From: owner-harbinger-digest@smoe.org (harbinger-digest) To: harbinger-digest@smoe.org Subject: harbinger-digest V5 #27 Reply-To: harbinger@smoe.org Sender: owner-harbinger-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-harbinger-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk harbinger-digest Thursday, February 10 2000 Volume 05 : Number 027 HARBINGER DIGEST To post, mail harbinger@smoe.org To unsubscribe, mail majordomo@smoe.org with: unsubscribe harbinger-digest To get list info file, mail majordomo@smoe.org with: info harbinger-digest Today's Subjects: ---------------- Re: (harbinger) Drums ["Dan ." ] Re: (harbinger) Drums [DennLRuss@aol.com] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 09 Feb 2000 09:08:51 PST From: "Dan ." Subject: Re: (harbinger) Drums Drums? Did somebody say drums??? I must de-lurk... I missed the Hard Rock Live special, so I haven't seem Jay play recently. I assume that he's still playing the same kit that he's played for the past few years. It's just a two piece setup, and it's one the most unique I've ever seen. I had a chance to meet him a couple of years ago after a concert, and I asked him about them. For a snare, he uses a jembe (sp?), which is an African hourglass-shaped conga-type wooden drum. Since it's a single headed drum, he has the snare wires stretched diagonally across the upper third of the batter head. If you’ve seen Paula in concert, you know this drum has got a lot of punch to it. I didn't think to ask him where he ever came up with the idea to use a jembe for a snare. The last time I saw him, he had a new one with really cool looking Champaign sparkle finish. It looked like a sparkle-finish plastic wrap, and I wondered how he managed to form it around the contour of the drum. I asked him about it, and he said a guy that has a custom drum shop in New York painted it. His bass drum is an old (50's) Leedy bass drum that originally belonged to his brother. Something had happened to his brother when they were teenagers (I can't remember if it was an accident or illness) that prevented him from playing the drums. Jay took over his set and has been playing that same bass drum ever since. He really gets a big sound out of that drum (yeah Phil). Especially when Paula starts wailing away on it with the mallet! I'm not certain of the cymbals he uses, but I would have to guess that they are old K. Zildjians. They are very dark sounding. They're also on the smallish side, I think 16" ride (w/sizzle) and 14" crash. His hi-hats sound to be very thin cymbals. The bottom cymbal is warped like a potato chip. I've never seen anything like it. You can't bend one like that without cracking it, so I'd have to guess that it took a torch to get that way. He used to suspend his cymbals from boom stands, but now he's got a cool artsy-looking frame. I think that somebody who was/is on this list actually made that for him a couple of years ago (maybe Kenn?). It also holds an assortment of percussion items like wood blocks, a tambourine, etc. I'm really impressed with Jay as a drummer. During the early This Fire concert tour, it was just Jay and Paula. No bass. No guitar. I think it was amazing how full their music sounded with just a piano and drums. As a drummer myself, I've been inspired by drummers like Jay who can do so much with so little. I used to play with a huge drum kit, and in recent years I've been downsizing to a point where I'm down to just four pieces. I think it's really improved my technique a lot in trying to do more with less. Besides, It's a lot less crap to setup and tear down :) - -Dan Ps I forgot to mention that Jay was extremely friendly and more than willing to take the time to talk ”shop” with his fans. >From: Ryan S >Reply-To: harbinger@smoe.org >To: harbinger@smoe.org >Subject: (harbinger) Drums >Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 15:36:58 -0500 > >Does anyone know what type of percussion set up Jay has while he plays >live with Paula? > >Thanks for your help! > >~RYan > > >"No one else will share our thoughts, you were there for me when I was >lost. Now you're just a memory of someone we wanted you to be. You were >always the one to fall, now it's your time to show them who's tall." > >________________________________________________________________ >YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! >Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! >Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: >http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. > >------------------------------ >To unsubscribe, mail majordomo@smoe.org with: >unsubscribe harbinger > >Btw, if you are an AOL subscriber the above instruction will >work for your EVERY time. > >Digest, further unsub and problems FAQ at: >http://www.netaxs.com/~jgreshes/lists/harbinger.html > ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com - ------------------------------ To unsubscribe, mail majordomo@smoe.org with: unsubscribe harbinger Btw, if you are an AOL subscriber the above instruction will work for your EVERY time. Digest, further unsub and problems FAQ at: http://www.netaxs.com/~jgreshes/lists/harbinger.html ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 13:28:03 EST From: DennLRuss@aol.com Subject: Re: (harbinger) Drums It looks like Jay is playing a similar drumset now as he was for the This Fire tour (at least for the Los Angeles shows). He plays a djembe, an african drum, in place of a snare drum. A djembe is a very versatile drum. If you hit it in the center it sounds nearly like a kick drum. If you hit it towards the rim, it has a higher pitch. When played with brushes, or brush type implements it has a similar texture as a snare drum, though Jay has devised a way of stringing the snares across the top of the drum. In '98 when I saw him play with Paula he played high-hats in which the top one was folded like a taco. This past October he had changed to high hats which were almost all bell(he was also playing these on the recent hard rock live show). His crash cymbal looks like it is on a classical- style suspended cymbal stand. Does anybody know what the metallic thing is, sort of bow-tie shaped, that is on the stage left stand? Sounds like a splash or china maybe? I've noticed that a great deal of Jay's sound is his choice of sticks, brushes and mallets. As a musician myself and former orchestra/marching band percussionist I've always been amazed at his independence and skill at getting such a wide variety of sound from such a compact and unique set-up. I'd love to find a drummer like him for my band. Aloha Dennis - ------------------------------ To unsubscribe, mail majordomo@smoe.org with: unsubscribe harbinger Btw, if you are an AOL subscriber the above instruction will work for your EVERY time. Digest, further unsub and problems FAQ at: http://www.netaxs.com/~jgreshes/lists/harbinger.html ------------------------------ End of harbinger-digest V5 #27 ******************************