The Drum Shuffle

Cindy Goldberg is a Canadian drummer and filmmaker.  She began drumming as an adult and it quickly became a true passion for her.  Cindy quickly noticed that men vastly outnumbered women in the drumming world which created a true sense of "sisterhood" among female drummers.  This led her to film a short documentary focusing on female drummers.  The overwhelming response to this short film led her to undertake filming a full-length feature documentary, Beat Keepers: Women With Rhythm. On episode 073, Cindy discusses her travels all over Canada and the United States filming and interviewing the greatest female drummers in the world, some misconceptions about women in drumming, and her hopes for the upcoming release of the film.  This is a film that The Drum Shuffle is extremely excited about and we hope that everyone will get involved in this terrific project.

Horacio "El Negro" Hernandez is a living legend within the drumming community.  Growing up in Cuba in a large musical family, he was destined to be a drummer.  He immersed himself into the instrument and scored a job at EGREM studios in Havana where he would record sessions for up to 20 hours each day.  After thousands of hours of practice, touring, and recording he decided to apply for asylum in the US.  Within two days of his arrival in New York in 1990, he recorded an album that would score him his first Grammy award.  Since that time, he has had almost no break in his schedule.  His discography is incredible and his output is prolific.  On episode 072, Negro and Jamie discuss his upcoming big-band project with Italuba and everything else that is always keeping him extremely busy.  Negro also offers some sincere and heartfelt views on how musicians think and feel that will surely inspire anyone who listens.

Ed Toth has spent the past 15 years drumming in The Doobie Brothers.  Prior to that, he was a member of the multi-platinum band Vertical Horizon.  As if those two entries on a resume weren't enough, Ed is also in constant motion when he's not on the road doing session work and playing gigs in dozens of different groups.  Ed's first gig was in his dad's Top 40 band when he was 11 and he hasn't slowed since that time.  On episode 071, Ed and Jamie discuss his early days as a drummer, his education at the University of Miami, his move to Boston where a chance encounter led to him joining Vertical Horizon, and how the changing landscape of the music business in the late 1990's led to his dream gig with The Doobie Brothers.  Ed is fantastic player and a world-class nice guy.  This episode is for all music lovers!

Matt Slocum is one of the great Jazz drummers in the US right now.  His terrific new release, Sanctuary, highlights his abilities as a drummer and composer within this record's trio setting.  On episode 070, Jamie catches up with Matt to discuss his beginnings as a drummer in Wisconsin, his move to Los Angeles to study at USC's Thornton School of Music, then his move to New York where he has been an in-demand drummer for the past several years.  In this interview, Matt shares lots of great experiences, advice, and insight into his career and the new release.  He is not only a wealth of musical and drumming knowledge, but he is an open book about the new release and his career.  This is an episode of The Drum Shuffle that everyone will certainly want to hear.

Jerry Pentecost is a Nashville native that seems to be everywhere in the Americana world these days.  "I try to be a virus in the best way possible," as Jerry puts it.  Some recent accolades for Jerry include a feature in Modern Drummer, being nominated for Instrumentalist of the Year by the Americana Music Association, and serving as the house drummer for the AMA's awards and honors show for the past two years.  On episode 069, Jerry and Jamie discuss his beginnings as a young drummer, how he has built a massive network of opportunities, his time as musical director for Amanda Shires, to his current gig with Brent Cobb.  Jerry is making some serious waves in the world of drumming and is simply amazing as a human being.  This is a fantastic episode for all music-lovers.

Mark Walker is an amazing drummer with amazing stories to share.  After growing up in Chicago, Mark spent a decade in New York playing with the likes of Paquito D'Rivera, Ralph Towner, Michel Camilo, and Lyle Mays.  Making his home in Boston for the past 13 years, he is a first-call drummer to the greatest names in Jazz.  On episode 068, Mark and Jamie discuss his new album, You Get What You Give, his approach to composing the album, putting together the band, and what it takes to make it in the modern world of recording.  Mark is simply a wonderful drummer having won a Grammy and claiming a top 5 award from Modern Drummer this year.  This is a terrific interview with one of the Jazz world's great drummers.

Logan Todd is a young up-and-coming drummer originally from Memphis, TN.  After moving to Nashville to attend Belmont University, he stayed in the Music City to start his career.  Logan is currently touring with the Jason Lee McKinney Band, doing session work, and producing other artists' projects.  On episode 067, Logan joins Jamie in The Drum Shuffle studio to talk about his career, the state of being a working drummer today, and a nice discussion on turn-of-the-century Irish dry masonry fences.  You'll just have to listen to understand how much fun Jamie and Logan had during this interview.  Logan is bound for greatness in the drumming community and everyone should get to know more about him.  Here is your chance to meet one of drumming's most promising young players.

Shawn Pelton hardly needs an introduction in the drumming community.  Having recording credits as diverse as Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Elton John, Rod Stewart, Pink, Sheryl Crow, Van Morrison, and Pavarotti, it goes without saying that he is an in-demand session drummer with nearly unmatched versatility.  Shawn may be best-known as the drummer on Saturday Night Live since 1992; however, that is only a small part of his drumming career.  On episode 066, Shawn and Jamie discuss his early years in Kansas, his college years at Indiana University, and his move to New York where his career went into overdrive and hasn't slowed since.  They also discuss many of the incredible gigs that Shawn has played including The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony among many, many others.  Shawn is one of the coolest cats in the music business and seems to be everywhere all the time.  He is simply groove personified and offers a ton of great information in one of his rare interviews.

Rob Mount started drumming at an early age in his hometown of Rochester, New York.  When he reached early adulthood, he set out to be a professional musician.  After a couple of early trials in the music business, his story almost had a different outcome.  After those letdowns, he took a break from drumming and the music business, but he remained prepared for opportunities that would surely come his way.  And, they certainly did.  After doing a couple of pick up gigs for Rochester's hometown hero, Lou Gramm, it wasn't long before Lou asked Rob to join his band full-time.  On episode 065, Rob joins Jamie to discuss how he got his start, the times that he was down but not out, and how staying ready paid off for him with a once-in-a-lifetime gig.  Rob is one of the most down-to-earth "real" guys in the music business that is eager to help other drummers.  Be sure to listen to this great interview to hear Rob's awesome story.

Innovative.  This word is heard and read constantly in the drum industry.  A lot of the time, it is marketing hype.  Josh Allen founded Independent Drum Lab in 2015 and got down to innovating.  Inde Drums have a ton of hype within the drumming world, and it is not just marketing.  Josh is a brilliant product designer, but he is a drummer first.  On episode 064, Josh sits down with Jamie to discuss how Inde was founded, the guiding principles of the company, and he explains some of the great innovations that Inde has brought to the market.  Josh has tons of experience designing products for some major drum brands and he is now at the helm of his own company, innovating.  Be sure to catch this outstanding episode about a fast-rising company in the drumming world.