Jazz Sammy Rimington and John Petters

Colin the Bear · Mar 10, 2015

Can't keep my feet still

http://youtu.be/8zZA-lSvjls

trimmy · Mar 10, 2015

Liked that

Colin the Bear said:
Can't keep my feet still

Calls for.....

Young Col · Mar 11, 2015

John Petters is one of the best traditional/swing drummers in UK. Very much a Gene Krupa-stylist. He has supported some of the, now mostly deceased, Chicago style players from the 20/30s like Wild Bill Davidson and Art Hodes when they toured over here in the 80/90s. I know him fairly well as we have an common interest in amateur radio as well as jazz. Here is a youtube of his swing band a couple of years ago at Carshalton Jazz Club in Surrey (I was at the gig). The clarinetist, who is also a very good tenor player, is Julian Marc Stringle. There was a feature on him in Clarinet and Saxophone mag last year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MS1nzqTRaAk

Colin the Bear · Mar 11, 2015

I love his drumming. It's like punctuation by which I mean it makes sense of what's being said without intruding. He makes it look so effortless.

Young Col · Mar 11, 2015

That's an interesting turn of phrase CtB. Although John Petters' style does owe a lot to Gene Krupa, he has dropped some of the more obtrusive aspects of Krupa's syle, like an over-reliance on the bass drum to keep basic time (he sometimes used two I believe). Instead he has substituted elements from the likes of Jo Jones. Don Lamond, Woody Herman's drummer in the great Four Brothers' band, said "There's none of that dam' raucous tom tom beating or riveting machine stuff. Jo makes sense". Jo Jones was capable of propelling a band like Basie's at full cry but without being obtrusive and he could also be the most sensitive of accompanists in small groups, just putting in occasional rim shots and things to fill spaces and keep the pulse moving. He was one of the first drummers to carry the beat on the hi-hat. That's why Lester Young liked him so much. I think John Petters has taken a lot of that.