Here is another fun little funk groove that I did while I was at the studio today. Again, if you’re a drummer you need to consider buying these books by Tommy Igoe. They are called Groove Essentials 1 & 2 and they will definitely change the way you play. Hope you all enjoy…
I just realized as I looked over my website today that I haven’t posted in quite some time. A few months ago when Emmett passed away I found myself staring down the barrel of life for the first time with a different set of eyes. His passing really put some perspective on my life, and even as I sit here now, that question, where have you been, well the answer is… well… here, but not really here. Split between praying, working, drumming, being a husband, playing for church, vacation, rest, craziness, I’ve seen it all here lately.
I just had the amazing blessing of being away with my wife in CA for a week. We spent a lot of time talking, looking at life, careers, family, and sorting through life as it looks to us both right now. So to answer, where have I been, in the studios in Nashville, working at Studio IV on a few projects, and doing a whole hcck of a lot of practice as well. I also started a business as a web developer, which is really my altar ego as a person. By day I’m a studio drummer, by night I’m a programming fanatic. So in one sense I drum more than I ever have, in another sense, I’m also doing lots of other things, but I think this time has been good for me to continue to develop as a musician, businessman, and a person in general.
In a few weeks I’m excited to say that I’ll make my first run with a CCM band called “Chasen”. So right now I’m going to go play some shows, leave the doors open for God to show me what He wants for me to do. When everything collapsed with 33Miles, I honestly wondered if I’d be able to continue drumming, as I’ve learned, they were one vehicle, and there will always be more, if I’m willing to put in the work that needs to be put in. Practice has never been an issue for me, playing has never been a problem, but I struggle with telling people that I’m here, I struggle with promotion… so it’s all a work in progress. Nobody every said being a professional musician would be simple, or easy. As I’m learning more every single day, Adam Silverman as a drummer is much the same as running a Costco or a clothing store. Different product, same challenges, same principles, and the more I learn about being a player, the more I see this reality. To ignore that music is a business makes me ignorant and arrogant to think I’ll be somehow circling around the system. So here I am folks, ready to keep working, putting in the time, following this path. Thanks for being on the journey with me, I love the support and love I’ve gotten from my friends in the past several months, it’s kept me going, so thank you so much!
So that’s the life right now. Things have been really honestly amazing since I made a path change many months ago, but please pray for me as I consider what is next in my path. I know I’ll be drumming almost all the time either way, but in which case, that’s what I’m working on for now. I’m very excited to get out and play shows again, share my passion with the world, glorify the Lord with my gifts, and also I look forward to pursuing everything else put in front of me. It’s an excited time, but a very busy one, which would explain the lack of blogs, but as they say, time to get back to it.
Thanks for reading. Blessings!
To quote a friend Jonathan Nelson today, “The percussion section in Heaven’s band just got even more awesome.” After about a year and a half of battling esophageal cancer, one of my best friends, and an amazing percussionist here in Nashville, Emmett Stallings, has gone home to be with the Lord. I was so very blessed and fortunate to call Emmett a friend and a brother. I just wanted to take a moment to express that though we are deeply sad for this loss to us, like Jonathan said, Heaven is rejoicing at Emmett’s coming home party tonight. I wish that we all could be there with him to celebrate, but I take small solace at this point just knowing that we will see each other again one day.
I know how to shake a tambourine because of E. I know what shakers to pick because of E. He’s taught me to play more musical, to play from my heart, to listen to what I’m playing before I just start playing, and so many other things. I also learned the phrase “Punk-Face” from him, which I was so frequently called when we were goofing off… haha. I remember many afternoons working in his studio together on drum tracks, talking about sounds and feels and what works and what doesn’t, and I loved every single second of it, and I wouldn’t trade those times for anything.
As a friend, Emmett was and continues to be a true gift. He managed to encourage me when I felt so down. He brought up my spirits, built me up, pushed me to be better than I thought I could be, asked me if I had practiced enough each week, encouraged me and showed me how to be a Godly husband, and father. Lately he’s taught me about courage, faith, and he fought the good fight and ran the race with excellence until he was called home. He’s been a mentor, brother, confidant, friend, and part of my family for the last 7 years. What a blessing, privilege, and honor to have known this young man and to walk along side him all the way until the end of his journey here on earth.
Please check out teamemmett.org for more information about Emmett. His story is so touching, his faith is completely inspiring, and his legacy will live on through his amazing wife Wendy and son Quinn, and all the lives he’s touched across the world. Please continue to pray for his wife and song, and the rest of his family as we grieve this gigantic loss to our world. Thanks for reading. Be blessed.
I am super excited to be offering custom live drums for demos and master sessions. For the last year or so, I’ve been doing more and more session work for writers, artists, producers, and other folks in Nashville, L.A., and all over the U.S. The shortened version of the process is that I’ve got access to a studio where my drums are already set up and ready to be recorded into Pro Tools. People send me scratch tracks of their songs, I take them to the studio, and record the drum tracks. Then I make them available for download through my website. Done and done.
Please check out http://adamdrums.com/studio – if you have friends that are song-writers, producers, engineers, or anyone else needing drum recordings on demos, EPs, or even master sessions, please send them my way.
Thanks for reading. I am pumped about the future and about all of the songs that I have on my plate to record for the next month. I hope this step into studio world more full-time allows me to continue to grow, adapt, and work as much as possible doing what I love. I appreciate all of your support and thanks for taking the time to read this.
Blessings,
Adam Silverman
Last weekend I had the great opportunity to work with CCM Artist Big Daddy Weave on a tour date out in Missouri as a fill in for their drummer Jeff Jones. It was an incredible experience for me, and one where I was able to really hone in my skills doing sub-work. I decided after the experience to write a little map about how to fill in for other drummers and how to really nail it.
1) Preparation.
This is really the most important part of the process. You can never be too prepared for a gig. In this case their drummer sent me side view videos of him playing the tunes, and I also got a copy of the audio from the live show from top to bottom. I spent a good bit of time going through each song. I cannot over emphasize the need to listen to the tunes by themselves without charting first. This helps give me an idea of the feel that they are going for, and gives me a great idea about what kind of chops I’ll need to accomplish it. It also puts me in the right mindset style-wise so that I’m doing my best to duplicate the feel of the person that I’m subbing for. Remember, the goal here is not really to just play like crazy, the goal is to make it seem like you’ve played the songs 100 times and like their drummer isn’t away. You can’t do that without listening to the tunes intently.
2) Charting.
Once I’ve listened to the songs, it’s time to start making charts. I always start by finding the general tempo of the tune and writing that on the top of the chart. I also typically will write a style or song association. If it’s very Dave Matthews sounding, I’ll write DMB, or John Mayer or whatever so when I look at the chart I know how fast it is and what tune it reminded me of. That way I can associate quickly on stage if I forget what a song sounds like.
From there I’ll go ahead and listen 1 time through just getting the proper bars and the song form. I write everything in the Nashville number system, but I use all 1′s since I don’t need the changes. So a verse for me that’s 8 bars looks like this ( 1 1 1 1 : 1 1 1 1 :) I use the numbers to show a measure and the “:” is used to tell me a phrase has ended. So that would be an 8 bar verse with two phrases. It can get really complicated when you have odd meters and such, but I have a system for everything these days. Once I have the tune mapped out I’ll take another listen all the way through and I’ll write in the necessary grooves, variations, stops, band hits, etc. Anything that will help remind me of what the song is supposed to sound like. I’ll also write snare drum choices if I’m going to be changing them out in the show.
Charting is the most important part for me. I just played a 14 song show by reading through charts, there was no possible way for me to memorize 14 songs in one week, especially in the middle of doing studio work, so you live, eat, and breathe by the charts you write. So this process is very tedious, but necessary and eventually it even becomes fun. You can create your own language basically.
3) Gig Day.
Finally, you’ve listened, charted, prepared as much as possible. Now it’s time to do the show. The biggest thing for me, especially when we don’t have any rehearsals, is making sure that the tempo is at least close and the feel is right-on. This is much easier if you’re using a click track, but if you aren’t, the best thing is to try to get your own click into your mix so that you can at least start close to the correct tempo. All songs tend to move when you aren’t on the click which is why I am a huge advocate for the click track, but in many cases artists don’t use them, so you have to be prepared for that and be ready for whatever comes your way.
Once you’re on stage reading down your charts, it’s important to stay focused on the form of the songs. Keep your ears open, if you are hearing something different from your charts feel-wise, make adjustments. Your charts are there to guide you but sometimes artists make changes on the fly, you have to be listening as much as reading. If you know what the verse sounds like, and they want to repeat it, just be prepared mentally to keep following along. If you get lost in the chart keep your eyes and ears on the band leader, they will surely give you cues as to what’s coming next. I always try to make sure to make a point of looking out of the charts in the middle of the tune. If the second verse, pre-chorus and chorus are mirrors of the first, I’ll make a mental note, and use that time to interact with the other players. Then I get back into the chart before the bridge so I know what I’m doing. Don’t be so into the chart that you’re not with the artist on stage, but don’t allow yourself to get lost in the moment and forget about the huge stop on the first beat of the bridge :).
Hope this helps some of you guys. I’ve filled in and read charts on the stage for at least 15 different artists in the last few years, this has always worked for me as a survival guide. Peace!
So for the last year or so my drumming has really turned a corner as I’ve begun to delve into the Motown style of playing. I’m definitely far from mastering the feel, but it’s helped my overall playing tremendously since I started working with Zoro 6 months ago. At my last lesson he gave me this book called “The Commandments of R&B Drumming – Play Along”. If you’re a drummer and don’t have it, you should buy it, if you love Motown music, I’d recommend purchasing it just for the CD. It’s really amazing how this music continues to transcend time and how it’s still so popular 40 years after it’s recording.
This is a tune called “Love Land” which was originally recorded by “Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band” back in the 70′s. It’s a great example of the singled handed 16th note feel. I decided to cut this over at the Vault the other day just an an exercise in recording myself and it really worked out well. Hope you all enjoy!!
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