Rock, paper, sticks.

If you are not a drummer stop reading this now.
Do something else, make something nice to eat, read a book, walk the dog or watch TV.

Okay, now they've all gone we can continue.

So, tell me, what sort of sticks do you use?

Now tell me why.
I've used the same model for at least a decade. They're very traditional, general purpose, useful in pretty much any situation and medium weight, a bit like me in other words.

But there's a problem.
They're no longer 'the ones'. My unswerving fidelity and occasional passion for this model has disappeared like Charles Ryder's love for the army.

I started on a new batch and nothing seemed right, to the point where last night I kept picking up different pairs throughout the show trying to find something that felt right and would enable me to play as I wished, but to no avail.

The epiphany occured during the drive back to Suusex when I realised that it's not them, it's me. I've outgrown them and it has been a long, slow process the first steps of which were taken in 2002.

That year I had the call to replace the legendary Ronnie Verrell in the Best of British Jazz group. It felt like being elevated to the peerage. They could have had anyone they wanted and they asked me. Wow.

It was very much a part of the show to include a big and lengthy drum solo towards the end of the night and one particular evening in Radlett I decided that I needed to do something.
By the time the drum feature came around my hands were tired. Not serious pain so much as an aching fatigue, but it was enough to prompt me to take action. I went home from that show and commenced the process of completely dismantling and rebuilding my chops, with no guarantee of a result. Scary.
It was a while coming but the key step was to make the fulcrum as relaxed as possible, and even more importantly that when the stick strikes the playing surface there should be absolutely no tension.

I often refer to this as a 'soft landing' and here's a little video about it from last year. A more comprehensive explanation of this and related concepts will be included in my forthcoming DVD.

The next step was to shift from a two finger 'pinch point' and develop what I like to call the enhanced fulcrum. This involves gripping and supporting the stick through the whole hand, with particular emphasis on developing the role of the middle and ring fingers. Nothing new there, lots of players do this already,  but the difference is that I do this with traditional grip and have developed the ability to actually change the fulcrum whilst playing. It has brought with it a whole new take on finger control too.

Has it made me play any faster? Probably not but I'm not all that bothered. The difference it has made is to my endurance, control and quality of sound, but my hands have developed such strength that I'm going to have to find a bigger stick, as the 5A feels like a knitting needle now.

Beacause of the quest for complete relaxation all the energy is at the beginning of each stroke, effectively I'm throwing the sticks at the instrument, but my very closed yet ultra relaxed hold on the sticks means they stay under control, but finding the optimum weight and density is the task now. Years ago I discovered a particular maple stick favoured by the late, great Bob Armstrong and I used them for ages. About two weeks ago I happened to pick up a pair at Lee Smith's studio and it was like trying to play with two feather dusters, way too light.

Just like clothes and shoe size your sticks should fit you. If you are fortunate enough that the signature model of your favourite player works for you then that's great, but you are not built like them and what meets their various needs may not be right for you. You may have to accept the uncomfortable truth that the signature model of a player whose band and style you absolutely loathe suits your hands perfectly. Deal with it.

And that reminds me of my friend Steve Celentano. Steve's Dad was part of the security detail to a certain Francis Albert Sinatra and one day Steve and a pal has gone along with Pop to where the Chairman was performing a show. Sinatra would use touring bands augmented with his own section leaders, rhythm section and conductor and the Count Basie Orchestra was the band of choice this particular day. When no one was looking Steve and his pal purloined drum sticks off Harold Jones's floor tom, and a couple of years ago Steve sent the sticks to me as a gift. They are Rogers Buddy Rich model and I couldn't play with them if my life depended upon it. They're so light I feel like they're not there, but when you consider the power and virtuosity in evidence on the Swinging New Big Band and Big Swing Face records, to say nothing of the legendary 5am collaboration with Sammy Davis Jnr, all quite probably using a stick that I can't even feel, it just goes to prove the point that all of this is about personal preference, and just because one of your heroes favours something does not mean it will work for you. Be influenced and admire, but be yourself and make your own choices.

So I'm sitting here wondering what sort of stick will fit the bill. Should I go back to oak, following a casual dalliance in the 1990s? My hands are extremely large so weight and density are pivotal. Here's a picture of one of them.......

I think half a day at Bell Percussion is probably going to be called for, meanwhile I'm conducting an experiment into mass and velocity using a screwed up ball of paper, a small rock and a wood tip 5A.

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