Keith's cymbals

[Jacksonjim@aol.com]

>From Gary M.

>Speaking of cymbal crashes, I once read that a trademark of Keith`s style
was heavy use of the cymbals to the point where they create a kind of wash
over the band`s sound. Many recordings cofirm this, live and studio. Think
for example of A Quick One, but especially a live tune such as Baby, Don`t
You Do It. I`d be interested to hear the drummers` comments on this aspect of
Keith`s playing.<

Ok, I'll bite (BTW, I too have a Premier kit, nice red, 5-piece, all Zildjian
cymbals, except for one 14" Paiste thin crash that only cost me $50).

I always found Keith's "wash" of cymbals to be something I had to get used
to.  It was undeniably an aspect of his style.  Interestingly, Keith tended
to downplay the wash in the studio after WHO'S NEXT; did bandmates get tired
of it?  I always wondered if he played the wash to cover up him technical
limitations--primarily his less than optimal time keeping.  I am glad that he
didn't do a lot of the wash on WHO'S NEXT, QUAD, AND WBN.  

Also, in live settings, Kenney Jones made his attempt to maintain the wash,
except that Kenney used his hi-hat partially open and played with the meat of
the stick to create his own sizzle.

As a drummer myself, when I played Who songs, I opted for Kenney's sizzle
because it was loud enough for others to hear  the tempo and yet no so loud
as to really freak out my ears.  The cymbal wash that Keith used is very
loud.  My main gripe with Keith in that respect is that the wash
de-emphasizes the cymbal crash as an accent/empahsis point in the song.  

--Jim