The Art of playing with articulation, precision and musicality makes all the difference…

The Art of playing with articulation, precision and musicality makes all the difference…something Bernard ‘Pretty’ Purdie taught me in my London days.

Left-foot hi-hat on the upbeats (even through the fills) plus snare ghost-notes immediately before the 2 & 4 back-beats and syncopated bass drum as a call & answer to the snare pattern. “You need to be able to hear each instrument (within the drum set) clearly” is what Purdie told me and “always phrase along with the melody”. “Simple is not easy and link the the sections”.