Steve Gadd's drum groove on Paul Simon's "50 Ways To Leave Your Lover"Still Crazy has stood the test of time and has earned the status of legendary drum groove.
Here's a transcription of Steve Gadd performing this fantastic linear groove; stickings are based on Steve's own performance. Notice that the left hand plays the HiHat and that there's a three-note grouping between the HiHat foot, HiHat and Snare drum. The performance tempo is 100 bpm.
Steve Gadd had this to say about this legendary groove:
'Fifty Ways' was just a result of sitting at the drums and playing the HiHat with my left hand. When playing Be-Bop, sometimes the HiHat will play in four, or in different places, rather than just 'two and four'. So 'Fifty Ways' was a result of using the HiHat in different places and using the left hand on the HiHat.
Bart Elliott is a degreed professional musician and founder of the Drummer Cafe. His 30+ years in the music industry, over 100 albums to his credit, as well as his understanding of contemporary and classical music, makes him a complete and skilled master musician. A highly sought after drummer and percussionist, both live and in the studio, Bart is widely known as a top music educator and gifted teacher, appearing as a guest artist and clinician throughout the USA. He currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee.