I agree completely. Billy Higgins is my favourite of all the great drummers and I had a good fortune to know him and play with him. To me, his best work of all the great people he played and recorded with was with Cedar Walton and Sam Jones.That was the best rhythm section I ever heard live.
Thank you thank you! Last year i discovered Mr. Higgins while in my second year at music school and was so taken by his simplicity. Your whole Higgins series has been opening my mind and heart to deeper playing. You prefaced your video with hating the question about favorite drummers. I also dislike it for the same reason as you, too many choices!! To many beautiful players. And yet you have visited 2 of 4 of my favorite players. How blessed i must be! Anyway i wanted to just put a bug in your ear to maybe consider doing a video on a less standard jazz drummer but a jazz drummer and virtuoso in his own right, Robert Wyatt of Soft Machine. Rock stylings but undeniable, unignorable jazz runs through this music and if you were to cover some of Wyatt's approaches i would be so thrilled. If this is not something you would ever consider, do try giving a listen to their albums Third and Fourth. I doubt you would be dissapointed. Peace!
Thanks so much for the recommendation! Honestly I do not know Robert Wyatt's drumming, so thanks to your recommendation I am going to check out their 3rd and 4th albums. Thanks so much! I got to get hip :-)
Great stuff. I've long loved Higgins and The Procrastinator, but you've taken me into both in way more depth than I was able to go before, as a non-player myself. I never grasped properly what jazz comping is all about until now. So yes, thanks.
Wow watching this video is extremely refreshing. Thank you so much. Almost all of RUclips drum content is just useless bullshit. This actually helps me understand the role of jazz drums a bit more. Please keep this up, I instantly subscribed, looking forward to watching more of your vids. 👍
This is a brilliant video. Thanks. Have you heard an album by Charles Macpherson called Today's Man? . Billy Higgins is stunning on it. Barry Harris on piano. Ernie Wilkins arrangements.
I have not, got to check that out. Charles is a living legend! Also Ernie Wilkins is such a great arranger, man that album has to be swinging! Thanks so much for the recommendation. Awesome
just saw your channel the first time and watched/heard the 3 Higgins videos .... SUPER WOW ! thank you ! and i also did not find part 2 of COMPING ....... @@ChrisSmithJazzDrumHang
@@AndreasSchmidtHappens Andreas, thanks for checking out the videos. There is no part 2 of comping at this point. I should have stated clearly I guess, I was doing a two part series on Higgins pt. 1 covering his comping and part 2 covering his solo vocab. So many people have asked for a part 2 of comping I will be making one in the coming weeks! Sorry for the confusion. Thanks for again for checking out the Drum Hang!
dear chris ! THANK YOU for taking time to write back ! ah ! i got it ! and sure you will find million thinx more on Billy Higgins. i just saw your INNER VOICE DRUMMER video and the FORESHADOWING Mel Lewis video. super great again ! .... as you are a drummer, perhaps you know JERRY GRANELLI. he was our big mentor, when we studied jazz in berlin in the 90´s. i play with him again in MAY. perhaps you check the AT TRIDENT and CARNIVAL denny zeitlin trio LP´s, if you have time. by the way : THE MAGIC TRIANGLE as TRIO / RHYTHM SECTION COMPLETE LP´s are around 25-30 i guess. i miss 2-3 more, than i have them all ! ...... oki doki . ... back to some more insides of your hang-drums-wisdoms ...... @@ChrisSmithJazzDrumHang
Stumbled upon this video by accident but what great stuff! Higgins plays stuff that sounds simple until you try to do it and make it swing like he does - even a famous tune like The Sidewinder, it's demanding to maintain that groove and keep it consistent
Jeremy, I would describe it as the the quarter notes being the loudest notes, while the skip beats are just under the quarter notes in volume but not by much. Volume wise all the notes of Higgins beat are more even in volume that say Kenny Clarke, Jimmy Cobb, or Philly Joe. With his skip beat, some people say wide BUT I say he simply plays the third partial of the triplet as his skip beat perfectly every time. Consistent and never squishing the skip to close to beat 1 or 3. It's also a nice legatto triplet, never late and never in a hurry. It's like his head and his body were feeling the most legatto triplets you can imagine, as opposed to the same rhythm but said staccato. Say it out loud!!! Don't change the rhythm or timing, but change the length of the sounds TRI PUL LET as long as you can make them sound but keep them perfectly in time and in the groove.....that is Higgins beat to me. Magic!
You got a cymbal problem, eh? I see a pile of what looks like fabulous cymbals in the bottom left corner there, but I'm sure none of them are quite right? I know this problem well.
My Great Grandfather is an absolute genius and he is legendary Long Live Billy Higgins
Absolute Genius! Royalty indeed!
I don't play drums. I don't know much about drums. Yet I found this video fascinating, and I am in awe of Billy Higgins. Nicely done, Chris.
Hey Jim, what a nice comment thank you very much. Glad you enjoyed the video and got something out of it. Be well! Chris
I agree completely. Billy Higgins is my favourite of all the great drummers and I had a good fortune to know him and play with him.
To me, his best work of all the great people he played and recorded with was with Cedar Walton and Sam Jones.That was the best rhythm section I ever heard live.
Thanks for sharing this. One of my favourite jazz drummers as well, his playing really speaks to me.
You are welcome, thanks for checking out my videos.
Thank you thank you! Last year i discovered Mr. Higgins while in my second year at music school and was so taken by his simplicity. Your whole Higgins series has been opening my mind and heart to deeper playing.
You prefaced your video with hating the question about favorite drummers. I also dislike it for the same reason as you, too many choices!! To many beautiful players. And yet you have visited 2 of 4 of my favorite players. How blessed i must be!
Anyway i wanted to just put a bug in your ear to maybe consider doing a video on a less standard jazz drummer but a jazz drummer and virtuoso in his own right, Robert Wyatt of Soft Machine. Rock stylings but undeniable, unignorable jazz runs through this music and if you were to cover some of Wyatt's approaches i would be so thrilled.
If this is not something you would ever consider, do try giving a listen to their albums Third and Fourth. I doubt you would be dissapointed.
Peace!
Thanks so much for the recommendation! Honestly I do not know Robert Wyatt's drumming, so thanks to your recommendation I am going to check out their 3rd and 4th albums. Thanks so much! I got to get hip :-)
@@ChrisSmithJazzDrumHang enjoy! Im excited to hear your thoughts on the music. It's pretty 'out there' haha
Thanks. Indeed I agree with you, his comping is so peculiar, elegant and catchy . By the way your drum is wonderfully tuned!
Hey thanks so much. The thing is I rarely ever tune my drums or think about it even, so I am glad that I get a good sound out!
Great stuff. I've long loved Higgins and The Procrastinator, but you've taken me into both in way more depth than I was able to go before, as a non-player myself. I never grasped properly what jazz comping is all about until now. So yes, thanks.
Jason, that's great to hear! Thanks for the message.
Killing video! Long live Maestro Higgins
Thank you for the enlightenment.
Billy Higgins and Elvin Jones are my favorite
Thank you! Great video!!
Great show!!!
Wow watching this video is extremely refreshing. Thank you so much. Almost all of RUclips drum content is just useless bullshit. This actually helps me understand the role of jazz drums a bit more. Please keep this up, I instantly subscribed, looking forward to watching more of your vids. 👍
This is a brilliant video. Thanks.
Have you heard an album by Charles Macpherson called Today's Man? . Billy Higgins is stunning on it. Barry Harris on piano. Ernie Wilkins arrangements.
I have not, got to check that out. Charles is a living legend! Also Ernie Wilkins is such a great arranger, man that album has to be swinging! Thanks so much for the recommendation. Awesome
Great video! When is part two coming out?
Sorry for the late reply...part 2 is out!
just saw your channel the first time and watched/heard the 3 Higgins videos .... SUPER WOW ! thank you ! and i also did not find part 2 of COMPING ....... @@ChrisSmithJazzDrumHang
@@AndreasSchmidtHappens Andreas, thanks for checking out the videos. There is no part 2 of comping at this point. I should have stated clearly I guess, I was doing a two part series on Higgins pt. 1 covering his comping and part 2 covering his solo vocab. So many people have asked for a part 2 of comping I will be making one in the coming weeks! Sorry for the confusion. Thanks for again for checking out the Drum Hang!
dear chris ! THANK YOU for taking time to write back ! ah ! i got it ! and sure you will find million thinx more on Billy Higgins. i just saw your INNER VOICE DRUMMER video and the FORESHADOWING Mel Lewis video. super great again ! .... as you are a drummer, perhaps you know JERRY GRANELLI. he was our big mentor, when we studied jazz in berlin in the 90´s. i play with him again in MAY. perhaps you check the AT TRIDENT and CARNIVAL denny zeitlin trio LP´s, if you have time. by the way : THE MAGIC TRIANGLE as TRIO / RHYTHM SECTION COMPLETE LP´s are around 25-30 i guess. i miss 2-3 more, than i have them all ! ...... oki doki . ... back to some more insides of your hang-drums-wisdoms ...... @@ChrisSmithJazzDrumHang
still love it!!
Ha! Thanks Udo
Stumbled upon this video by accident but what great stuff! Higgins plays stuff that sounds simple until you try to do it and make it swing like he does - even a famous tune like The Sidewinder, it's demanding to maintain that groove and keep it consistent
Thank you so much! Glad you found me and enjoyed the video. Please subscribe and come back often!
Hey, Chris! How would you describe the ride cymbal beat of Billy Higgins?
Jeremy, I would describe it as the the quarter notes being the loudest notes, while the skip beats are just under the quarter notes in volume but not by much. Volume wise all the notes of Higgins beat are more even in volume that say Kenny Clarke, Jimmy Cobb, or Philly Joe. With his skip beat, some people say wide BUT I say he simply plays the third partial of the triplet as his skip beat perfectly every time. Consistent and never squishing the skip to close to beat 1 or 3. It's also a nice legatto triplet, never late and never in a hurry. It's like his head and his body were feeling the most legatto triplets you can imagine, as opposed to the same rhythm but said staccato. Say it out loud!!! Don't change the rhythm or timing, but change the length of the sounds TRI PUL LET as long as you can make them sound but keep them perfectly in time and in the groove.....that is Higgins beat to me. Magic!
@@ChrisSmithJazzDrumHang thank you! I'm trying to work on my ride to sound pretty similar to his. Are there any albums you can recommend?
You got a cymbal problem, eh? I see a pile of what looks like fabulous cymbals in the bottom left corner there, but I'm sure none of them are quite right? I know this problem well.
Ha, yes you nailed it. Cymbalitis