Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Odd Time

Alrighty, so I have a student who's interested in exploring music, particularly drumming, in odd time signatures. My first reaction is to say, "Cool, listen to this piece by Gentle Giant. The verse is in 13/8, the chorus is in 5/4, and then there's a polyrhythmic fugal bit that's really catchy", but I know better. I want to put together a sampling of stuff that grooves. Music that you tap your foot to and don't even realize you're in an odd time signature. I also need it to be stuff that a fourteen year old, albeit with sofisticated taste, may actually enjoy. That pretty much eliminates most of the latest pop. Furthermore, while Tool and The Mars Volta would probably interest, I'm afraid they're way over the top. That leads me to think it needs to be classic prog rock and fusion jazz. Something she can tap her foot to and have a chance of figuring out. Tunes that tend to maintain the same groove throughout. Here's a tentative list. If you can think of other suggestions, please post.

Living In The Past (Jethro Tull, very catchy 5/4)
Take 5 (Dave Brubeck 5/4 swing)
Everything's Alright (Lloyd Weber's Superstar 5/4 swing)
Money (Pink Floyd very catchy 7/4)
Salisbury Hill (Peter Gabrial 7/4)
Frame By Frame (King Crimson 7/4)
Observations And Reflections (Billy Cobham, very cool 9/8)
Beelzebub (Bill Bruford 9/8 again)
Birds Of Fire (John Mclaughlin 9/8)
Watcher Of The Skies (Genesis, a very interesting 12/8)
Spectrum (Billy Cobham, excellent stage band tune in 15/16)

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