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Do all excellent drummers know how to spin sticks???


skunky_funk

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Check out my logic statement if it is true:

 

IF you are an excellent drummer, THEN

you should know how to spin sticks.

 

Conversely, is it also true that:

 

IF you know how to spin sticks, THEN

you are an excellent drummer.

 

Example:

 

Virgil Donati is an excellent drummer.

Therefore he can spin sticks. (In fact he spins both sticks while paradiddling on double bass and crashing the cymbals. :eek: )

 

Mike Portnoy is an excellent drummer.

Therefore he can spin sticks [too].

 

But I wonder about Weckl, Beauford and those other guys. I know Tommy Lee spins sticks well, but is he qualified to be called "excellent"? :confused:

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Although stick-twirling is a nice touch of showmanship

and it doesn't hurt to have it in your bag of tricks.

 

I think one can be an excellent drummer without

being able to twirl sticks, because I can't hear

stick-twirling on recordings, and I use my ears

as the sole judge on excellent drumming.

 

Having said that, a trick that impresses me more

than twirling is coming down with a snare hit and

letting the stick fly up about 20 feet in the air

spinning and then being able to catch it w/o missing

a beat, I've only seen two guys do that, a drummer

with Blue Oyster Cult and Martin Chambers from

The Pretenders.

 

BTW, I can twirl a bit but I rarely ever do at a gig

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Originally posted by Bigjohn

Having said that, a trick that impresses me more

than twirling is coming down with a snare hit and

letting the stick fly up about 20 feet in the air

spinning and then being able to catch it w/o missing

a beat, I've only seen two guys do that, a drummer

with Blue Oyster Cult and Martin Chambers from

The Pretenders.


BTW, I can twirl a bit but I rarely ever do at a gig

 

 

and Morgan Rose.

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Originally posted by Bigjohn

Having said that, a trick that impresses me more

than twirling is coming down with a snare hit and

letting the stick fly up about 20 feet in the air

spinning and then being able to catch it w/o missing

a beat, I've only seen two guys do that, a drummer

with Blue Oyster Cult and Martin Chambers from

The Pretenders.

 

 

Heh, I did that on accident while practicing one day, cept it was off a tom, I caught it behind me and to the right and didn't miss a beat. No one saw it but me and one of the guitarists and he almost pissed himself he was laughing so hard.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Originally posted by portnoyfan15

Morgan Rose plays with the band Sevendust. At concerts he will look someone straight in the eye and bounce a stick 20 feet in the air off his snare and catch it all while still keep eye contact with you.

 

Sevendust, ok I've heard of them...but I've never really

listened to them before, I'll have to check them out.

 

I need to set up my set outside and try working on the

stick bounce thing, kinda tough with a low ceiling :D

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But I wonder about Weckl, Beauford and those other guys. I know Tommy Lee spins sticks well, but is he qualified to be called "excellent"?
:confused:

 

to me Tommy Lee is Excellent! He is my personal fav. drummer and God!

But as for knowing how to spin sticks making you excellent? no, I know a few drummers who are not that good, or at least now "excellent" and can spin mean stick, I guess they just practice spinning more that playing...

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The ability to spin a stick doesn't impress me at all. You are playing an instrument, all that matters is how it sounds. To prove this, let's imagine you have a band and you need a great drummer. You audition two guys.

 

One can play like he was born behind a kit. Fast slow any style, the guy is Pert and Portnoy combined. But he can't twirl sticks to save his life and has no interest in doing so.

 

The next one comes in and can play standing on his head while jugling sticks and catching them blindfolded. He can juggle 4 sticks at once. Problem is, he can't keep time and his fills are always the same.

 

Which one to you pick. Remember, the future of you band depends on this.

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Depends on what band I was putting together. For a band that was really serious about its music, I would most likely go for the first guy, the one with skill. But if I was making a band that was just trying to have fun, then a guy who wanted to play good music just wouldnt fit in with the band.

 

As for myself, I only spin sticks when I'm sitting around doing nothing. I haven't done it yet while playing. I'm not that good at spinning yet. :)

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Stick twirling is not just for showmanship!

 

It's a good exercise for your fingers, it helps build your hands.

 

Alot of drummers who Spin sticks, learned to do so in marching band.

 

 

I haven';t seen him do it, but I'll promise you that Travis Barker can twirl the hell out of a stick. I'm not a blink182 fan, but Barker is a really good drummer, I just had to "get past" their idiot singer to be able to realize it.(I just can't stand that guy's singing.)

 

 

 

Tim

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Originally posted by Tramp78

The ability to spin a stick doesn't impress me at all. You are playing an instrument, all that matters is how it sounds. To prove this, let's imagine you have a band and you need a great drummer. You audition two guys.


One can play like he was born behind a kit. Fast slow any style, the guy is Pert and Portnoy combined. But he can't twirl sticks to save his life and has no interest in doing so.


The next one comes in and can play standing on his head while jugling sticks and catching them blindfolded. He can juggle 4 sticks at once. Problem is, he can't keep time and his fills are always the same.


Which one to you pick. Remember, the future of you band depends on this.

 

 

Aww, that sucked the fun out of this thread...

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Originally posted by guitar420

how do you twirl sticks?

 

 

Hours and hours of practice.

 

As for the exact method, depends on the person; everyone does it slightly differently. But, it does take hours of practice to do it right, no matter what method you use.

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A little showmanship is good ,just so the music isn`t compromised in the process. Stick twirls are a normal part of my playing. I hardly even think about it when I do it anymore since it`s become quite a habit. Of course, I`m an old fart and fisrt started twirling my sticks 30 years ago when I saw Sonny and Cher`s drummer do it. (yes, I`m old!) The way I see it, the guitar players get to move around on stage while we`re playing, but I`m stuck in one spot. I try to put as much energy into my playing as I can while still sitting down. :)

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lets face it, twirling definately adds to the experience of watching a drummer perform. If you think stick twirling is stupid, then you're probably one of the people that's too stubborn and lazy to learn to do it, so you take the easy route and just knock people for doing it instead.

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I think there is a bit of confusion among some regarding my logic statement.

 

I said,

Excellent drummers can twirl sticks.

But that does not mean,

 

Drummers that can twirl sticks are excellent drummers.

 

Fact is, I know someone who can twirl almost any elongated, rod-like object giving you the impression he can play drums, when in fact, he hasn't played a drum kit since birth. ;)

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I think tommy lee is one of the best ROCK drummers they are. Now let me repeat that again Rock...... As for playing with buddy rich and all the progessive rock like Dream theatre etc........ hes definatly not as technical.

 

But hey the same applies for guitar playing. I personally would rather listen to lets say Slash or Zakk Wylde play the guitar.. But everyone knows EVH or Steve are much better technicians...

 

It all comes to what kind of music you listen to. Tommy does, or should i see did use to beat the hell out of them though

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