Good drumming more important than good guitar playing????????

[H_V_C]

Ok first let me say, I know the question is BS. It's the sum of the parts, and besides, really great guitar players are way cooler :)

All I'm saying is that when I go out and see a live band, I would rather see a band with a fantastic drummer and a mediocre guitar player, than a band with a mediocre drummer and fantastic guitar player. I just feel like... if a drummer can't hold the band together, every one sounds like they suck any how.

OR maybe I'm trying to say, a drummer effects my playing on stage more than any other band member.


And now I put forth un to you fellow TGP'ers, WHAT SAY YOU?!?

[rog951]

Yup. I think so. For a live band, the drummer better be the leader, and having a really good drummer is a wonderful thing.

[frank62]

The streets are lined with great guitar players who will never do anything. You will never see a good drummer without a gig. Any band is only as good as the drummer.

[andyland6]

Without a doubt!

[jzgtrguy]

I read that when Pat Metheny hired Antonio Sanchez that he said something to the effect of, "Everyone is entitled to an off night once in a while, sometimes lyle will be off sometimes I will be off, but not you. You are never allowed an off night". So apparently Mr. Metheny thinks so.

[Seditious]

The skill and the writing of the drummer has always dictated how good the songs are, in every band I've been in. Drummer's rule. :AOK

[Gas-man]

Groove is everythang.

[pbradt]

Yes, drumming is more important.

[customstrat]

Yes, but dont tell a drummer that

[Suproman77]

No doubt, the drummer is the backbone of the band, BUT it's also very important that the drummer gells properly with the other members...if not, what's the point?

In other words, they're all pieces of the puzzle...if you're missing one, the whole thing is pratically worthless.

[Strat]

Oh pleaseeeeee.give me a good drummer......I could care less if ever hear or play another guitar solo.

[Ben C.]

And now I put forth un to you fellow TGP'ers, WHAT SAY YOU?!?
Well, Aragorn, I have to say I agree.

-Ben

[BluesForDan]

The streets are lined with great guitar players who will never do anything. You will never see a good drummer without a gig. Any band is only as good as the drummer.

same with a good bass player. The drummer controls the groove, the bass player controls the harmonic content. The guitar player is icing on the cake.

[Stratofuzz]

yes

[gkoelling]

Absolutely

[Bluedawg]

Good drummers are the ones you don't notice ....

Because they're not screwing things up.

The drummers I notice are the bad ones and the really really good ones.

A good drummer can make a mediocre band sound great.

:banana

[scottlr]

There's a drummer I have jammed with many times here. He could be a great drummer, but he won't discipline himself. He is super inspirational to groove with, but also frustrating because he is so inconsistent. I'd love to play with the part of him that inspires, but I cannot deal with his inconsistency at all. I have never been in an actual band with a bad drummer.

[shredtrash]

Drummers are the offensive line of live music. No one notices if they're great but everyone notices if they suck. I agree with the majority here.

[AR-305]

+1 absolutely unless: he's one of those that goes digi digi digi digi digi digi digi around the toms every 4 bars and thrashes the piss out of the ride cymbal during every guitar solo.

[XKnight]

I'm going to counter all the other opinions and say that I'd much rather see a great guitar player and an average drummer as opposed to a great drummer and an average guitar player. Two guitarists that come to the top of my list that I think played/play with average drummers are Hendrix and Bonammasa. I would gladly see either one of those guitarists with no drummer.

[Kingbeegtrs]

I never sound good unless the drummer and bass player do.

[rob2001]

There's a drummer I have jammed with many times here. He could be a great drummer, but he won't discipline himself. He is super inspirational to groove with, but also frustrating because he is so inconsistent. I'd love to play with the part of him that inspires, but I cannot deal with his inconsistency at all. I have never been in an actual band with a bad drummer.


I've been playing with a drummer like you mention for 20 some years and the frustration level is getting unbearable!

But when this guy is on and grooving, there is no other drummer i'd want to play with.

The funny thing is, I never quite knew how inconsistant he was until we started writing and recording. Now that i'm aware of his tendancies, I go back and look at old vids and see how he really made things tough for the entire band.

Fortunatly we're not gigging much anymore so I just have to catch him on a good day for recording the "keeper" tracks! But ya, it's dam frustrating.


To the original question, i'm a song guy. Hot guitar players are cool but if the song is shakey because of a lousy rhythm section, no amount of great guitar will counter that for me.

[Flyin' Brian]

I agree with the majority. A bad drummer will make a great rest of the band sound bad. A really great band can overcome a mediocre guitar player.

And XKnight! Mitch Mitchell and Buddy Miles are average drummers???????

[Beng2040]

Absolutely. I play in a few bands and one of them has a drummer that is really inconsistent. That can be a painful gig a lot of the time. And I can't play very well when I'm constantly worried about the tempo, so yes, the drummer is key to a band sounding good.

[gkoelling]

I agree with the majority. A bad drummer will make a great rest of the band sound bad. A really great band can overcome a mediocre guitar player.

And XKnight! Mitch Mitchell and Buddy Miles are average drummers???????


This is a small town in middle TN but there's a guy I've jammed with a couple times here who is just amazing. Loads of class and the man is like a damn metronome. He just plain does not make mistakes.

[Stike]

But what's a good drummer? I don't give a shit if someone can play every Peart solo hit for hit if they can't play "Soulfinger".

[Lucidology]

Drummers can ruin everything ...No matter how good the other players are ..

Or, good drummers can make every other instrument work
regardless of how bad other players sense of time might be ...

[splatt]

i like "good" music.
dt / spltrcl

[Lucidology]

i like "good" music.
dt / spltrcl

Not only are you member (i.e. president) of that club, but you are a client ...

[Flyin' Brian]

But what's a good drummer? I don't give a shit if someone can play every Peart solo hit for hit if they can't play "Soulfinger".

A good drummer can groove, has a deep pocket and can play for the song not for the flash factor.

i like "good" music.
dt / spltrcl

I'll join that club in a heartbeat.

[glahnb]

A bit off topic, but we auditioned a drummer for our original band a while back. He was jazz trained, the most technically gifted drummer I have ever seen, and that includes a lot of pros. But all he wants to play is the Slipknot, Mudvayne, heavy metal thrash type stuff. I was so upset.

[splatt]

I'll join that club in a heartbeat.
me, too.
but, like most clubs,
i'm sure i'll be ousted before ye can say.....

dt / spltrcl

[KRosser]

If I'm listening to a good string quartet I don't miss either.

[Lucidology]

If I'm listening to a good string quartet I don't miss either.

Oh Ken ... (waving right hand towards you with a downward motion...)

There you go again ... ;)

[Ricman]

If your drummer and bass player are locked in your band will sound fantastic. Takes both IMO.

[Dr. Tweedbucket]

Yup. I think so. For a live band, the drummer better be the leader, and having a really good drummer is a wonderful thing.


That's about the bottom line !

[Kingbeegtrs]

I think that the entire rhythm section goes underestimated...I mean, we have games called "guitar hero", we have "air guitar" competitions and let's face it...the lead guitarists are the guys who get all the action after the show. I used to have a drummer who was like oliver twist at the end of the night. He'd have his pockets pulled out saying to the ladies "pardon me, could you spare some (fill in the blank)?

[lalaland]

Drummers are the offensive line of live music. No one notices if they're great but everyone notices if they suck. I agree with the majority here.

I think thats more the mildly insulting to both drummers and audiences...

[shredtrash]

I think thats more the mildly insulting to both drummers and audiences...

Why is this an insult? My point was that they are the most underrated element of a band. Everyone notices the lead guitarist and singer. However, drummers truly make it happen. That's why I said I agreed with the "majority" of posters.

[johntoste]

I've played with enough erratic drummers to cherish a good timekeeper. If the foundation is wobbly, so's the whole structure.

Once I saw Patty Smith's band. She's personally very "spontaneous"; the bass player and both guitarists all seemed late for a NarcAnon meeting but the drummer was excellent and made the whole mess hang together.

[lalaland]

Why is this an insult? My point was that they are the most underrated element of a band. Everyone notices the lead guitarist and singer. However, drummers truly make it happen. That's why I said I agreed with the "majority" of posters.

Ok, and alot of those guys are mildly condescending to drummers, IMHO.

Anyways, the drummers I play with, they're way better than I am, and when they solo, they get more cheers...

[Teleplayer]

Excellent drummer = priceless
Excellent lead vocalist/frontman = priceless
Well written songs = priceless
Technically gifted guitarist = :dunno

[studiodunn]

not even a fight.

[Dumo]

I think I've heard John Fogerty say something to the effect that it all starts with a great drum beat. If you don't have that, you don't have a great song and I think Fogerty is a hell of a player. Underated drummer shout out to Chuck Biscuits. That guy was the John Bonham of punk/metal in the 80s/90s. So great. The offensive line analogy is spot on BTW.

[m@2]

totally agree. good guitar/bass without good drummer can really suck. a great drummer can make an average band sound MUCH better

there are a few exceptions i can think of though (white stripes comes to mind, but that is part of their "thing")

[shredtrash]

Ok, and alot of those guys are mildly condescending to drummers, IMHO.

Anyways, the drummers I play with, they're way better than I am, and when they solo, they get more cheers...

I'm still not following what your gripe is with my comment...whatever. :puh

[HurricaneJesus]

No doubt about it. There are tons of 'bad' guitar players who can still do interesting things. 'Bad' drumming is not interesting....just bad.

[kludge]

Beyond general agreement that a great drummer is more valuable than a great guitarist...

I think one of the best things any guitarist can do to improve as a musician is learn to play drums. It doesn't require an elaborate kit - heck, you're better off with a kick, snare, hats, and a single crash-ride cymbal, or even just a snare and a pair of brushes! But sit down and learn to groove. Learn to keep solid time with all four limbs, to nail downbeats and backbeats, to keep an ostinato going. Drums strip away a lot of the BS we rely on.

[Snowdog]

it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing......

[JLaps]

it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing......

I was just thinking about this song when reading this. I think the reason great drumming is more important than great guitar playing has to do with primal instinct. Before there were melodies people were sitting around banging on stuff so it's just natural that we would tend to gravitate towards rhythm

[eBay]

The streets are lined with great guitar players who will never do anything. You will never see a good drummer without a gig. Any band is only as good as the drummer.

Yep.

[MightyGuru]

In a band, the drummer is the most important player, to me. In a rock band, especially. After that, in terms of importance, comes the singer....then the guitarist, bass, keys...

[jcoggins7]

I feel the exact same as the OP. The drummer controls the dynamic and feel of the rest of the band more than anyone else.

[8Painting]

See *Led Zeppelin.