Added: 3 years ago
From: Phrase
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  • Phrase, you the man! Thanks for demonstrating the correct snare and tom sticking at the start of the drum break at the end of the song. I've been playing it wrong for years.

  • Cool. thanks for showing this I have listened to this track a lot and couldn't quite work out the sticking, but you show it how it is!

    I hope to get this one good enough to play, I LOVE the ending! ROCK! arghh!

  • Listen to Little Richard , Keep a Knockin. I think John Bonham was doing his version of that.

  • Thank you ! YEars ago I used to play this but now I wonder if I play it correctly then. Now I need to re-learn it for an audition and you are a big help. I have 3 days to get it right. On 3+ ,, got it.

  • блеск! спасибо!

  • Question, Sorry for my english, the snare never stops, right??? that is the ghost´s notes? this video lesson helping me too much thanks :)!

  • Other than the intro accents sounding a tad wrong, the ending example was really helpful for me revisiting this song after 20 some years since I last played it, thanks, and love your accent!, camera work and sound are stellar!! Thanks!!!

  • That's excellent mate thanks a lot. Anytime you're down Sheffield way give us a shout.

  • You actually got the intro wrong.

  • Comment removed

  • Great lesson! Finally, see how it's really done. This is super. I'll work towards getting this down as best I can. Thanks for taking the time to share this and posting.

  • Great lesson. I never realised how the bass drum part was influenced by Sandy Nelsons 'Let there be drums'.

  • Thanks for the great lesson! As an intermediate drummer this intro has always baffled me. Long live John Bonham!!!

  • Thanks man ! you'r awesome ! helped me a lot !

    P.S: You got a dwarf accent xD

  • Thank you so much for teaching this song. I am about to get into a band and have never even attempted to play this song. Cheers from across the pond!

  • great lesson about the snare part and the "and" of three when it starts. I hope you have a great teaching gig for lots of money because you should.

  • You are so good and a great teacher,thank you for sharing this

  • Thank you SO MUCH. I have been looking forever for someone to show note for note the end drum solo. Thanks for breaking it down. Now I know how it goes. I knew most of it, but could never get all the triplets at the end..

  • good lesson!!

  • I've been trying to figure out that ending for years in my car, whenever the radio plays Rock n Roll. You made my day. Thanks.

  • Good video m8 and you are a good drummer indeed but what really pisses me off abit about videos like these is that people are always in seach of lessons on how to play note for note. Why not strive out to be different and put you own feel and stamp on the song instead. Dont get me wrong John Bonham was a true legend in his own right but just cos he played it that way does not mean that other folk cant strive to give it there own feel and interpretation yes or no?

  • FINALLY a video with a real breakdown on the fill! Thanks for making this so easy to learn cheers!

  • Finally I understand it after all of these years in just a couple minutes, thanks so much!

  • BRAVO!!

  • Been looking for this detail lesson for years! THANK YOU MAN! you break the intro better than j. Bonham, AWESOME DUDE! now im gonna practice it! your way!

  • Hey mate, I slowed this tune down completely for that ending fill using Audacity. I have no doubt from this that he plays the entire ending fills middle bit as, Snare - Hi Tom - Floor Tom - Kick over and over, no double kick. There is simply a slight pause after the first and second revolutions.

  • excellent lesson! thanks!

    For the part you demonstrate from 1:10 , i think Bonham played four beat on a kick, sometimes limiting to accent you play..but it's my own sense what i hear on zep track.

  • Great Job Brother !! Your teaching is Stella !

  • You do the intro better than Jason B.

  • first intro that is right ;) greetings from chile.....many drummers plays the intro with mistakes

  • Thanks very well done....

  • just what i needed thanks *****

    

  • this helps a lot thanks

  • Great job mate. I'm Scott Travis with Judas Priest. You do not only a good job in dissecting the parts but also in the way you really break it down in to sections & make it easy to learn for all us drummers. You're right, so many cats play that intro wrong! It's f'ing sacrilegious. Lol

  • @rockinrabbi

    Hi Scott, thanks for the message!

    Fraser

  • @rockinrabbi Scott... I'm Matt, the drummer for Norfolk, VA band Whiskey Straight. I think you may know either our rhythm guitarist Jamey Crumb, or our bassist Ross Kevles...

  • Ray Weston from Wishbone Ash and Iron Butterfly checking in. Very nice job! But here's an easier way getting the intro drum part together. The snare / hi hat pattern is exactly the same as the signature Chuck Berry guitar intro used on many of his rock'n'roll classics. The accents are identical. Check it out!

    Sounds just like the man Fraser.

  • @Laguna724

    Hi Ray, Thanks for the tip and compliments!

    John's sister Deborah told me that he got this intro from the drum intro on Little Richard's version of "Keep a Knockin" but I agree the accents on the guitar intro on "Johnny B Goode" for example, are an even better match!

  • sick accent!! Oh yeah and great video. Haha.

  • dude i love paiste i have the black alpha joey jorkison 20" ride ,18" rock crash ,and 14" sound edge hi hat , and i love them to death

  • When someone tells me that I didn't play like the recording, I just tell them I was playing live 'bbc' version ;) lol

    Dude, you're awesome! Thanks

    You have helped me out on lots of songs, ('Fool In The Rain' & Rock and Roll Intro, etc.) that I have 'faked' for years ;)

    I have a question about the ending of the verses, on "Out On The Tiles."

    There is something tricky going on, like a 1 1/2 count, or something.

    Or maybe I am trippin'.

    And thanks again for the expert lessons on John Henry Bonham.

  • Actually, your second phase of the end fill seems a bit off...I don't detect a 5 stroke roll in there. I think it's "snare, tom, tom, kick"...only 4 strokes. But everything sounds great. The intro used to screw me all up, and you put it into better perspective. :)

  • brilliant job!

  • You are a nice drummer, and your tutorials are great, but you got the intro wrong :-/

    It's not "1..2..1234" Check the accents, written in eighth notes, it'd be something like (that last part only) ONE and two AND three AND four AND (I think this one is a bass drum, but very prominent) ONE AND TWO AND. The rest is fine, but seriously, give it a listen, I am 100% sure it's wrong.

    Fox.

  • fantastic lesson

  • if I could do that.......

  • stupid question for ya phrase....

    are you drawing all your cymbol amplification from that one overhead. I know nothing of micing, and am looking to do so. No problem with the drums, but cymbols? What overhead mic u using?

    keep up the great work

  • @derwoody1

    No there are two overheads, there is another one just above the crash cymbal on my left, which is just out of the picture! These are quite cheap condenser mics from a company called Red5 Audio. A pair of condensers (panned left and right) is the usual way to record cymbals. Some people also like another mic for the hi hat, but the overheads usually pick up the hi hat pretty well. I sometimes use a room mic too about 10 feet away from the kit.

  • @Phrase Are you an Scot?

  • You my friend are a credit to drummers - absolutly amazing. Been trying to nail that ending for ages, and now i can kinda lol

  • great video, ive played this song for years but never totally accurate as i learnt it from the original and as u say its hard to hear exactly wat hes doin. awsome cymbals too, i only buy paiste. Dave grohl did an awsome cover of this song, not totally accurate but pritty cool.

  • man, I have been trying to learn this for so long....it's really difficult but you do a terrific job breaking it down. Thanks

  • well done , very helpful 

  • I ran sound at a rock nightclub for 7 years, and I must have heard at least 10 different bands play this song. Not even one of those drummers got it right.

  • i find that the hardest bit is the bass drum

    p.s. good job, really helpful

  • thx man! yr good

  • nice cymbals

  • are you in a band? Id like to hear you play some of the zep songs you demonstrate

  • @sevenincher

    Yeah, I play for a Led Zep tribute called Led Astray. There are a few vids of the band on my channel!

  • @Phrase Are you the William Wallace?

  • Thank you, thank you, thank you! I play guitar, not drums, but now I know where to come in. I always was aware that there was an extra beat and a half, but I thought it was at the end not the beginning. It all makes sense when you are aware that the riff starts on the "3 and"

  • Thanks, great lesson. newer drummer and in a cover band that wants to play this and I'm intimidated at trying to cover my drumming hero. Thanks for your help in breaking it down. I've got some work to do...

  • is there any other?

    my new 'only authority' on bonham style

    thanks man

  • THE BEST TEACHER

  • Great work mate!! Thanks for taking the time to throw this up.

  • Great instruction. We are rehearsing Rock n Roll at our next rehearsal and I've been dreading it until now. Cheers mate.

  • Just wanted to thank you for posting these Bonham lessons. Super helpful and accurate.

  • funny accent !!

  • @theseis I take it you are not Scottish then!! FFS!!!!

  • LOVE your accent, LOVE your playing. Nothing wrong with you at all!

  • @OldSpinny: don't let it drive you crazy. ;-) Consider it a concession to the audience, even if it's a slap in the face to (some) musicians. I'd rather be in time w/ those enjoying a drink & tapping their foot than w/ the watching drummers. I could at least explain to the drummers that I know "the truth" about R&R's intro. ;-) But what are we gonna do, grab the mic after the song & tell the audience their instincts are wrong, that the first snare crack is actually on the and of 3? Heheh. ;-)

  • 5 stars! But recently my thought about the intro has been to "give in" and actually make the 1st note 1. That is where audiences (and many musicians) so naturally feel the downbeat. And we play for audiences, right, not musicians? There was a car commercial a few years back that used the R&R intro but cut the "extra" 8th notes from its beginning, aligning it with thethat strong (phantom) pulse. Authenticity, yes, but... would you rather have the audience lose the pulse AND think you screwed up?

  • I know what you are saying Scott, but there could also be a lot of people there who know the "truth" about the intro and think I'm crap if I don't play it the original way! Bonzo always played the intro the same way, even if he changed the groove and changed the big fill at the end. Dave Grohl also played it right when JPJ and Page joined the Foo Fighters at Wembley.

    Would you also add some extra notes to the guitar intro on Chuck Berry's "Johnny Be Good" cause it doesn't start on beat 1 ?

  • @Phrase, yeah, I hear your point WRT "Johnny Be Good." I just don't think that the implied pulse on that song, like the urge to think of Rock and Roll's 1st beat as the 1, is present in "Johnny Be Good." In fact few other songs have as strong of a pull towards a misplaced downbeat as Rock and Roll. Maybe we just approach it differently? To me it's just a song, played for an audience to enjoy. Some drummers play for themselves, some for other musicians, some for the audience. And it's all good...

  • @Phrase Well said dude!

  • Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!! XD

  • Thanks man great lession verry helpful from 1 drummer to another nice job

  • yes!!! i'm so glad to hear even someone as awesome as you isn't too sure about the second part of the outro. this gives me room to be a bit sloppy... while i get better and clean it up.

  • this is fantastic thanks! Is that a Paiste Giant Beat ride you're rocking? Looking at buying the multi-purpose one.

  • thx dude this helped me a lot i need to do a cover of this for my college gig 5******

    cheers

  • tidy clarification on the intro timing...that drives me crazy when I hear it played incorrectly. good snare work, as far as the feel goes. I submit that the hat is more open and a strict Quarter-Moeller technique. That's what makes this pattern so difficult to get it to sound right; it's like non-matching Moellers. Check out Knebworth 1979 on the DVD.

  • awesome thnx man! v helpful!

  • we eres la ley

  • Great playing!! And I love to hear those toms....that's the way toms should sound like!! :) No dead pinstripes with wrinkles... :P

    Keep it up!!!

  • congrats !!!! very nice.

  • Great breakdown of all the componets of that song,Your teaching technique makes it easy to learn and your drums sound fantastic.All your videos are in my favs list.

  • Nice!

    I show it to my friend who playing drums in my band

  • there is no bass drum on the intro

  • I think he was doin that for us to hear the tempo...

  • brilliant!

  • lo haces ver tan sencillo, gracias

  • ascolta guarda che parte in levare

  • nice lesson but little difficult i think =]

  • Great lesson dude.........

  • ke video tan fregon

    neta karnal me tiras gran paro0!!

  • Great playing buddy!!

  • great job, your right on

    BTW your bands sounding good

  • Great lesson. 5 stars 1, because your a great teacher, and 2 because your a good drummer.

  • best accent ever

  • i go with what mystro810 said

  • Well I play guitar. Im 26 years old and Im looking to form a band. I look on craigslist and everyone seems to be a guitar player looking for a drummer... there is a difference between being able to keep a drum beat and being a drummer... This guy is a drummer

  • Thanks dude!

  • there arent enough drummers in the world. everyone wants to play guitar. where have all the drummers gone?

  • Drums take up HUGE amounts of space, they hard to transport, they are fucking LOUD and nobody wants you practice with them. Plus the average kit is THOUSANDS. That might account for a lot.

  • @mystro810 They're all in Southern California.

  • @mystro810

    Grettings from a drummer and - excellent Job, Phrase!!!

  • @mystro810

    I starded playing the drums 2 days ago. Switched from guitar :D

  • @mystro810 I'm both!

  • @mystro810 I took up the drums 6 months ago and just played my first gig and I'm 14. We're still around man! BEAT it out of them!

  • Thank you for your clear explanation!

    You'd make a good teacher...

    Bye from Italy

    Anna

  • deadly bro up the scots .going now to learn that .how do u stop the blisters on my index finger playing that mad deadly song.

  • hey good man! i'm a friend of andre,

  • this guy is a good drummer and cool also

  • i now

  • o my gosh thank you!!! that vid was sooooooo helpful ur a great teacher

  • wow,  pritty goooood

  • yeah! rock and roll!

  • dude im so glad i saw your band and read your info you are a great drummer and in a fantastic band

  • thx for the comments guys i tried hard to get this down 1:56 i struggled a bit lmao it was beacause i hate this song lol

  • Excellent stuff... thank you.

  • excelent!! thank you!

  • Your lessons on Led Zeppelin are excellent and very accurate, keep it up. Also, you get a very Bonzo-like feel on your drumming. I'd really like to hear your own voice on the drums sometime though, because you're a very skilled player.

    Fox.

  • Thanks Fox,

    Check out my video called "Ridiculus Drum Solo with Stick Tricks" lol.

    I'm not trying to copy Bonzo on that one.

    My other hero Dennis Chambers was the inspiration behind that solo.

  • thank you!!!

  • wow. thats shown me a totaly different way of hearing it!!!!!

  • great teacher thanks

  • 5 stars is not enough, thanx very much, excelente lesson

  • Hey dood, cheers for the simple breakdown of what sounds very busy. I'd love to be a great drummer, but just can't find the time for the hours and hours of practice needed!! : (

  • great video man, this was so very helpful to........Thanks.

  • This guy is a great teacher. Kudos my friend.

  • Thank you!

  • Excellent vid.. helped me a lot... And ur accent made it even more enjoyable :)

  • GREAT VID MEN... THX!

  • what bass drum pedal do you use

    it's a single right

    im looking for one for speed and bonzo type stuff

    i heard bonham used the ludwig speed king

    thanks

    great video

  • dude this is awesome, i favorited it,

    hey can you tell me how youve got your rack tom tuned?

    i love the sound.

  • Spot on I think. Awesome!

  • We've done FOUR ALREADY

    and NOW WE'RE STEADY

    and THEN THEY WENT

    ONE

    TWO

    THREE

    FOUR

  • ........the ocean

  • What about it??

  • I was complimenting the guy; I think if I can quote Bonzo's intro to a song, I'd know the different between it and Rock and Roll, hehehe

  • i know i was just continuing what u started

    he says that and then the ocean starts

    didn't mean anything personal by it

    wasn't trying to say that you don't know what song

    sorry

  • Oh!! No hard feelings then!! Cheers man

  • Nobody's wasting their time here.

    You claim starting on the & of 3 - which is an upbeat - is incorrect and then immediately follow it up with the statement that the song is really good old-fashioned syncopation. But isn't stressing the upbeat (as in the & of 3 for instance) the very definition of syncopation?

    The fact of the matter is counting from the & of 3 is not incorrect. Counting 2 bars of 4/4 followed by 1 bar of 5/4, 1 bar of 2/4, and 1 bar of 5/8 is ALSO not incorrect.

  • They are both simply two different ways of writing/perceiving the same rhythm. If you programmed them both into a computer and played them back, they would sound identical to the listener. The only real difference between the the two methods is how the performer is perceiving it as he is playing it.

    I personally find it FAR more practical to start on the & of 3 and stay in 4/4.

    Bottom line is there's nothing 'incorrect' about Phrase's explanation of the opening drum pattern.

  • Thanks for the support dude!

    I learned a lot from your video of the ending fill, although I play it slightly differently. Your version is probably more accurate!

    As for the intro, I heard (from Bonzo's younger sister Deborah) that he stole the intro from an old Little Richard song.

    I also noticed that many rock n roll songs from the 50's and 60's start with an intro (usually on guitar) that has the exact same timing as this.

    "Johnny Be Good" is one example.

  • I searched for Johnny B Good and sure enough he starts his guitar riff on the & of 3 (I hope SpamTard doesn't see this). Fascinating to see where Bonham drew some of his inspiration.

    The R n R fill always fascinated and confused me. I would hear people say things like it was just 'improv' with no real structure. But when I finally sat down and really dissected it, I found quite the opposite. To me, it's very well thought out and orchestrated. A testament to Bonham's genius on the instrument.

  • nice really no matter what, gave me a good idea indeed....BTW....what is your drumset configuration?

  • nice snare! what kind is it?

  • Ludwig 400 Supraphonic.

    I also use a 402 Supraphonic which is the same model than Bonham used.

  • sweet! i have the same one! mine is chrome on aluminum.

    but now i'm confused about supraphonics though...apparently there's two kinds of 400's, chrome on aluminum and chrome on brass? and is the 402 all chrome?

  • I think the 400 and 402 are both available as chrome over brass or chome over aluminium. Mine are both aluminium and Bonzo used the aluminium ones aswell.

    (Ludalloy shell) The Black beauty was the same thing but with a black finish instead of crome (I think) If anyone reading this knows better then feel free to correct me!

  • ahh i see. thanks for filling me in, looks like i've got an authentic bonzo snare (well maybe not because i have a 400 i think...what's the difference? the lugs?)

    but i do know the black beauty is brass wrapped in black nickel.

  • The LM400 is a 5"x14", the LM402 is a 6.5"x14". They both came in either "Ludalloy" which is an alloy of Steel and Aluminium or they came in Brass. The Brass ones are a lot rarer (I've only ever seen 1!) and heavier, plus they sound totally different. There is also essentially no difference between a COB supra and a Black Beauty, other than the COB is chromed and the BB has Black Nickel plate.

    Modern Supras are pure aluminium however, so if you bought it new recently it's not "Authentic Bonzo".

  • thanks for the info! well whatever it's still close to bonham. either way i am not him and i would rather have my own sound

  • I will play tonight with my band this and i have problems with the Intro....Thanxs Phrase you're are The Living Bonzo!!

  • good job, john realy never did much of the same thing twice. but what you are doing is great for me any way to keep the beat and fluitty, thanks you helped me alot

  • Great lesson, Phrase. I think you're playing it perfectly. I never realized he was playing ghost notes for the whole song! That's insane.

    I had trouble with that last bit as well, and I definitely can't lead with my left hand. But it sounds like he hits the top tom first on the recording. So I've been playing it as a crossover instead. Leading with the right hand on the rack tom, left hand on the floor and then a kick. Have you tried playing it like that? I'm interested to know what you think.

  • Never tried it that way, but it sounds like a good idea - I'll give it a go!

  • Sounding good really clear thanks, any chance of a video for Immigrant Song?

    Thanks again

  • spot on lesson. you just have bonham down pat. your cymbals sound amazing in this video, i know they are the 24 giant beat and paiste 2002 for everything else. but what are the exact models and sizes? by the way, i love it how you gave different options for the end solo. everyone wants to play it exactly like him, its better to add your own flavour to it in some cases :)

  • Thanks for the comment.

    My hi hats are 14" Sound Edge, the crash on my left is 18" Medium and a 20" Medium crash on my right.

    The 20" crash is the oldest one which I got second hand. The rest are all about 2 years old.

  • cheers, thanks again man, just keep on doing what you are doing :) im gonna add them to the list (its ever growing) lol

  • A brilliant tutorial on what is a deceptively difficult drum track. Awesome skill to break it down like that - I'm a 100% instinct drummer and just can't work things out like that - I shall now try to get my Rock and Roll beat closer to the genuine article....

  • Excellent tutorial!

  • quick question: how do you find the 24" giant beat on durability? theyre fairly thin cymbals, and as im a hard hitter whose in love with one, can you offer any advice?

    You have bonhams '73-'75 drum sound down to a tee, btw

  • Thanks. The Giant beats are pretty thin so you can use them as a ride or a crash, even the 24" one that I have can be used as a huge crash cymbal! I hit quite hard too when I'm playing live and so far I've never had any problems (never cracked a cymbal before) but I don't know if these are any more or less durable than any other cymbals, but they do sound superb.

    I'm sure Bonzo went through a few sets of these!!

  • lol cheers man

  • as usual, amazing,... have u thought about making some crazy mitch mitchel;s fills tutorial??? AGAIN THANX FOR THE ROCK N ROLL ONE!!!

  • awesome!!! i love your lesson videos. they are very helpful to me. Thanks a lot Fronzo.. you're the man

  • Many thanks for the lesson! Very helpful . . .

  • Thanks for that :)

  • Nice video phrase :) Very helpful, you should mention that the ghost notes are played in the studio but not in earlier live perfomances ( from around 71 - 75 ish) He started to do them live around 77 and also did them in knebworth :)

    I know its a really nitpicky kinda thing, but if you look out for it a bit you start to notice it , especially on the song remains the same dvd :>

    Cheers ,

  • Thanks for the info, I will pay more attention to the live stuff!

    I have to say that when I'm playing this full volume during a gig it is really hard to keep the ghost notes going for the full song, so maybe Bonzo had the same problem...

    He also played the ending fill very differently on most of the live versions I've seen / heard!