ryangruss.com

Since we’re approaching the holiday season, I figured I’d get in the “giving” frame of mind by rounding up every single loop I’ve ever posted on this site and zip them up into one file for an easy and free download. So, here you go. Everything from country to zeibekiko, 60 to 300 BPM, WAV to AIFF to REX2… it’s all inside this one zip file. Just click the icon below to download:

458 MB of Gruss

Note – These don’t include the 700+ loops that I’ve recorded for my subscribers. If you’re interested in getting in on that action, just click here to sign up.

As you might recall, I previously blogged about Art Taylor and his masterful uptempo timekeeping. Tonight, I’d like to focus on another aspect of his legendary drumming: playing over vamps.

Art Taylor

For those of you who are new to this term (my wife just asked why I was writing about vampires), here’s a quick definition: A vamp is a repeating musical figure or accompaniment. A vamp may consist of a single chord or a sequence of chords played in a repeated rhythm

This sounds deceptively simple, but locking in with a band making it all swing is the hard part. Check out Art’s playing on John Coltrane’s “Syeeda’s Song Flute” to hear what I’m talking about:

Loop #78

Tonight’s loop is an 8 bar vamp that emphasizes the “1″ and the “and” of 2 of each measure. This is one of the more traditional rhythmic phrases in jazz vamps and is usually supported along with the piano and bass… and guitar (couldn’t leave Wes out).

Preview Here:

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Get the .wav file here.

Get the .rx2 file here.

Get the .aiff file here.

220 BPM

So, rather unintentionally, it’s turned into “jazz week” over here at ryangruss.com. Maybe it’s the large supply of ride cymbals I currently possess, or maybe it’s just the warm spring air inspiring me to play something other than Top 40-friendly backbeats. Whatever the case, I keep recording various jazz grooves every time I step into the studio… and like REO Speedwagon once said, “I can’t fight this feeling anymore“.

Loop #62

Tony Williams

Today’s loop is an eight bar phrase that incorporates a few things that were inspired by the great Tony Williams. No, I didn’t paint my kit canary-yellow and put black dot heads on every drum (though I’ve thought about it). I incorporated Tony’s distinct, hi hat on every beat approach (instead of the more traditional 2 & 4) along with some single stroke rolls and aggressive ride playing.

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Download the Logic session here. (96MB)

Get the .wav file here.

Get the .rx2 file here.

220 BPM