Know your Late Show Drummers: ?uestlove

Late show bands have always struck me as being the best gig a musician (an old musician?) could possibly have. Think through the gig with me; Steady and presumably great pay, no travel, no set up/tear down, learning a wide variety of musical styles, playing with some of the very best musicians out there, and the nightly TV exposure couldn't be bad for business as far as getting studio work is concerned. Am I missing anything? It's no small wonder that the late show stage is graced by some of the best drummers alive right now, and we get to see and hear them every night (albeit for all of 15 seconds at a time). These guys are worth paying attention to and with the Conan/Leno/Jimmy Fallon switch-up, there is a new drummer on the late night scene that is no exception. It is with no farther ado that I introduce the Music City Drummers' first blog series: Know your Late Show Drummers!

I'll get the series started off with the newest addition, and one that I'm very much excited about : Amhir '?uestlove' Thompson. That's right, The legendary Roots crew is the new house band for late night with Jimmy Fallon. I've been a fan of The Roots since I was in High School when the song 'You Got Me' came out and blew me away. There are very few bands that I've followed as long as I've followed The Roots and few drummers that play like ?uesto. If you have any interest in hip hop he's the one name that you have to know, however fans of The Roots may be surprised to know of the the breadth of his playing ability. I have a good friend that used to tell me that ?uestlove's playing on D'angelo's record 'Voodoo' changed his life. The soulful feel on that record strays a bit from the Roots studio record drum machine feel and the drumming is so right! Jay-Z's 'MTV Unplugged' is required listening for anyone who is even remotely interested in soul-hip hop drumming. The John Mayer track 'Clarity' is a fun rock/soul version of ?uest, but for a slice of pure inspiration, go to itunes and download 'Not About Love' by Fiona Apple! Any of The Roots albums will do the trick, but there's nothing quite like hearing them live and 'The Roots Come Alive' is probably my top pick for hearing him play. I've seen The Roots live no fewer than 4 times, and the night they played City Hall in Nashville still stands out in my mind as one of the best displays of drumming I've ever seen. They did a tune where every 8 bars or so the whole band slowed to a stop, and then BAM nailed the next downbeat with the crack of the snare and were right back on it. It sounds odd but it was one of the most musical things I believe I've ever heard. I've never been able to find a recording of that tune. ?uestlove combines power, groove, speed, and an unbelievable feel for rhythm that is uncomprably funky. He truly is the band leader for The Roots and is a prolific DJ and producer just to top it off.

Tonight marks The Roots debut as a late night band. Longtime Roots fans, have no fear; they are working on another album and planning to tour when the show is not recording. Tune in tonight and catch them at the start, and if you miss it just tune in the night after, or the next....