Went to Steve Gadd's clinic at Roosevelt, and even though I'm not a percussionist, it was very enlightening. I'd forgotten that words like "double stroke" and "paradiddle" are part of the drum vernacular. He spent most of the time taking questions (mostly, of course, about Asia, 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover, and Mozambique), and he seemed like a thoroughly nice guy.

He demonstrated what seemed to be very useful techniques, never allowing the groove to get away from him. He played a solo with the audience clapping a 3-2 clave, and we clapped the whole time. For Steve. Quetzal, a senior from Roosevelt impressed him with his stick-twirling, and even played the shit out of a solo, the little SOB.

I've been listening to My Spanish Heart over the past couple of days, and it's tough to reconcile the monster on all those records with the amiable guy in the cargo shorts answering questions like "how are the drums like the piano?" from eight-year-olds.

-Max