Released in 1977, Elvin Jones’ “Time Capsule” album, on the Vanguard label, was a bit more fusion sounding than many of Elvin’s recordings. It’s definitely a jazz album, though, and Elvin’s swinging ride cymbal is very much on display (no pun intended) on the track “Digital Display.”
The section of Elvin’s performance transcribed here is his playing during Kenny Barron’s Rhodes solo. Milt Hinton is on bass.
Time playing transcriptions like this one can yield a lot of musical knowledge. In this case, we get to check out Elvin’s ride and comping patterns. I found the ride cymbal patterns very instructive. There are also some very nice little fills/turn-arounds. They are not particularly difficult to play, but they are very tasty. I am particularly fond of the patterns found in measures 32, 40, and beats 3 and 4 of measure 56.
To download a pdf of the transcription, click on the following link: Digital Display PDF
Also note that Elvin is playing the hi-hat on 2 and 4, but it is not written in the transcription. It is very difficult to hear whether Elvin is feathering or not, but I found that playing the transcription while feathering the bass drum added some needed weight to the playing, especially since the tempo is slow (122 bpm).
For some more detailed information on this album and it’s history, you can check out this link:Elvin Jones’ “Time Capsule”. The link will take you to a cool little jazz blog called “Never Enough Rhodes.”
I hope this is helpful and please feel free to make comments or share this with your fellow drummers.
He first gained attention as one of the winners of Modern Drummer magazine's very first drum solo contest, judged by Rush's Neil Peart.
He's played with Oz Noy, Will Lee, Alison Krauss, Curtis Stigers, Emily Remler, Joel Hoekstra, GE Smith, Andy York, Marshall Crenshaw, Tony Shanahan, The Drifters, The Marvelettes, Big Brother and The Holding Company, and many other artists.
For more info: onlinesessiondrummer.com
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