Guitar Center Sessions: Gavin Harrison - Killer Joe

[@b.lim_]

I find Gavin highly underrated... His playing is so creative and his style is so complex. He can play light jazz and swing like this perfectly and still rock out in hard rock/metal situations. He bridges a seemingly impossible gap between the world of jazz and hard rock drummers which I think is really unique. Aside from that, he sure is one hell of a rhythmical genius. Creating some of the most oddest rhythms in 4/4 I have EVER heard, especially in Bonnie the Cat. He is a drumming LEGEND!

[@Kingding6]

Gavin is sublime. Remarkable control, finesse, style, musicality, chops, feeling and, possibly most importantly, he has a knack for playing exactly what the song needs. He has chops to blow but exercises restraint when the song calls for it. He is such an incredible player.

[@idefixweirdo]

Well said! Gavin Harrison is one of my favourite drummers. He has such a great feeling, precise drumming and timing while he is living in the music contributing with his unique style with lots of variety and subtle nuances! However he never sounds too dominant like so many other brilliant drummers.

[@wordplay799]

Gavin Harrison has some of the best hands and feet I've ever heard and remains humble whilst being brilliant. I honestly think he can play any style with any other musicians you'd care to name. Or just solo for that matter🥁

[@nemozack3767]

I copy It all, totally agree.

[@GSA_Drums]

Every Note anticipated and Played to perfection. One of The best Drummers alive today :)

[@endornaut]

You pronounced "ever" wrongly.

[@homerocampos7641]

I agree. Gavin and Carter Beauford are my favorites. By the way, the sentance “alive today” sounds a bit funny 😂

[@Kingding6]

When I sit down at my kit, Gavin is exactly the drummer I hear in my head, The one I want to sound like.He combines outrageous technique, beautiful simplicity and some of the best phrasing I've ever heard on the drums

[@craigmclanachan1663]

In my humble opinion the best of the best because he thinks everything through and doesn't dominate. Brilliant!

[@7pastorb]

Totally agree...maybe one of the best of the modern era. He isn't about flash, he sort of...rides the music...like a wave. He rises when it rises he falls when it falls....I know its just dynamics but so few drummers and musicians in general really understand being part of the dynamics rather than trying to create your own inside a song....this guy is not good he is great...ranked in my top3 of all time honestly.

[@Creothcean]

Gee, thanks whoever filmed/edited this for that foot shot of him not even playing the bass drum at 4:38 when we COULD have been watching the fill his hands were playing.

[@amargnwalkr]

Just... gorgeous. Not overplayed in the slightest. Shows you what a truly great drummer should do.

[@danny-casey]

definitely one of the best drummes i've ever seen

[@Sugarsail1]

my right hand got tired watching him play the ride pattern in the beginning.

[@AnishNapper]

double time swing :D

[@ege999men8]

his probably didn't

[@killercreek450]

I don't play drums (yet..), but have had a burning passion for them and whenever i get to play on one of my friends kits i can't stop. it's an incredible feeling to create sounds using your entire body. it's extremely expressive and it's a joy to be able to watch these expert players do what they do best.

[@ryrodrums6727]

So many great ideas, executed flawlessly. My fave

[@brentjames2012]

I’m not sure how I only just heard of this guy about 8 or so months ago….. but holy fuck! This guy is an amazing drummer!

[@cfpzona]

This is drumming at the highest level. Gavin is an inspiration, I am always astounded at the pure grace, power, finess, elite level technicality, and feel that he plays with. He's among the best of the best.

[@kkeeooppss]

Gavin's groove is absolutely MADNESS!!! The way he plays, his smoothness is so beautiful, and he make you feels like if he was playing your drum sitting next to you... 10 fir Gavin Harrison again!

[@Unibabble]

You have got to be kidding me! I've seen so many videos of him now, but honestly, this one blows my mind the most - how about those dynamics? His subtlety and taste? And he can swing! So elegant and precise, his ability to manipulate the beat in real time so seamlessly? Is there any music genre in the world that Gavin Harrison couldn't improve by playing it? I don't think so. In a world of people seemingly going crazier every day, seeing someone able to display such tremendous skill and expertise so effortlessly is balm for the soul. Fantastic!

[@ultimate0death]

Oh my God. Gavin truly displays the mastery of all drumming styles.

[@rhspercussionistguy]

As a drummer, I loved it. As a music appreciator, I still loved it. That says alot about Gavin's mastery of the drums, and mastery of serving the music. Probably one of the best drummers EVER.

[@steveaachen62]

🇬🇧...what else could I say about Gavin Harrison that hasn't already been said?! Just one thing, he is without a doubt, in my opinion, one of the most complete drummers of our time! On top of that, there's the fabulous sounding drum kit from SONOR - simply unmistakable...! 🇩🇪...was könnte ich bloß zu Gavin Harrison noch sagen was ohnehin nicht schon längst gesagt wurde?! Nur eines, er ist ohne Zweifel aus meiner Sicht einer der komplettesten Schlagzeuger der Jetztzeit! Hinzu kommt noch das sagenhaft klingende Drumkit von SONOR - einfach unverwechselbar...!

[@subwoofer6726]

God I wish there was a play-along to this! This tune is killer and only aggravating that Gavin is making want to play this more and more.

[@stevehardy343]

Gavin is the only man on this planet who can mix a perfect technique with super taste and groove. Best drummer hands down.

[@troyjamesmartin]

I've certainly heard many of the classic jazz drummers, like Rich, Bellson or Krupa, play much more flamboyantly on similar material than Harrison here. He always seems to know how to play to the song, not force the song to play to him.

[@nemozack3767]

Wise and true.

[@henriqueccruz]

Oh man, this guy manages to get such a gorgeous sound out of his drums and cymbals! And the most amazing thing is that the sound is his hands! I can't make those very same cymbals sound this way.

[@Severen45]

Most of it is compression and eq. He's also playing behind a track with music so it changes the sound a lot more than most people think. Gavin is still great and I agree his drums are fantastic but I'm not a huge Zildjian fan

[@ChristianSchonbergerMusic]

bryan harris Yep, compression and EQ (and gating in post production) make a killer drum sound. But it still needs a master like Gavin. BTW: so you don't like Zildjian that much - fair enough. What do you like: Sabian, Paiste?

[@Severen45]

Christian Schonberger I'm a die hard SABiAN guy. I got a sweet set of AA's for a steal and sold my crappy ZHT's in a heartbeat. Paiste is great but the lines I really like by them are to out of my price range.

[@ChristianSchonbergerMusic]

bryan harris Thanks for the information. Just wanted to know your opinion. Thanks. :-)

[@Severen45]

Christian Schonberger No problem. I love chatting about gear.

[@mattdaggett3695]

The more i watch HIM.....the more impressed i am

[@spencerj]

This sounds like a solo over a score for a family guy episode

[@Encrust]

Nearly half a mil views in July '16 - starting to get the mass appeal he deserves. Already a drum legend, and we certainly haven't seen/heard his best yet! Gavin is the only drummer to have made me feel that I was a wodge of salmon eggs being frosted by male salmon spunk all up in a cold, fresh river.

[@CrashWanderer]

Gavin, you sneaky drummer. I was thinking those triplets were really fast for one hand, although I don't doubt it's possible for someone to do (especially Gavin), til I realized he was splitting doubles and a single with 2 hits and a chick. It's things like this that make me aspire to learn his techniques. One of the greatest.

[@wiggy009]

What’s a chick

[@vryc]

This right here represents years, decades, a life-time of thousands and thousands of hours of practice. Talent? Yes. Dedication and perseverance? Absolutely!

[@grimzkul]

Amazing!!! Fantastic drummer! One of my all time favourites.

[@XuinMCM]

Best Sounding drums ever,... A wonderful Drummer... An Amazing Song.... and the best footcam I've seen in my life. Those movements .... that feeling when he touch... like dancing ... really impressive.

[@TacticalDrummer]

If he was any smoother, I'd wanna spread him on some toast. So good!!!

[@micahbortolotti5409]

Anyone else notice that around the 3 minute mark you hear the same little ambient sound bits from Steven Wilson's Abandoner?

[@funkman0811]

A tremendous orchestration of Golsons Song And Garvin Harrison Control Articulation and Supreme tempo I believe even The GOD of Drummers Buddy Rich would bow down in respect to this incredible drummer Supreme Swing and Control. BRAVO Galvin SMOKIN.

[@ripitsympatico5843]

The best drummer on the planet.

[@shaygahweh]

What a beautiful, beautiful video..... A true master of the instrument.

[@JAYJAY112565]

I've played this song a million times--------this is the BEST damn arrangement I have ever heard...........DAMN!!!!!!!

[@lorenzmuller3542]

Who arranged this one?

[@olavaslerer8938]

Laurence Cottle.

[@Prog4Prog]

My word, this chap is just incredible. How versatile, from PT to O5ric to jazz.. makes it look so easy too! Please do a UK clinic this year!

[@wolftesar7419]

such a pleasure - old song, new interpretation

[@adace1]

He plays metal, rock and jazz all with such skill and versatility. Really one of the best out there!

[@baronmutatis]

Gavin is one of the best. And the drum sound is incredible.

[@ILikeWafflz]

0:42 Oh cool! It's neat to see that cymbal trick actually used in a song, I fiddle with stuff like that every now and then but never think to actually apply it to something

[@mjramsden13]

Hypermodern, incredible technique harnessed to the groove, consistently surprising musically. Light years of ahead of what we were briefly doing with the Tom Robinson band before Mr Harrison got this stellar. He blew me away on Letterman too. Plus he appears to grown younger in the last twenty years! Congratulations. And then some.

[@Austin4a]

Good catch. I had to rewind to see it after reading your post.

[@IrisvS_76]

4:51 Love the footwork, looks like a dance move, lol. Harrison is a pleasure to watch and listen to 😊

[@hickoryhop]

Waiting for Frank Drebin to make his appearance.

[@JakeJarmel]

Who are you and how did you get in here?

[@Vinniealberto]

The most underrated comment.

[@promethiousb1489]

Pure class,,,,100%,,,,smooth as silk,,musically spot on...

[@MrGiuce]

Dude this guys gives me goose bumps just listening to him

[@SuperHighGloss]

my favorite g.h. drum performance video on utoob

[@JustYerStandardUFO]

Never heard of the man...?...why nOT!? Just absolutely stupendous!!

[@svenheger2266]

…solo beautiful. Just 'spot on'. Amazing taste, & feel

[@MrFg1980]

Love this !

[@U2WB]

Gavin is one of my favorite drummers of any genre.

[@jonnifjader]

What a fantastic drummer!!

[@MyDrummerjoe]

completely off the hook!!! 1 of my favorite Gavin Harrison peice's, and by far 1 of his most technical, just awesome!!!

[@EnricoGarciaDrums]

fantastic! what a drummer! you got a new fan dude!

[@soulflyer860]

totally agree phil. he is an absolute complete drummer. his part in osi is also brilliant and astonishsing.

[@keithbrown1997]

His drumming is beyaond amazing. This arrangement is the best I've heard.

[@rankest2390]

What a delight! Insane perfection!

[@fileditview]

Agreed. At the core is a terrific sounding kit but ya can't forget the advantage of good mics going into a good board with a great set of ears on a great sound engineer. Chasing this exact sound acoustically will drive you to the brink of insanity.

[@vicw4522]

Idk what it is, but this is by far his best drum festival performance he's done, and it's just FUCKING. GOOD. He shows off so much, yet it is so effective, all of it.

[@Green34Destiny9]

One of the more well put comments I've ever read on youtube, good work!!

[@icedrummer4]

I don't usually like jazz drumming, but this is actual really good. You can see the reasoning behind every rhythm he plays. Greatest drummer iv'e heard (combining all the genres incl. Metal)

[@JestersGeneration]

So tasteful, so graceful!

[@jamesellams]

the thing that gets me about him is it's so tasteful. he's playing with the song. and technically at the same time. that is a whole other level of musicianship

[@13KHiHats]

I started playing jazz exactly like he does 9 months ago. That was before I saw this video. Can I get a thumbs up if that's cool or what? Even better, the group I'm in played this tune last december. Not that Gavin's played it, it's even better!

[@psychofunksoldier02]

As a production-minded guitarist with fusion sensibilities I can listen to Gavin Harrison play drums all day long. Nobody is more creative and tasteful on drums IMO.

[@ardnega]

Gavin Harrison is all about Versatility and a true drum Virtuoso.

[@MrBassab]

For everyone saying he’s too loud or whatever. Um yea. It’s big band. Watch some big band drummers. If this was a quartet he’d be playing much quieter. But In a big band setting you have to hit hard during those shout sections, because those horns are BLARING! Gavin is a friggin beast!

[@oceanopty]

Spectacular musician!

[@Zildjian232]

@blackwash I was at that guitar center session. I won a pair of his sticks in a raffle. I like them a lot actually, and had no grip problems. I'm not sure if the Vic grips are all one size or what. The ones I won are at least 2bs. Massive. I love it. Great for me because I break brand new Vic firth hickory 5b sticks all the time. It's get's expensive after a while. I also like the aesthetic appeal of them as well. Looks like something you can be creative with.

[@jimjordan4345]

Neil Peart mentioned some thing about him years ago, and I’ve been entranced ever since

[@bobhope6138]

Gavin is insane, insanely freaking awesome.

[@JonnyJayJonson]

Laurie Cottle on bass? Sounds like this was cut during the same sessions that produced 'Cheating the Polygraph'. If so, would love to hear more!

[@bergerfry]

@PROGdrummer93 When a drummer knows that less is more, then and only then should they be allowed a double bass option. Gavin has the "less is more" thing down to a science. Incredible drummer.

[@Verdugothewatcher]

This is awesome in infinite ways.

[@Pablations]

His drums always sound soooo goooood!!!!!

[@x4030_tay]

This just shows that you don't have to have chops like crazy and fill every two measures. Feel is all you need in most cases so just groove it baby

[@noesalas5804]

Absolutely fucking brilliant! Que hijo de puta! Does anyone know when he will be giving another drum clinic?

[@dillud]

I totally agree with you. I do love metal myself. I haven't heard of the faceless, but I have heard quite much of necrophagist. I am a fan of Marco Minnemann, thats how I started to listening necrophagist.

[@phinksmusic]

Damn awesome!!! Great stuff!!

[@MegaLJ3]

Extremely well done.

[@pgoindi]

That is a beautiful drum kit.

[@p0esbek]

Speed isn't everything. I play in an extreme metal band and I adore this guy, Chad Smith from RHCP, Carter Beauford from Dave Matthew's Band and even Jonathan Moffet from Michael Jackson. I don't even have many extreme metal "idols" when I think about it. The technique and endurance required to play extreme music is intense(I remember really struggling with it at first), but it truly isn't anything compared to the stuff gavin plays. It's just mind boggling at times.

[@stevejones466]

As Jeff porcaro said it's all about keeping time, great stuff gavin

[@steplieb23]

What a player! Gav you are awesome!

[@zaio15_DarioMannu_DM-DrumCover]

I Adore the combo sounds of his Charlie, Snare and Ride...the Perfect Sound for me! ;)

[@fulci6734]

masterful drum playing

[@MyDrummerjoe]

just AWESOME!!!!!

[@BENABONZO]

Where do I find some good Jazz like this???? I'm definitely a metal guy, but i really love some davis stuff and this is amazing too! any artists/groups i should look into for good jazz like this?? thanks!

[@headwhop26]

so subtle! Its perfect!

[@consentofthegoverned5145]

There are really great drummers who can lay out a perfect set of rails for the band and music to follow. Gavin constructs a 3-D jungle gym for the music to swing and play around in.

[@javierluciani1067]

La afinación que le da al redoblante este tipo es mortal ! Sonido muy particular tiene siempre.

[@Suztehchinkidrmmr]

Footcam vibration = Proof of utter awesomeness.

[@SwappingIsSaving]

There's a lot to be said for Gavin's understated style. Everything is played with great finesse and taste and all for the music rather than his own ego.

[@madchops82]

Wow, this is perfect.

[@drummerunner]

An absolute artist!

[@hugorezende199]

I dont know whos enjoying most, Gavin playing this song or me wacthing him making magic

[@Esubs2]

Art especially in music form is not a competition I don't know why people insist on argue who the best is clearly gavin harrison is the best well-rounded drummer!

[@masterjosue24]

I wish I had this unique familiarization with my drum kit, I mean, playing it like doing and everyday task with no apparent effort, just feeling my kit as a part of my body. Years of practice.

[@camogator3458]

this dude is just freaking amazing.

[@dkpc73]

Un vero esempio di batterista completo con gran gusto nel suonare Mitico!!