Monkey Fusik, Grade One Funk

I love funk. It's just great.

Intro

• Starting at A with an intro, which doesn't have a backbeat yet (that's a snare drum on two and four).
• So just be really, really steady during that.

Full Groove

• Moving to a full groove at B after a lovely steady fill.
• Then, after another fill at C, we're moving to the Ride Cymbal.
• Just be aware of that.
• Even mark your chart; you're allowed to do that. There's nobody saying you can't.

Tips for Transitioning

• You might write at the end of that fill in bars 14, 15, 16 to ride, so that you know it's coming up and you don't get surprised by it when it arrives.
• Also, be familiar with the chart, so that when you move to the Ride Cymbal, you're not stuck with your eyes on the chart and miss the point of the ride that you want to play.

Consistency

• Let's keep the ride really, really consistent each time.
• You know, it just sounds really, really good.

Accents

• I'm accenting the hi-hat on the groove.
• On the beat, I'm going. It doesn't say that you have to do that on the chart.
• I just think it sounds cool, and it's really, really authentic to this style of music.
• I've played a lot of funk music in my time and I just know that works. So I'm throwing it in. No pressure for you, but give it a go. It sounds really, really cool.

Hi-Hat Tips

• Watch out for the open hi-hat in Bar 23.
• Keep it sizzling.
• You know, you don't want a...
• There's a lot of potential for the hi-hats to kind of slosh, and we want a sizzle.
• That's the sound we're after. It keeps it really, really tight and really, really funky.

Inspiration

• As I said, this track is based on "Play That Funky Music" by Wild Cherry.
• I must have played this about 300 times in various wedding bands and so on.
• It's a really, really fun place to play music; it's all about dancing and the singer. So you got to be really, really steady.

Demonstration

• I'm just going to play some of the things I might play alongside that track, and you can just see if you like them.
• I'm going to start simple, loud, but cool.
• Not saying that you have to play any of that just yet, but stick at your grades.

Practice

• Keep practicing with a metronome, always with a metronome.

I'm sure I'll see you soon for Grade Two.

Bye!