Rick's Licks: Drumset Book & CD

This book delivers exactly what advanced drummers need: concrete, applicable material that bridges the gap between solid technique and genuine creative freedom. The integration of odd meters, polyrhythms, and hand-foot independence within a grooves-and-fills framework means students aren't learning exercises in isolation but building a toolkit they'll use in real playing situations.

Working through Rick's Licks feels like having a conversation with an experienced drummer who's thought deeply about the relationship between hands and feet. The material is demanding but never abstract; every exercise has a groove or a musical context attached, so even when you're stretching your capabilities, you're always playing toward something that sounds good.

Advanced high school drummers, college percussion students, and working drummers looking to deepen their command of contemporary drumset language. This book assumes solid single and double stroke roll technique and comfort reading standard notation; it's designed to push past those fundamentals into creative territory.

• Start with the play-along tracks at a slower tempo than marked. Your internal clock will settle faster when you're not fighting the click, and the nuances of each lick become audible.
• Isolate accent placement before adding speed. Many drummers rush through the dynamic shapes that make these licks musical; sit with one lick for a full week focusing only on where the accents land.
• Record yourself working through the odd-meter material. Hearing playback reveals whether you're genuinely comfortable or just muscling through the timing.
• Apply the hand-foot combinations to grooves you already know. The book's exercises gain real value when you transfer them into your existing vocabulary rather than treating them as standalone drills.

Assign sections selectively to your most advanced ensemble members as part of their independent study during concert season. The CD tracks also work well as listening examples during rehearsal when discussing contemporary drumset approaches to time and texture.

• Independence and coordination between hands and feet in non-standard combinations
• Reading and performing odd meters (5/4, 7/8, etc.) with musical phrasing
• Creating and executing polyrhythmic ideas over a steady pulse
• Accent placement and dynamic control for musical expression
• Improvisation within structured grooves and fill contexts
• Translating written exercises into idiomatic drumset vocabulary