You could just see towards the end that he had committed his entire life to being this astonishing behind a drumkit and playing for a real audience, it’s not just a gorgeous performance, but a deep testament to a person’s integrity and a life well chosen and well lived.
Just a note on how musically tuned Gavin's drums are --a beautiful melodic sound up and down the kit. When you add in his skill set, it's signature musicianship at its finest.
Everything about this drummer speaks passion, you not only tell by his hand being so lose, but even by the way he organizes his drum set, and by the color style in his drums. Class act.
I ❤️ Everything Gavin does, such an inspiration to me, professionally as well. Opened my eyes to so many possibilities, and the SOUND of his kit? He has MASTERED it. Incredible musician all round. He's done a lot more besides drumming.
The fact that he accidentally dropped one of his sticks at the 2:30 mark on live national TV and completely made it looked natural -- is absolutely amazing!
I'm not a fan of drum solos, but came here for him. One of the greatest without a doubt. And it's not just his ability but the fine tuning of his kit is always on point, it's just always a pleasure listen to him on any song he plays.
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer ok ..WHO DESTROY YOUR LANG ? ..Travis Orbin ? ..Boby Jarzombeck? CHRIS TURNER ? David Diepold ? ..Who ?? ...if you want to know what is extrem ..play this . If you want to see stupid competition.
I just LOVE how he had implemented prog metal vocabulary into soloing over "the chicken" where most drummers sound fusion-ish. Very refreshing and tasteful approach
@@MeanGeneSanDiego keep hating instead of appreciating things in your life, that way you'll "surely" attract good things to you lol nobody cares if somebody else can do faster or harder things, let's talk about tasteful precision, not just hitting things on time.
+Arthur Garwood Delahooke I don't think his independence is anywhere near as impressive as his orchestration. You want independence? Go watch a Thomas Lang, Mike Mangini, or Virgil Donati video.
Once of the best cats in modern drumming for sure. Chops chops and more chops BUT awesome feel and use of space. Definitely at the top of my short list!
This solo is insane, but Gavin's work in Porcupine Tree is what really solidifies him as my favorite drummer. I mean, there's a certain level of chops that all these really great drummers can reach (and then there's Jojo Mayer), but Gavin's creativity and absolutely liquidity on the drums is a step above the rest.
Dave Weckl also possesses a similar (if not higher) level of fluidity (or transparency) and chops on the kit but definitely doesn’t have the creative output Gavin does.
I have watched this once a month, for at least the last two years, and mind is blown every single time. This gentleman has been my biggest inspiration for quite a long time now I can’t put into words what his plane means to me.
Please show some respect to the brilliant band accompanying this - especially the percusionist who had to augment something that neeeded no augmentation but somehow still managed to make it even better!
I've seen Buddy Rich live 6 times. He was very smooth. It looked as if he wasnt playing "hard". Mr Harrison plays the same. I love listening to him especially with Porcupine Tree and King Crimson. This cat is a great drummer.
I remember watching and indulging this during my high school / uni times while my peers loved playing their video games, back in around 2012. Twelve years later now I've been working for like ~6-7 years and this still entertains! Gavin's my favorite monster...
The ONLY drummer in either drum solo week to not already be a household name, and he just blew everyone else away. Stunning. Best double-kick player since Barriemore Barlowe.
Agreed ... a great player who fits tight and musically in the pocket. And, ironically and LOL, claims he's really not a double base pedal player! The best!
Not just his ability, but the rest of the band, too. They had to come in and out between his solo sections and they nailed it every time. They were all locked in. These late night show bands have the best professional musicians in the business.
That was a fun to watch drum solo. He made something hard to do look easy. Good drum tuning and tones mixed with some good technical sticking made it more of a musically sounding solo than just a thrashing.
@@brdnrdif you're talking about the double kick bass pattern when he plays with the bells, that pattern is called a herta, most famous in bleed by meshuggah and hot for teacher by van halen.
Carter Beauford is the drummer for the Dave Matthews Band. Bill Bruford was the drummer and percussionist for legendary bands such as Yes, King Crimson, Genesis and UK.
Letterman loves music and was always looking for ways to help musicians whether they were famous or unheard of...giving them a shot of national exposure. So nice for everyone; we all win.
Letterman's idol and friend was Johnny Carson, who used to be a drummer himself and used to have Buddy Rich and other jazz musicians on his show regularly. I'm sure this drummer series was somewhat a modern day nod.
When Gavin started his solo I thought it was 'freeform'. But when he and the band played the 'hits' I was like WHOA! I know it's just counting, but it's still impressive to solo for such long stretches without accompaniment and for everyone to be together!!! Great job all!!!
Bill Thew Counting is definitely tough...Truth is, I usually only count when I'm making a drum chart...just to make sure I have the hits/accents/etc...notated correctly...While actually playing the song, I really try to internalize or feel the music...I've said too much...Happy drumming!:)
I'm pretty sure it was actually freeform. The band conductor can be seen communicating with the band and Gavin through a microphone that feeds to their in-ears. Eye contact between Gavin and the conductor means that he can just count in whenever he is ready.
his use of flams is off the hook! such a smooth and articulate player with amazing hand and foot speed, but without sacrificing brilliant dynamics and finess; truly one of the unsung heroes of modern drumming. I hope to play like that when I grow up; (hey, it could happen...)
I agree. Maybe I have my head in the sand, but I'd never heard of him, and I wanted to applaud my computer after that. Those flams -- the guy plays one-handed flams between the rack and floor toms and the hi-hat on the opposite side!!!
Steven Wilson was so fortunate to have Gavin in Porcupine Tree - their video concert 'Arriving Somewhere' is one of my favorites and I re-watch it regularly 🙂
woah, i am absolutely blown away by this performance, especially by a drummer i dont know much about. he grooves so damn well in this his kit sounds great!
@UC3Z12CWyTj3aB9Mx1XWYeTg Sorry, still not impressed. (Monkey-Grip Player's just don't impress me and never will.) Although this little Girl 'aint bad...ruclips.net/video/V5YDxDuyKDI/видео.html
One of my favorite drummers. Whenever I listen to "Anesthetize" I always focus more on the drums for the first three or four minutes than the rest of the music.
Я - старый барабанщик с консервативными взглядами, и очень уважаю таких музыкантов, как Бонэм, Пэйс, Филлипс, Биссонетт... Но вот молодые драммеры тоже очень радуют. Этот парень отлично отстраивает инструменты, звук сухой, высокий и очень отчётливый. Это не просто примитивная демонстрация навыков и техники ( кои, безусловно, на высоте), это - музыка. Особое удовольствие от мастерского использования сплэшей и чайны. Кайф!
Sonor has always made the best drums out there. Build quality, sound quality, and looks. I've tried all the other brands and Sonor will always be my first and only choice.
InCredible dexterity. He is one of the tops of the drumming world one of the best young talents out there. Maybe even a hint of Chad wackerman in his playin.
You're 90% correct on that. Sound is a pressure wave. It moves quicker through higher density materials, which causes the frequency of the wave to increase. Assuming the temperature remains the same, increasing the air pressure in the tom has the same effect. The sustain ratio of the heads probably does change, as you mentioned, but the effect that has on the drum's fundamental pitch in this instance is negligible compared to the air pressure's effect.
You could just see towards the end that he had committed his entire life to being this astonishing behind a drumkit and playing for a real audience, it’s not just a gorgeous performance, but a deep testament to a person’s integrity and a life well chosen and well lived.
Settle Down Butter-BUTT..!
A depression sets in by the idea of setting up this whole kit for a 10 minute solo...
One of the best I saw on Letterman!
Not when it’s Gavin, worth every second 😂
12 years later I still come back to this video. Truly one of the best.
Just a note on how musically tuned Gavin's drums are --a beautiful melodic sound up and down the kit. When you add in his skill set, it's signature musicianship at its finest.
Да это так и есть! Спасибо за комментарий!
1:48 is a perfect example of this
Yeh I honestly think Gavin’s set is my favorite drum sound of all time. It’s just pristine and gorgeous
🐐 goat of goats
Well said
Everything about this drummer speaks passion, you not only tell by his hand being so lose, but even by the way he organizes his drum set, and by the color style in his drums. Class act.
Great observation, couldn't agree more!
I ❤️ Everything Gavin does, such an inspiration to me, professionally as well. Opened my eyes to so many possibilities, and the SOUND of his kit? He has MASTERED it. Incredible musician all round. He's done a lot more besides drumming.
Would YOU please settle-down and dis-enroll from drama-mama king of queen class..!
The fact that he accidentally dropped one of his sticks at the 2:30 mark on live national TV and completely made it looked natural -- is absolutely amazing!
Wow....It took me 2 replays to notice that. You must be a drummer too🙂
Occupational hazard. Lots of practice
He is awesome but any good drummer should be able to do this by grabbing another stick.
I'm not a fan of drum solos, but came here for him. One of the greatest without a doubt. And it's not just his ability but the fine tuning of his kit is always on point, it's just always a pleasure listen to him on any song he plays.
One of the few drummers where if u close your eyes u know it's him in 10 seconds!
One second is enough haha
Another is Jimmy Chamberlin
gadd porcaro copeland phil collins ziggy.to name a few more.
Gavin is absolutely incredible.
no, thomas lang is not 10x better
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer mmmmm nope .
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer ok ..WHO DESTROY YOUR LANG ? ..Travis Orbin ? ..Boby Jarzombeck? CHRIS TURNER ? David Diepold ? ..Who ?? ...if you want to know what is extrem ..play this . If you want to see stupid competition.
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer jajajajaja ..ok .
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer and that's your opinion
I just LOVE how he had implemented prog metal vocabulary into soloing over "the chicken" where most drummers sound fusion-ish. Very refreshing and tasteful approach
Well put. I was sitting here thinking...interesting...this is a different take on things. Great drummer.
He's just too good on every level. He's like all the best drummers I've ever seen & heard all rolled into one perfect package.... truly truly amazing!
You probably don't play drums, do you? This is sub rudimentary (pedestrian) at best.😞
@@MeanGeneSanDiego keep hating instead of appreciating things in your life, that way you'll "surely" attract good things to you lol nobody cares if somebody else can do faster or harder things, let's talk about tasteful precision, not just hitting things on time.
Meanvaseline lol
@@MeanGeneSanDiego why so jealous bro? Not got anything to do in life. Its okay you will get there. Just learn to respect someone will you? Thanks!
@@MeanGeneSanDiegoheh OK, I’ve played drums for 30 years and Gavin is incredible. “Rudimentary” lol. Back to Slipknot kid
This man has incredible independence. It's really amazing! Definitely one of the best out there.
+Arthur Garwood Delahooke Gavin Harrison is brilliant. Catastrophically underrated....
+Arthur Garwood Delahooke I don't think his independence is anywhere near as impressive as his orchestration. You want independence? Go watch a Thomas Lang, Mike Mangini, or Virgil Donati video.
Antonio Sanchez...independence personified
tluedeke reactor7
Not underrated, just unknown due to genre he’s played in last 20+ years, but most drummers and especially Pro’s rate him highly..
He is exceptional.Never seen him yet.
Tight, you say? What a musician! Saw PT twice in Montreal and was totally blown away by the sheer amount of musicianship on stage.
Once of the best cats in modern drumming for sure. Chops chops and more chops BUT awesome feel and use of space. Definitely at the top of my short list!
This solo is insane, but Gavin's work in Porcupine Tree is what really solidifies him as my favorite drummer. I mean, there's a certain level of chops that all these really great drummers can reach (and then there's Jojo Mayer), but Gavin's creativity and absolutely liquidity on the drums is a step above the rest.
Gavin is a great writer, a lot of contributions to Porcupine Tree.
Dave Weckl also possesses a similar (if not higher) level of fluidity (or transparency) and chops on the kit but definitely doesn’t have the creative output Gavin does.
Jojo is just wow
Matt gartska anyone?
I have watched this once a month, for at least the last two years, and mind is blown every single time.
This gentleman has been my biggest inspiration for quite a long time now I can’t put into words what his plane means to me.
this is such an amazing sounding kit. so perfect and probs the best drum solo of both drum solo weeks.
Absolutely superb! That kit sounds fantastic.
8 years too late but this man is a beast! gotta listen to more of his stuff
Please show some respect to the brilliant band accompanying this - especially the percusionist who had to augment something that neeeded no augmentation but somehow still managed to make it even better!
Gavin Harrison is just amazing. Love how fluid his playing is.
I've seen Buddy Rich live 6 times. He was very smooth. It looked as if he wasnt playing "hard". Mr Harrison plays the same. I love listening to him especially with Porcupine Tree and King Crimson. This cat is a great drummer.
I remember watching and indulging this during my high school / uni times while my peers loved playing their video games, back in around 2012. Twelve years later now I've been working for like ~6-7 years and this still entertains! Gavin's my favorite monster...
wow!! how have a never heard of this cat before... mad respect, just amazing.
Dillydally If you've been checking cat breeds that's why. He's a human 😂
Dan23 7 silly goose
His sense of space with his feel is really unique, never knew he could play like that, impressive stuff!
FANTASTIC !! What a technique !!! and style
The ONLY drummer in either drum solo week to not already be a household name, and he just blew everyone else away. Stunning. Best double-kick player since Barriemore Barlowe.
Agreed ... a great player who fits tight and musically in the pocket. And, ironically and LOL, claims he's really not a double base pedal player! The best!
Agree! Man, its like he took it to a whole new level. Ridiculous!!!
John Thelin not sure how you can claim he's better than Neil Peart.
@@downtown_ethanbrown i think people get transfixed by his double base pedal playing... let's see how hes doing in 40 years...
@@fordprefectiii When he's 96?
Monster musician. Everything he does is sublime.
Surprised at his ability to keep count and timing. He truly is something else
Not just his ability, but the rest of the band, too. They had to come in and out between his solo sections and they nailed it every time. They were all locked in. These late night show bands have the best professional musicians in the business.
maaaaan, I'm never getting tired by watching this video. I love you Gavin.
One of the finest drummers in the world
Gavin Harrison the genius of the drums👏👏👏👍😎
3:00 Gavin's feet decided to play Bleed by Meshuggah
haha i heard the same thing
Yep, it is the same pattern. 2x 16th+ 2x 8th notes, or 2x 32th + 2x 16th notes, generally. It's been used a lot, even for tom-snare fills.
I heard it too !
Yeah, that was awesome :)
its a big fan of meshuggah
That was a fun to watch drum solo. He made something hard to do look easy. Good drum tuning and tones mixed with some good technical sticking made it more of a musically sounding solo than just a thrashing.
WOW! That was super TIGHT. Fantastic musicianship. What a drummer. Love the band too.
That double-kick bass is much trickier than it looks. And kudos to the band!
It's called Herta
@@chanmies What is?
@@brdnrdif you're talking about the double kick bass pattern when he plays with the bells, that pattern is called a herta, most famous in bleed by meshuggah and hot for teacher by van halen.
For me Marco Minneman, Carter Bruford and Gavin Harrison are the three drummers that I like the most for their precision and incredible ability.
Jason Rullo, Thomas Lang and Virgil Donati tô me
Gavin has been my #1 favorite drummer for a long time. Nowadays it could be Carter, coincidentally :) three great talents
strange that you spell carters last name wrong then.. or did you mean bill bruford? also understandable if you did
Carter Beauford is the drummer for the Dave Matthews Band. Bill Bruford was the drummer and percussionist for legendary bands such as Yes, King Crimson, Genesis and UK.
The Master Drummer. Number one in my book for technique, patterns timing groove. What else.......everything!! LOL
This isn't even among his greatest stuff. Simply incredible drummer!
Letterman loves music and was always looking for ways to help musicians whether they were famous or unheard of...giving them a shot of national exposure. So nice for everyone; we all win.
Never ceases to impress me.
Letterman's idol and friend was Johnny Carson, who used to be a drummer himself and used to have Buddy Rich and other jazz musicians on his show regularly. I'm sure this drummer series was somewhat a modern day nod.
I thought the same thing.
That was killer!! Not sure why this dude isn't more well-known
he's extremely well known in the drumming scene
He’s a God on the drumming scene!
Say what!!!!!
He’s a drummer’s drummer.
It's because he plays prog rock. But, he is absolutely amazing to watch and listen to.
Flawless! A really enjoyable solo. This guy is a real talent.
What a great solo and beautiful sounding kit.
When Gavin started his solo I thought it was 'freeform'. But when he and the band played the 'hits' I was like WHOA! I know it's just counting, but it's still impressive to solo for such long stretches without accompaniment and for everyone to be together!!! Great job all!!!
Blows my mind as well! Who knew how hard counting could be!
Bill Thew Counting is definitely tough...Truth is, I usually only count when I'm making a drum chart...just to make sure I have the hits/accents/etc...notated correctly...While actually playing the song, I really try to internalize or feel the music...I've said too much...Happy drumming!:)
I'm pretty sure it was actually freeform. The band conductor can be seen communicating with the band and Gavin through a microphone that feeds to their in-ears. Eye contact between Gavin and the conductor means that he can just count in whenever he is ready.
Listen to The Aristocrats live, the long stop and syncopation time is ridiculous impossible and funny
calvintrainer1212 Thanks for the suggestion:)
Fantastic drum sound. Snare, kick, toms all great
Ta no meu top 3 de melhores Drum Solos que eu já vi! Quanta técnica misturada com sonoridade perfeita!
Great drummer. One of my all time favorites.
Simply amazing!! Thank you for sharing this master piece of drumming. 👍👍
It is always an honor to hear it, he is a legend in life! 🙌🏼
his use of flams is off the hook! such a smooth and articulate player with amazing hand and foot speed, but without sacrificing brilliant dynamics and finess; truly one of the unsung heroes of modern drumming. I hope to play like that when I grow up; (hey, it could happen...)
I like flams but hot damn, I love Gavin Harrison's flams.
I agree. Maybe I have my head in the sand, but I'd never heard of him, and I wanted to applaud my computer after that. Those flams -- the guy plays one-handed flams between the rack and floor toms and the hi-hat on the opposite side!!!
That tone/sound he gets from that Sonor kit is the best of the best..so is he's playing..
I love when drummers play something ive never thought of playing it in that way
By far the best by a mile here on drum fortnight. Gavin you the man
Sonor makes a damn fine kit, and this guy can straight tear em up
Beautiful shells...So so drummer...
@@MeanGeneSanDiego did you just call harrison "so so"?
@@RubenSprng 😝
And super expensive!!! 😅
Steven Wilson was so fortunate to have Gavin in Porcupine Tree - their video concert 'Arriving Somewhere' is one of my favorites and I re-watch it regularly 🙂
Same--have probably watched that DVD a hundred times. 😂
I’ve soured on some parts of PT I’ve the years, but their musicianship, particularly Harrison’s, will always shock and impress me.
Letterman said; "Porcupine Tree" :D Makes a Progger happy :D
woah, i am absolutely blown away by this performance, especially by a drummer i dont know much about. he grooves so damn well in this his kit sounds great!
If your a Gavin Harrison fan, you need to listen to his "Circles" cd with 05ric. The cd displays Gavin's extraordinary drumming! He's amazing!
my favorite drummer ever. king of ghost notes
Musicality...more LIKE a Buddy Rich solo than what sometimes devolves into a circus show. His solo fit the tempo and feel of the song.
MeanGeneSanDiego Hardly a fair thing to say, he’s capable of playing much, much more than that
@UC3Z12CWyTj3aB9Mx1XWYeTg Sorry, still not impressed. (Monkey-Grip Player's just don't impress me and never will.) Although this little Girl 'aint bad...ruclips.net/video/V5YDxDuyKDI/видео.html
Eugene Snyder comment got deleted but STILL you are the ass
Gavin shows whats possible on drums! masterful!
Yes, I'd even put up with a few tedious moments with Letterman to listen to this guy....Outstanding solo.
I love that drag thing he does
Astounding, and as blase Paul and company might become to all the talent they see, I bet they were extremely impressed. The guy is one of the greats
One of the greatest alive, such a unique sound, you can always tell it's him...
The epitome of drumming. As close to perfect as l've ever seen. (l'm a player
m'self) This guy is AWESOME!!
One of my favorite drummers. Whenever I listen to "Anesthetize" I always focus more on the drums for the first three or four minutes than the rest of the music.
For the first three minutes? I focus on Gavin's drumming for the whole 17 minutes.
There's just a little bit of magic that's broken when you finally hear that first cymbal crash. But yeah, the drumming is great throughout.
Dr. Corndog I think the way Gavin accompanies the song "Trains" is amazing...and his playing on "Futile" could make Bill Bruford blush....
Я - старый барабанщик с консервативными взглядами, и очень уважаю таких музыкантов, как Бонэм, Пэйс, Филлипс, Биссонетт... Но вот молодые драммеры тоже очень радуют. Этот парень отлично отстраивает инструменты, звук сухой, высокий и очень отчётливый. Это не просто примитивная демонстрация навыков и техники ( кои, безусловно, на высоте), это - музыка. Особое удовольствие от мастерского использования сплэшей и чайны. Кайф!
Giving is really at the top of his game in this video. Bravo! 👏
😳 Absolutely Fantastic 👌🏽
Awesome sound,amazing playing.the man is master
It's like fireworks going off.Outstanding.!!
Never heard of this guy but man is he impressive!
Nice solo!!! Love that drum roll on the snare!!!
Just plain cool. What a great musician.
Don’t forget this perfomance now! Gavin IS the best drummer ever! 🎉🎉🎉😮❤
Very fun, dynamic solo...love it
His drums sound SO GOOD
Sonor has always made the best drums out there. Build quality, sound quality, and looks. I've tried all the other brands and Sonor will always be my first and only choice.
I know right!!! I've modeled my drum sound after Marco Minnemann and Gavin Harrison. These drums are more than drums, they are musical.
The drums alone are prob about $10k
@@mercertj yeah have you ever done the custom Sonor drum maker online?! Gets to like 13k for me 😂
Sonor sq2?
GREAT JOB, GAVIN!!!!!!!!!
An absolute genius of the kit
Awesome so clean lovely to listen to
Gavin's got a great band behind him! I miss them & the show!
InCredible dexterity. He is one of the tops of the drumming world one of the best young talents out there. Maybe even a hint of Chad wackerman in his playin.
So clean and musical
the best of the drum solo week!
Talk about making it look easy. Fantastic
An outstanding drummer
I have much more respect for Letterman now.
Incredibly creative wonderful
The MASTER is in the building!!!!
Sadly I'll admit this was my entry to porcupine tree. I missed the boat, but the music is fucking great. Better late than never!!!
Enjoy the rabbit hole
These guys are fantastically creative and some of the best musicians Ive heard
One of my favourites with PT and Gavin on drums is 'Mother and Child Divided" from one of their live releases, truly incredible.
Creative brilliant playing blows most out of the water
Marvelous Garvin👍👍👍 Indonesian salute to you..🙏🙏🙏👍👍👍
You're 90% correct on that.
Sound is a pressure wave. It moves quicker through higher density materials, which causes the frequency of the wave to increase. Assuming the temperature remains the same, increasing the air pressure in the tom has the same effect. The sustain ratio of the heads probably does change, as you mentioned, but the effect that has on the drum's fundamental pitch in this instance is negligible compared to the air pressure's effect.
love that creativity!
fabulous Gavin!!!
Off the chart. What a drummer.
2:30 stick drop. covered it well.
FPChris bro I didn’t notice
Lol I didn’t even notice 🤣 I thought it was part of the solo
I thought he was doing the Carl Palmer kick crash haha
dude you have to have an eagle eye to notice that lol
@@ImEverythingYouCrave Ha!
What an awesome player! He's now one of the three drummers in the new version of King Crimson.... that'll give him a work out!
So good. Gavin is great!