For the past couple of months I was thinking about asking the Mustachioed Drummer for drum lessons. I don't particularly want to know how to play the drums, I would just like to know more about the technical aspect. I guess that means I do want to know how to play the drums but I don't really need to know. Right now I can only judge what I like and what I don't like, and I think that if I knew the basics I would be able to figure out why I like what I like. There is probably a common theme with all the drums I prefer but other than big splashy cymbals I can't see any obvious trends.
But MD is in three bands, is on-call for three more and has a full time job. He is a busy fellow so I wouldn't feel right taking up his time just to improve my ear. Plus there is no guarantee I wouldn't sit there repeating everything back to him as Cornholio. "Flamacue! FLAMACUE! Do you have TP? Pataflafla!" (I just had to look up a list of snare rudiments to find flamacue and pataflafla. If I had known them already I wouldn't be so interested in the mysteries of percussion.)
I think if I understood the technicalities I would be able to pinpoint why I like certain drum parts. The drums are the backbone of rock music and I am doing myself a disservice by not knowing more. All my time spent playing guitar as a youth often pays off when I listen to music. Just the other day LCG and I saw something on TV, I have no idea what, but I got all excited over a guitar solo.
Me: Did you hear that? That was straight Pentatonic Scale!
LCG: Okay.
Me: Hee! Hee-HEE! You know how many AC/DC solos you can play once you know the Pentatonic Scale? All of them!
Well, that may not be entirely true but I still gave a lecture on the Pentatonic Scale. I figure that over the years I have lost at least eighty percent of what I once knew and I am happy whenever I can pick out something specific and give a boring talk on the subject. LCG doesn't seem to mind the overanalyzing, which is good because he is usually the only audience I have on the lecture circuit. I'm guessing it's because my only tour stop is his living room.
The guitar background is very handy so I believe that knowing drums would be a big help when I try to dissect songs. Plus I would like to expand my vocabulary beyond the vague categories I currently use when I talk about percussion. My drum labeling system includes things like surf-rock drums, the disco high hat, and that one part of Sweet Pea by Tommy Roe that is so good. But above all, I want ammunition when I have one of my favorite arguments. It always starts when someone happens to mention that they think the best drummer ever is John Bonham.
Me: BUT WHAT ABOUT KEITH MOON?!
The person then launches into their defense of John Bonham which doesn't really register because I am busy getting angry because I don't think that Keith Moon gets enough credit. Maybe he does get enough credit in the land of drummers, but I don't know. I only know the one drummer. Okay, I know more than one drummer but I only know one (MD) who is willing to have the Bonham-Moon discussion and his favorite drummer is John Bonham so it's no fun.
I just wonder why people always forget about Keith Moon. People remember his antics and his tragic death but I can't remember the last time I heard someone (other than myself) talk about Keith Moon The Drummer. It is easy to make the argument that the antics were related to the drums, but I wish he would get proper respect as a musician. I listen to his work and I don't know where to focus. What was he doing? And how did he do that? That is just one person?
Some people will argue those same points for John Bonham but I will stand by Keith Moon every time. I'm not going to violate any rules of etiquette or anything, I understand that it's a personal preference. In fact, most of the time the Bonham fans rank Moon as their number two favorite. But I want Keith to be number one! I can't be the only one who thinks he is tops, can I?
When I mentioned to MD that I wanted to know more but would not ask him since he is in three bands and all, I told him it's because when it comes to drums I only know what sounds good to me. MD told me that is all I really need to know. So much for adding depth to my Keith Moon arguments. Maybe I'll just get a book instead. I figure if I can't find more people who think Keith Moon is the best, I can at least bore the John Bonham fans to tears.