List of Songs That Feature Fast/Prominent Hi Hat Percussion?
April 20, 2014 9:08 AM Subscribe
Could you list me a few songs that feature significant, heavy, or otherwise noteworthy/distinctive use of the hi-hat cymbal(s) within the general percussion setup of a song?
Not exclusive use of hi-hat per se, but a song that, to you, the hi-hat plays a significant role. Artist/Tune combo preferred.
Example: Roxanne by The Police (original / drummer cover)
Quoting YT examples not necessary.. Pretty much every way I've tried googling just brings up people asking how to play the hi-hat, rather than good examples of musicians already doing it...
Not exclusive use of hi-hat per se, but a song that, to you, the hi-hat plays a significant role. Artist/Tune combo preferred.
Example: Roxanne by The Police (original / drummer cover)
Quoting YT examples not necessary.. Pretty much every way I've tried googling just brings up people asking how to play the hi-hat, rather than good examples of musicians already doing it...
Not a song so much as a routine, but drummer extraordinaire Steve Smith does something called "Mr. Hi Hat". There's probably a much better recording of it somewhere.
posted by mikeand1 at 9:17 AM on April 20, 2014
posted by mikeand1 at 9:17 AM on April 20, 2014
Southern Hip-Hop in general goes crazy with the high-hat. (But it's a synthesized high-hat).
posted by zscore at 9:46 AM on April 20, 2014
posted by zscore at 9:46 AM on April 20, 2014
Steve Miller Band - "Swingtown" and "Take the Money and Run"
Rush - Subdivisions
posted by tonycpsu at 9:49 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Rush - Subdivisions
posted by tonycpsu at 9:49 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Weather Report, "Teen Town", with Jaco Pastorius on drums.
Peter Gabriel, "Red Rain"
That's Stewart Copeland on the hi-hat - almost anything by The Police will fit your request, too.
posted by thelonius at 9:57 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Peter Gabriel, "Red Rain"
That's Stewart Copeland on the hi-hat - almost anything by The Police will fit your request, too.
posted by thelonius at 9:57 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Bob Dylan's Tangled Up In Blue (the version on BOTT anyway) has a prominent hi-hat part.
posted by Banky_Edwards at 10:00 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Banky_Edwards at 10:00 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Bruce Springsteen, "Candy's Room," from Born to Run.
posted by spitbull at 11:08 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by spitbull at 11:08 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Rock and Roll by Led Zepplin!
posted by Sublimity at 11:18 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Sublimity at 11:18 AM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: check out Prince's "Something In The Water" -- LINN machine used -- but heavy on the HH
posted by mrmarley at 11:21 AM on April 20, 2014
posted by mrmarley at 11:21 AM on April 20, 2014
Just about anything by The Police. Stewart Copeland was very melodic in his use of high hats.
posted by jpe at 11:23 AM on April 20, 2014
posted by jpe at 11:23 AM on April 20, 2014
New Order's Ceremony (more prominently in its earlier rough Joy Division incarnation)
posted by btfreek at 11:32 AM on April 20, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by btfreek at 11:32 AM on April 20, 2014 [2 favorites]
Harborcoat - REM
posted by lowest east side at 12:01 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by lowest east side at 12:01 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: For more white British reggae hi-hat action, there's Elvis Costello's Watching the Detectives.
posted by Beardman at 12:17 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Beardman at 12:17 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Last one--for a different spin, check out some of what that gorilla Todd Trainer does in the sparse parts of Shellac songs. The first song on Terraform (linked) is empty enough that the repetitive hi-hat has as much prominence as anything else.
posted by Beardman at 12:20 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Beardman at 12:20 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
For real the last one, now that I'm thinking of Touch & Go bands--Jesus Lizard - Gladiator. Just open them hats and enjoy.
posted by Beardman at 12:22 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by Beardman at 12:22 PM on April 20, 2014
Best answer: Dave Matthews Band, #41
Bloc Party, Like Eating Glass, Positive Tension, Luno
Queens of the Stone Age, Monsters in the Parasol
posted by zebra at 12:28 PM on April 20, 2014
Bloc Party, Like Eating Glass, Positive Tension, Luno
Queens of the Stone Age, Monsters in the Parasol
posted by zebra at 12:28 PM on April 20, 2014
Best answer: Sorry no links because I am on my phone. Dave Bruneck's Take Five stands out clearly :)
posted by rippersid at 1:38 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by rippersid at 1:38 PM on April 20, 2014
Best answer: Boz Scaggs' "Lowdown" features an overdubbed high hat in addition to the high hat recorded on the first pass with the drums.
posted by emelenjr at 2:17 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by emelenjr at 2:17 PM on April 20, 2014
Spin Doctors - how could you want him Has an interesting hi-hat pattern.
posted by BlerpityBloop at 4:41 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by BlerpityBloop at 4:41 PM on April 20, 2014
Best answer: Brendan Benson - Cold Hands Warm Heart also has some great drum fills, interesting hat pattern and the fills really feature the hats.
posted by BlerpityBloop at 4:43 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by BlerpityBloop at 4:43 PM on April 20, 2014
It's electronic, so I don't know if it counts for you, but
New Order - Fine Time, from 1989's Technique
was the first song I thought of.
posted by droplet at 6:33 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
New Order - Fine Time, from 1989's Technique
was the first song I thought of.
posted by droplet at 6:33 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Chemical Brothers - Lost In The K-Hole
posted by the big lizard at 7:18 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by the big lizard at 7:18 PM on April 20, 2014
Best answer: Love Hangover by Diana Ross has a pretty distinctive driving hi-hat riff in the latter uptempo section of the song. It's so pushy that it's possible that the cymbal track is on a separate tape loop.
posted by ovvl at 9:14 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by ovvl at 9:14 PM on April 20, 2014
Don Caballero - In the Abscence of Strong Evidence to the Contrary, One May Step Out of the Way of the Charging Bull
(Link is a video of a 37 min live set, with the camera pretty much centered on the hi hat the whole time.)
posted by hydrophonic at 10:14 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
(Link is a video of a 37 min live set, with the camera pretty much centered on the hi hat the whole time.)
posted by hydrophonic at 10:14 PM on April 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: William Parker & Hamid Drake - Chatima
Rhys Chatham - Guitar Trio
posted by hydrophonic at 10:33 PM on April 20, 2014
Rhys Chatham - Guitar Trio
posted by hydrophonic at 10:33 PM on April 20, 2014
Best answer: Dang it, here's the Don Caballero link.
posted by hydrophonic at 11:03 PM on April 20, 2014
posted by hydrophonic at 11:03 PM on April 20, 2014
Best answer: Tortoise - Seneca (after about a 2 min. intro)
Steve Reid - Lions of Juda
The Beatles - All My Loving
posted by hydrophonic at 7:13 AM on April 21, 2014
Steve Reid - Lions of Juda
The Beatles - All My Loving
posted by hydrophonic at 7:13 AM on April 21, 2014
Best answer: The Sea and Cake - Weekend, Afternoon Speaker, Leeora
(That's John McEntire, the same drummer from Tortoise.)
posted by hydrophonic at 7:36 AM on April 21, 2014
(That's John McEntire, the same drummer from Tortoise.)
posted by hydrophonic at 7:36 AM on April 21, 2014
Best answer: Funny, my first thought was The Clash - Clampdown, which is the track right after Lost on the Supermarket mentioned above, which led me down a Clash rabbit hole—apparently Topper Heaton loved that hi-hat.
There's a ton of interesting hi hat on Senses Fail - Handguns and A New Chance (however, warning: early 2000s screamo).
posted by General Malaise at 9:00 AM on April 21, 2014
There's a ton of interesting hi hat on Senses Fail - Handguns and A New Chance (however, warning: early 2000s screamo).
posted by General Malaise at 9:00 AM on April 21, 2014
Best answer: TYVEK - Wayne County Roads (nsfw image)
posted by hydrophonic at 3:59 PM on April 21, 2014
posted by hydrophonic at 3:59 PM on April 21, 2014
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