Inside Jim Keltner’s Drumming Style
Jim Keltner is best known for his session work on solo recordings by former Beatles George Harrison, John Lennon and Ringo Starr. He has also played with Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, The Rolling Stones, Gillian Welch, Pink Floyd, Fiona Apple, Roy Orbison, Eric Clapton, Steely Dan, The Ramones, Neil Young, Elvis Costello, Lucinda Williams, and many, many more! Jim has spent a lot of time over the years participating in Drum Channel Roundtables and Interviews with Don Lombardi and fellow drummers. Here are some excerpts.
What is your approach to the drums?
I approach drums musically. The very first drummer I ever heard was Gene Krupa. When I started getting serious about playing, Shelly Manne was my big hero. I called him when I was about 14 or 15. His wife was so sweet. She woke him up, and he actually talked with me. I’m not sure if I called him Mr. Manne or what, but when he got on the phone, I asked him what size hi-hats he played. He said he played 14-inch high hats. Years later, I told him about our call when I met him. He was the sweetest guy in the world and the greatest. After that, I became infatuated with the Hal Blaine sound. I even copied the color of his drums. I had Rick Faucher, Hal’s drum tech, outfit my drums exactly the way Hal’s drums were. From there, I went on to Ringo, Charlie Watts, and guys that played the drums really musically – they played songs in a really special way. Earl Palmer was another big influence.
How do you build confidence as a drummer?
The Boys and Girls Club of America in Pasadena was the first place I was able to play music in a concert band. The leader formed a jazz band. I had the great experience of reading charts in a big band, which helped me be able to interpret the music. Anyone can read and play, but there’s an interpretation that you need to have when you play with a band. The first time you sit down and play with a bass player, and the piano player plays some chords, and then they’re following you, you feel the responsibility of time. Then you hear the cymbals, and you’re making time happen, and you think, there is no feeling like this in the world because you sound like the records you’ve been listening to. That’s your reference. You think you’re sounding great. You’re probably not, but how you feel about yourself is very important. That was my thrust at that point. I think every kid should have the good fortune to have a teacher, mentor, or someone in the family who makes them feel special. Someone who makes you feel like what you are doing is thrilling. That’s so important.
The first time I was in a situation where I should have been scared, I was too embarrassed to be scared. I didn’t have cartage yet. Hal Blaine turned me onto a gig he couldn’t do. It was all strings, horns, and everyone at the same time. There was a big rhythm section and a hole where the drums should have been. I came walking in late, carrying my own stuff. The string players were sitting there watching me. I immediately started sweating, and for some odd reason, I wasn’t scared. I was angry at myself for being late. I instinctively knew it was wrong to be late. Later on, they told me that time is money. I played the chart and sailed right through it. It was good, the sound was good, and everyone was happy. They came back in and said, let’s do another one. It was for a KHJ radio station call, a big deal back then. They said, let’s do a different version. Someone said, let’s do a 5/4 version. I didn’t know how to play a 5/4. I was just bee-bopping, but we did it. I remember feeling the 5 and feeling really comfortable when it felt like I was doing it. I sailed right through it. There was never a feeling like that again for me. From that point on, I don’t remember feeling afraid before a recording session. That’s a big deal. As a drummer, you usually count it off, and you start playing, and then you’re in it, and you have confidence. The confidence to have confidence is huge. Having confidence in your ability to do the job is very important. I’ve been around people who are good, and they lack confidence, and it holds them back.
Hal Blaine and Charlie Watts (whom I’m sitting with) are two of my favorite drummers in the whole world. And there are others like Levon who played one hit on the tom-tom, and it would go right through your body. On the other hand, we have beautiful drumming from Vinnie Colaiuta, Dave Weckl, Virgil Donati, Thomas Lang, and Gregg Bissonette. All these guys have made it a priority to take the instrument to the next level. I applaud that. I know most of those guys. There’s nothing like having lunch with all these guys when they’re relaxed and not playing for anyone. They’re just playing. It’s one of the thrills of my life. It’s like the Cirque du Soleil of drumming. Chad Smith also has the chops and can dazzle you. All the guys who can play real simple stuff have chops that are unreal, and we applaud and support those guys as much as we do the guys who can play one good backbeat in the right spot and thrill us.
Advice for young drummers?
I sat next to President Clinton once, and he told a beautiful story about when he was a kid. He’s a road scholar with a brilliant mind, but he started with a humble upbringing in Arkansas. He said they would sit around and listen to older people tell stories as a kid. He realized the importance of that, and it was a great stimulant for the mind. So, I hope there’s some of that in your family, you know? I don’t know that I did that great of a job with my family. I was too busy working all the time, selfishly, and it’s one of my regrets. Having an imagination rather than spending so much time on technology is good. It’s good to
take time off from that kind of stuff and see what else stimulates you. If you’re a drummer, find some ways to practice differently. I believe strongly in teachers. Find out who’s the top dog right now. If he’s on the other coast and you’re out here, find out who that guy recommends near you and learn from them. Take in as much as you can, whether you are a guitar player, drummer, or whatever. Spend time with your instrument. That’s what I did. I was in love with my instrument so much. I played drums all the time when I was a kid.
No matter how great other drummers are, you have your own voice, and nobody else will be able to do what you do. Also, you have to make sure that you don’t let tools use you, which happens a lot. I remember years ago when Pro Tools had just started taking off, I got a call from a friend of mine to come and play on a track. I sat down and had my drums ready. When they played the track for me, the drum track was perfect. I said, ‘What do you want me to do? This is a great drum track. It’s perfect.’ They said, “That’s the point.” The engineer took the track and lined everything up, and it sounded like a mannequin. My job that day was to undo that perfection. That was crazy. There are many ways to make records. I think they’re all good as long as you start with a great song or a great idea.
Don’t drink or do anything to cut the edge before you play a show. I’ve done all of it, everything you can possibly do, and the only thing it ever did was make me not be who I was blessed to be in the first place. There is a little tiny window where you can get away with stuff like that, but now with information and the internet, we know better. I love seeing my friends playing, clear-eyed, and hitting it. Alcohol and drugs will never take care of nerves anyway. Don’t fool with what your gift is. That’s your gift, and I think trying to mess with it is wrong.
Bonus Jeff Porcaro story:
Jeff Porcaro was so honest and such a giver. I can’t stress this enough. Just one of the most amazing human beings I’ve ever known. He would call and say, “Get down here because I want you to play on this track.” He would tell the producer, “I can’t hear this or feel this song, but so and so can.” He would call Mike Baird or someone. That’s unheard of. You don’t hear of that anymore, especially when you’re struggling or trying to come up. If you’re comfortably set, you might help someone get a gig, but this was a man in the throes of playing in huge gigs, playing with people at the top of their game, and he would recommend another drummer for a track if he didn’t feel right for it. When he called me, I would show up, and it would be a wonderful hang. Because he was there and wanted me to come and play, I would give it extra beyond what I normally gave. The moral of the story is, everything you’re learning technique-wise is important, but somehow try to remember that people are the whole deal. People are everything. Have fun as much as you want to, but when it comes to people, you have to learn how to interact with people. Be a person whom other people want to be around. It sounds easy to say and can be hard to do, but somewhere in you is that person. Whatever it takes for you to be a people person, please do it. Then all the other stuff will come together.
Watch the Roundtable Discussion HERE!
