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Article where Neil talks about his R40 drum solo


Hemispheres4Echo
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What makes this drum solo so great is that he is playing it on a real rock drum configuration, not his "JAZZ" drum set configuration. It's too bad Neil forgot where he came from.

There's nothing wrong with Neil wanting to do different things. I don't think it's a case of him "forgetting where he came from"
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There is no such thing as a "real rock drum configuration ".... There are drum sets that work ergonomically and drum sets that don't ...NP decided long ago the old set up didn't ...

 

Did Bonham play a "jazz" set...? Does Billy Cobham play a "Rock" set up?....Are cocktail set ups only allowed for cocktail jazz... What about Slim Jim From stray cats? He played standing up?

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What makes this drum solo so great is that he is playing it on a real rock drum configuration, not his "JAZZ" drum set configuration. It's too bad Neil forgot where he came from.

There's nothing wrong with Neil wanting to do different things. I don't think it's a case of him "forgetting where he came from"

 

Yeah thats bullshit. People are projecting way too much of their own crap onto him. Lets him be. Hes given way more of himself to us than we could ever hope for.

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What makes this drum solo so great is that he is playing it on a real rock drum configuration, not his "JAZZ" drum set configuration. It's too bad Neil forgot where he came from.

Yeah, that's exactly it. The position of the drums are why it's such a great solo. Not the guy playing them or what he's playing.

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It would have been cool if he played the classic cowbell pattern from ESL and ATWAS - that was sort of a trademark of his solo for the first 10 years (the golden years?) Seeing as the "El Darko" kit moved the cowbells over where they resided in that era, it would have been cool to hear that. Also missing (again from that era) was the great timbale to concert tom riffing - on R40 he did a bit of timbale work, but nowhere near the cross over stuff he once did. I know Neil is all about progress and moving on - but with the retro theme and the classic kit, it would have been cool to pay homage to some of those details (maybe details only drummers would notice?)
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Is anyone else rubbed the wrong way a little by Neil's writing here? It's almost like he is saying, "Why did no one notice or give me recognition for how awesome my solo was?" Everyone knows Neil is a fantastic drummer, one of the best. But exactly what sort of praise does he expect every time he plays a solo, even 40 years into his career? And then he basically sums it up with, "Well, at least somebody out there gets it," as if the masses don't understand how deep his solo is and therefore can't enjoy it properly.

 

Don't take this the wrong way - Neil is one of my heroes. But this writing almost has a tone of arrogance to it, in my view. Which I guess his writing has always had, now that I think about it. His books do sort of the same thing from time to time.

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Is anyone else rubbed the wrong way a little by Neil's writing here? It's almost like he is saying, "Why did no one notice or give me recognition for how awesome my solo was?" Everyone knows Neil is a fantastic drummer, one of the best. But exactly what sort of praise does he expect every time he plays a solo, even 40 years into his career? And then he basically sums it up with, "Well, at least somebody out there gets it," as if the masses don't understand how deep his solo is and therefore can't enjoy it properly.

 

Don't take this the wrong way - Neil is one of my heroes. But this writing almost has a tone of arrogance to it, in my view. Which I guess his writing has always had, now that I think about it. His books do sort of the same thing from time to time.

 

yeah, I get what you're saying - but it is also strange if nobody said anything to him. Imagine you work hard on something and bring it to your band and no one says anything. Not even "that's pretty cool". That would suck. I'm sure Geddy and Alex dug what he was doing - but it's his spot in the show; they probably just didn't realize to say something. "Neil does his thing".... On the other hand, I wonder if Neil ever complimented Alex on his little solo on the CA tour (typically before Halo Effect)?

 

Yet another perspective is that maybe only drummers would appreciate the differences in his recent solo. Personally, I'm a drummer that over-analyzes every nuance of his playing. Surely, most "normal" people (lol) wouldn't be able to tell any significant difference between, say, the S&A solo and the R40 solo - they are both just "great drum solos" to them. Maybe what was gratifying to him was some drummers (like Jon Theordore) making a comment like that. (Matt Scannel was probably just kissing his butt for playing on his album... ;-) )

 

Btw, I personally prefer his ESL solo over all others. Not that more recent solos haven't been cool - but there is just an energy and fluidity that ESL era solos had. The new solos are like a song or a story, but also gimmicky. He probably wouldn't be happy to hear that - but it's just my opinion.

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Yeah I'm a bit surprised that no one commented on his solo at all. That would have been a real bummer. If you read his books at all, you know how he plans out his solos, which is apparently more obvious to him than it is to others. Kind of like they say, he's so good he makes it look easy.
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Btw, I personally prefer his ESL solo over all others. Not that more recent solos haven't been cool - but there is just an energy and fluidity that ESL era solos had. The new solos are like a song or a story, but also gimmicky. He probably wouldn't be happy to hear that - but it's just my opinion.

 

I agree with you. The solos from the mid-80s onward did seem very gimmicky; big kits with lots of doo-dads that might get hit once in an entire two and a half hour show. I was listening to the solo off of R30 recently and while it's pretty technically brilliant, I can't say as I got into them all that much. Whereas Neil's solos in the old days were a highlight of the show, they steadily became the "get a beer, it's the drum solo" segment of the show.

 

That's why I really liked the mini-solos from the CA tour, and the scaled down kits in this tour. Still not the awe-inspiring solos of the late 70s and early 80s that made the world know Neil was one of the greats, but more, how do I say it, enjoyable. And I did like the R40 solo, it was a bit less gimmicky and more straight forward.

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Yeah, he does sound a little bitter and hurt that the other guys didn't notice all those minute details. But what does he expect? Most people *aren't* going to notice all that besides other drummers. His band mates have heard him play solos over and over for 40 years. At some point, it's got to seem so familiar that you don't listen as intently every time. Besides, I'm sure they were focused on other things during that 5-10 minute break they got every night besides hanging on every hit Neil made. The complaint just seems a little silly to me. Kinda like if Alex changed 2 notes in a solo or the phrasing of one chord every night and then got mad at Neil for not complimenting him on it.
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Yeah, he does sound a little bitter and hurt that the other guys didn't notice all those minute details. But what does he expect? Most people *aren't* going to notice all that besides other drummers. His band mates have heard him play solos over and over for 40 years. At some point, it's got to seem so familiar that you don't listen as intently every time. Besides, I'm sure they were focused on other things during that 5-10 minute break they got every night besides hanging on every hit Neil made. The complaint just seems a little silly to me. Kinda like if Alex changed 2 notes in a solo or the phrasing of one chord every night and then got mad at Neil for not complimenting him on it.

 

I got the feeling he was talking about at rehearsal for his band mates.

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Yeah, he does sound a little bitter and hurt that the other guys didn't notice all those minute details. But what does he expect? Most people *aren't* going to notice all that besides other drummers. His band mates have heard him play solos over and over for 40 years. At some point, it's got to seem so familiar that you don't listen as intently every time. Besides, I'm sure they were focused on other things during that 5-10 minute break they got every night besides hanging on every hit Neil made. The complaint just seems a little silly to me. Kinda like if Alex changed 2 notes in a solo or the phrasing of one chord every night and then got mad at Neil for not complimenting him on it.

 

I got the feeling he was talking about at rehearsal for his band mates.

Are we sure they were even around when Neil rehearsed his solo? Seems like something that wouldn't require the whole band to be present. All they really need to know is what cue to listen for to come back on. Maybe you're right and he expected a reaction. I just don't think it would necessarily be a diss if they didn't hear every single thought he put into it since they're not drummers and they have their own parts to focus on.
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I didn't read him as being bitter. I read him as confirming an aspect of the human condition: the need for occasional affirmation.

 

Yes, even the most talented of people doubt themselves at times.

 

All I have to say is that if Neil ever wants to seek affirmation from a distance, he should probably stay off the bulk of the Rush forums.

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Loved his 70's set up, but I did notice the absence of acoustic wind chimes in Montreal. I was in the nose bleeds, so maybe I just couldn't see them... ?? Would have been perfect for Xanadu.

 

About his writing (article) I think he was sort of surprised by the lack of commenting either for or against his new solo idea, and not his playing. Especially, Lorne Wheaton, his drum tech probably could / should have had something to say.

 

Neil has gotten an unfair bad rap... he's probably the most misunderstood musician out there. We all think we know him, but none of us do. Leave the guy alone.

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Loved his 70's set up, but I did notice the absence of acoustic wind chimes in Montreal. I was in the nose bleeds, so maybe I just couldn't see them... ?? Would have been perfect for Xanadu.

 

About his writing (article) I think he was sort of surprised by the lack of commenting either for or against his new solo idea, and not his playing. Especially, Lorne Wheaton, his drum tech probably could / should have had something to say.

 

Neil has gotten an unfair bad rap... he's probably the most misunderstood musician out there. We all think we know him, but none of us do. Leave the guy alone.

 

Yeah no kidding. Well said.

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What makes this drum solo so great is that he is playing it on a real rock drum configuration, not his "JAZZ" drum set configuration. It's too bad Neil forgot where he came from.

OMG, here we go...

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This Was great.

 

There are many things, that can be gathered from this response.

 

Its satisfying to read, Mr Peart takes great care over his Art, I cant

imagine many other, more important reasons, for that spark - catalyst. That his work matters to him, still at this stage.Evident by his taking the time to respond, to those who responded!

What was amazing was the fact no one within his sphere,noticed, acknowledged or responded to his effort.

Artists like the effort of creation acknowledged at least, especially in a new direction,

even if the result is not liked.

 

I have to laugh that many people knock mr peart; seemingly having some insight to who he is??, for the imagined trite

approach to touring he has - fans etc. In reality M r Peart is maybe, one of the more consciencous and caring to what he does, if that can be quantified?..

 

What is suggested here, is others- the crew etc, possibly see touring as a formality now,

even with the consideration this may be the last, in this form. Maybe the crew couldnt get

enthusiastic about the possible end - their work could still be celebrated.

Complacent and possibly blinded by the generic routine of business, juxtaposed to Mr pearts

effort on the solo, is quite startling.

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It would have been cool if he played the classic cowbell pattern from ESL and ATWAS - that was sort of a trademark of his solo for the first 10 years (the golden years?) Seeing as the "El Darko" kit moved the cowbells over where they resided in that era, it would have been cool to hear that. Also missing (again from that era) was the great timbale to concert tom riffing - on R40 he did a bit of timbale work, but nowhere near the cross over stuff he once did. I know Neil is all about progress and moving on - but with the retro theme and the classic kit, it would have been cool to pay homage to some of those details (maybe details only drummers would notice?)

He was using that all the way up until 96. Wish he used it again.

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It would have been cool if he played the classic cowbell pattern from ESL and ATWAS - that was sort of a trademark of his solo for the first 10 years (the golden years?) Seeing as the "El Darko" kit moved the cowbells over where they resided in that era, it would have been cool to hear that. Also missing (again from that era) was the great timbale to concert tom riffing - on R40 he did a bit of timbale work, but nowhere near the cross over stuff he once did. I know Neil is all about progress and moving on - but with the retro theme and the classic kit, it would have been cool to pay homage to some of those details (maybe details only drummers would notice?)

He was using that all the way up until 96. Wish he used it again.

 

He was playing his cowbells in the solo in 94 & 96 - but not the same rhythm I was talking about. I had to go back to refresh my memory - there's a great bootleg collection called "The Digital Man" which chronicles his solos for every tour. Of course, there are minor differences in a solo over the course of a tour - but the basic sections were pretty much set. The cowbell part I was referring to is the classic one on ATWAS and ESL, where he's riffing on the floor toms and starts with 2 higher pitched bells (dotted 8th note, 16th note), followed by two lower pitched bells (2 8ths). It's a little melody that he created - going back through the years, this was used up to the Counterparts tour. On Cp tour, he played a variation of the melody (2 consecutive 16ths on the high bell, 2 consecutive on the lower bell). On the TFE tour (1996) he played a whole different creation - an ascending riff on the bells (with two upbeat accents at the end of the phase). Anyway, didn't mean to get all technical and picky - but I agree, I wish he used it again (and he could have since the bells on "El Darko" were back on his right, just over the floor toms.) :)

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It would have been cool if he played the classic cowbell pattern from ESL and ATWAS - that was sort of a trademark of his solo for the first 10 years (the golden years?) Seeing as the "El Darko" kit moved the cowbells over where they resided in that era, it would have been cool to hear that. Also missing (again from that era) was the great timbale to concert tom riffing - on R40 he did a bit of timbale work, but nowhere near the cross over stuff he once did. I know Neil is all about progress and moving on - but with the retro theme and the classic kit, it would have been cool to pay homage to some of those details (maybe details only drummers would notice?)

He was using that all the way up until 96. Wish he used it again.

 

He was playing his cowbells in the solo in 94 & 96 - but not the same rhythm I was talking about. I had to go back to refresh my memory - there's a great bootleg collection called "The Digital Man" which chronicles his solos for every tour. Of course, there are minor differences in a solo over the course of a tour - but the basic sections were pretty much set. The cowbell part I was referring to is the classic one on ATWAS and ESL, where he's riffing on the floor toms and starts with 2 higher pitched bells (dotted 8th note, 16th note), followed by two lower pitched bells (2 8ths). It's a little melody that he created - going back through the years, this was used up to the Counterparts tour. On Cp tour, he played a variation of the melody (2 consecutive 16ths on the high bell, 2 consecutive on the lower bell). On the TFE tour (1996) he played a whole different creation - an ascending riff on the bells (with two upbeat accents at the end of the phase). Anyway, didn't mean to get all technical and picky - but I agree, I wish he used it again (and he could have since the bells on "El Darko" were back on his right, just over the floor toms.) :)

I was wrong about 94. My bad. I should know this, given the fact that I drum in my free time and have an extenive collection of bootlegs. Also oh well, maybe if there is a next tour, he'll do it. One can only hope.

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