast one is only there to get this result. But you're totally right, it isn't clear at all, especially not to a beginner.

[@riccraig560]

nice little trick from the legend! THANKS!

[@eduardobatero]

What a groove master!

[@eddy71454]

Steve is a national treasure but every decent drummer should be able to do this.

[@weeblum91]

Incredible lesson! Thanks

[@karmickpc]

Such a MUSICIAN.

[@jedidrummerjake]

Very happy I subscribed! NEATO!

[@TheFreemanuk]

Your a god !! x Can you go back to the old kit please ?

[@udomatthiasdrums5322]

still love steve's work!!

[@drummerboy555]

Great lesson thank Steve

[@JoeyMcGee]

NICE! Love this - thank you!

[@zvensabri2533]

The best drummer

[@4mydrumming]

Thanks for the video! Fun to watch! 👍

[@karenmiller7993]

Thank you so much for allowing me to learn from The BEST!!!

[@BeatDigger]

I would LOVE to Know , What Model is that vintage hihat. Sounds amaZing!!!!

[@yvesentringer9659]

Thank you Steve

[@michaelrenzi2370]

Great groove

[@bretdorton]

The gadd thing is totally thinking. Thank you for that