The fact that he accidentally dropped one of his sticks at the 2:30 mark on live national TV and completely made it looked natural -- is absolutely amazing!
You could just see towards the end that he had committed his entire life to being this astonishing behind a drumkit and playing for a real audience, it’s not just a gorgeous performance, but a deep testament to a person’s integrity and a life well chosen and well lived.
Just a note on how musically tuned Gavin's drums are --a beautiful melodic sound up and down the kit. When you add in his skill set, it's signature musicianship at its finest.
I'm not a fan of drum solos, but came here for him. One of the greatest without a doubt. And it's not just his ability but the fine tuning of his kit is always on point, it's just always a pleasure listen to him on any song he plays.
Everything about this drummer speaks passion, you not only tell by his hand being so lose, but even by the way he organizes his drum set, and by the color style in his drums. Class act.
I ❤️ Everything Gavin does, such an inspiration to me, professionally as well. Opened my eyes to so many possibilities, and the SOUND of his kit? He has MASTERED it. Incredible musician all round. He's done a lot more besides drumming.
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer ok ..WHO DESTROY YOUR LANG ? ..Travis Orbin ? ..Boby Jarzombeck? CHRIS TURNER ? David Diepold ? ..Who ?? ...if you want to know what is extrem ..play this . If you want to see stupid competition.
+Arthur Garwood Delahooke I don't think his independence is anywhere near as impressive as his orchestration. You want independence? Go watch a Thomas Lang, Mike Mangini, or Virgil Donati video.
I just LOVE how he had implemented prog metal vocabulary into soloing over "the chicken" where most drummers sound fusion-ish. Very refreshing and tasteful approach
@@MeanGeneSanDiego keep hating instead of appreciating things in your life, that way you'll "surely" attract good things to you lol nobody cares if somebody else can do faster or harder things, let's talk about tasteful precision, not just hitting things on time.
Once of the best cats in modern drumming for sure. Chops chops and more chops BUT awesome feel and use of space. Definitely at the top of my short list!
This solo is insane, but Gavin's work in Porcupine Tree is what really solidifies him as my favorite drummer. I mean, there's a certain level of chops that all these really great drummers can reach (and then there's Jojo Mayer), but Gavin's creativity and absolutely liquidity on the drums is a step above the rest.
Dave Weckl also possesses a similar (if not higher) level of fluidity (or transparency) and chops on the kit but definitely doesn’t have the creative output Gavin does.
The ONLY drummer in either drum solo week to not already be a household name, and he just blew everyone else away. Stunning. Best double-kick player since Barriemore Barlowe.
Agreed ... a great player who fits tight and musically in the pocket. And, ironically and LOL, claims he's really not a double base pedal player! The best!
Please show some respect to the brilliant band accompanying this - especially the percusionist who had to augment something that neeeded no augmentation but somehow still managed to make it even better!
Not just his ability, but the rest of the band, too. They had to come in and out between his solo sections and they nailed it every time. They were all locked in. These late night show bands have the best professional musicians in the business.
I've seen Buddy Rich live 6 times. He was very smooth. It looked as if he wasnt playing "hard". Mr Harrison plays the same. I love listening to him especially with Porcupine Tree and King Crimson. This cat is a great drummer.
I remember watching and indulging this during my high school / uni times while my peers loved playing their video games, back in around 2012. Twelve years later now I've been working for like ~6-7 years and this still entertains! Gavin's my favorite monster...
I have watched this once a month, for at least the last two years, and mind is blown every single time. This gentleman has been my biggest inspiration for quite a long time now I can’t put into words what his plane means to me.
@@brdnrdif you're talking about the double kick bass pattern when he plays with the bells, that pattern is called a herta, most famous in bleed by meshuggah and hot for teacher by van halen.
Carter Beauford is the drummer for the Dave Matthews Band. Bill Bruford was the drummer and percussionist for legendary bands such as Yes, King Crimson, Genesis and UK.
That was a fun to watch drum solo. He made something hard to do look easy. Good drum tuning and tones mixed with some good technical sticking made it more of a musically sounding solo than just a thrashing.
When Gavin started his solo I thought it was 'freeform'. But when he and the band played the 'hits' I was like WHOA! I know it's just counting, but it's still impressive to solo for such long stretches without accompaniment and for everyone to be together!!! Great job all!!!
Bill Thew Counting is definitely tough...Truth is, I usually only count when I'm making a drum chart...just to make sure I have the hits/accents/etc...notated correctly...While actually playing the song, I really try to internalize or feel the music...I've said too much...Happy drumming!:)
I'm pretty sure it was actually freeform. The band conductor can be seen communicating with the band and Gavin through a microphone that feeds to their in-ears. Eye contact between Gavin and the conductor means that he can just count in whenever he is ready.
Letterman's idol and friend was Johnny Carson, who used to be a drummer himself and used to have Buddy Rich and other jazz musicians on his show regularly. I'm sure this drummer series was somewhat a modern day nod.
Letterman loves music and was always looking for ways to help musicians whether they were famous or unheard of...giving them a shot of national exposure. So nice for everyone; we all win.
Sonor has always made the best drums out there. Build quality, sound quality, and looks. I've tried all the other brands and Sonor will always be my first and only choice.
@UC3Z12CWyTj3aB9Mx1XWYeTg Sorry, still not impressed. (Monkey-Grip Player's just don't impress me and never will.) Although this little Girl 'aint bad...czcams.com/video/V5YDxDuyKDI/video.html
Steven Wilson was so fortunate to have Gavin in Porcupine Tree - their video concert 'Arriving Somewhere' is one of my favorites and I re-watch it regularly 🙂
his use of flams is off the hook! such a smooth and articulate player with amazing hand and foot speed, but without sacrificing brilliant dynamics and finess; truly one of the unsung heroes of modern drumming. I hope to play like that when I grow up; (hey, it could happen...)
I agree. Maybe I have my head in the sand, but I'd never heard of him, and I wanted to applaud my computer after that. Those flams -- the guy plays one-handed flams between the rack and floor toms and the hi-hat on the opposite side!!!
One of my favorite drummers. Whenever I listen to "Anesthetize" I always focus more on the drums for the first three or four minutes than the rest of the music.
Я - старый барабанщик с консервативными взглядами, и очень уважаю таких музыкантов, как Бонэм, Пэйс, Филлипс, Биссонетт... Но вот молодые драммеры тоже очень радуют. Этот парень отлично отстраивает инструменты, звук сухой, высокий и очень отчётливый. Это не просто примитивная демонстрация навыков и техники ( кои, безусловно, на высоте), это - музыка. Особое удовольствие от мастерского использования сплэшей и чайны. Кайф!
woah, i am absolutely blown away by this performance, especially by a drummer i dont know much about. he grooves so damn well in this his kit sounds great!
I feel like his performance was incredible for me because I’m a drummer but the audience didn’t like it as much because it might not have been as flashy as other solos
His drumming is for musicians, very precise. If you don't play you probably didn't like it as much as a player because there's not enough stick tricks and so on which is what non players like. Since I drum I thoughts this was awesome, very tight and with a smooth feel!
This is a real drum solo. I can't explain why but it is. I frequently tell people I hate drum solos. What I've learned is that I hate people who try to do drum solos
A depression sets in by the idea of setting up this whole kit for a 10 minute solo...
One of the best I saw on Letterman!
Not when it’s Gavin, worth every second 😂
12 years later I still come back to this video. Truly one of the best.
The fact that he accidentally dropped one of his sticks at the 2:30 mark on live national TV and completely made it looked natural -- is absolutely amazing!
Wow....It took me 2 replays to notice that. You must be a drummer too🙂
Occupational hazard. Lots of practice
He is awesome but any good drummer should be able to do this by grabbing another stick.
You could just see towards the end that he had committed his entire life to being this astonishing behind a drumkit and playing for a real audience, it’s not just a gorgeous performance, but a deep testament to a person’s integrity and a life well chosen and well lived.
Settle Down Butter-BUTT..!
One of the few drummers where if u close your eyes u know it's him in 10 seconds!
One second is enough haha
Another is Jimmy Chamberlin
gadd porcaro copeland phil collins ziggy.to name a few more.
Just a note on how musically tuned Gavin's drums are --a beautiful melodic sound up and down the kit. When you add in his skill set, it's signature musicianship at its finest.
Да это так и есть! Спасибо за комментарий!
1:48 is a perfect example of this
Yeh I honestly think Gavin’s set is my favorite drum sound of all time. It’s just pristine and gorgeous
🐐 goat of goats
Well said
I'm not a fan of drum solos, but came here for him. One of the greatest without a doubt. And it's not just his ability but the fine tuning of his kit is always on point, it's just always a pleasure listen to him on any song he plays.
Everything about this drummer speaks passion, you not only tell by his hand being so lose, but even by the way he organizes his drum set, and by the color style in his drums. Class act.
Great observation, couldn't agree more!
I ❤️ Everything Gavin does, such an inspiration to me, professionally as well. Opened my eyes to so many possibilities, and the SOUND of his kit? He has MASTERED it. Incredible musician all round. He's done a lot more besides drumming.
Would YOU please settle-down and dis-enroll from drama-mama king of queen class..!
Gavin is absolutely incredible.
no, thomas lang is not 10x better
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer mmmmm nope .
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer ok ..WHO DESTROY YOUR LANG ? ..Travis Orbin ? ..Boby Jarzombeck? CHRIS TURNER ? David Diepold ? ..Who ?? ...if you want to know what is extrem ..play this . If you want to see stupid competition.
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer jajajajaja ..ok .
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer and that's your opinion
This man has incredible independence. It's really amazing! Definitely one of the best out there.
+Arthur Garwood Delahooke Gavin Harrison is brilliant. Catastrophically underrated....
+Arthur Garwood Delahooke I don't think his independence is anywhere near as impressive as his orchestration. You want independence? Go watch a Thomas Lang, Mike Mangini, or Virgil Donati video.
Antonio Sanchez...independence personified
tluedeke reactor7
Not underrated, just unknown due to genre he’s played in last 20+ years, but most drummers and especially Pro’s rate him highly..
He is exceptional.Never seen him yet.
I just LOVE how he had implemented prog metal vocabulary into soloing over "the chicken" where most drummers sound fusion-ish. Very refreshing and tasteful approach
Well put. I was sitting here thinking...interesting...this is a different take on things. Great drummer.
He's just too good on every level. He's like all the best drummers I've ever seen & heard all rolled into one perfect package.... truly truly amazing!
You probably don't play drums, do you? This is sub rudimentary (pedestrian) at best.😞
@@MeanGeneSanDiego keep hating instead of appreciating things in your life, that way you'll "surely" attract good things to you lol nobody cares if somebody else can do faster or harder things, let's talk about tasteful precision, not just hitting things on time.
Meanvaseline lol
@@MeanGeneSanDiego why so jealous bro? Not got anything to do in life. Its okay you will get there. Just learn to respect someone will you? Thanks!
@@MeanGeneSanDiegoheh OK, I’ve played drums for 30 years and Gavin is incredible. “Rudimentary” lol. Back to Slipknot kid
Tight, you say? What a musician! Saw PT twice in Montreal and was totally blown away by the sheer amount of musicianship on stage.
Once of the best cats in modern drumming for sure. Chops chops and more chops BUT awesome feel and use of space. Definitely at the top of my short list!
This solo is insane, but Gavin's work in Porcupine Tree is what really solidifies him as my favorite drummer. I mean, there's a certain level of chops that all these really great drummers can reach (and then there's Jojo Mayer), but Gavin's creativity and absolutely liquidity on the drums is a step above the rest.
Gavin is a great writer, a lot of contributions to Porcupine Tree.
Dave Weckl also possesses a similar (if not higher) level of fluidity (or transparency) and chops on the kit but definitely doesn’t have the creative output Gavin does.
Jojo is just wow
Matt gartska anyone?
The ONLY drummer in either drum solo week to not already be a household name, and he just blew everyone else away. Stunning. Best double-kick player since Barriemore Barlowe.
Agreed ... a great player who fits tight and musically in the pocket. And, ironically and LOL, claims he's really not a double base pedal player! The best!
Agree! Man, its like he took it to a whole new level. Ridiculous!!!
John Thelin not sure how you can claim he's better than Neil Peart.
@@downtown_ethanbrown i think people get transfixed by his double base pedal playing... let's see how hes doing in 40 years...
@@fordprefectiii When he's 96?
3:00 Gavin's feet decided to play Bleed by Meshuggah
haha i heard the same thing
Yep, it is the same pattern. 2x 16th+ 2x 8th notes, or 2x 32th + 2x 16th notes, generally. It's been used a lot, even for tom-snare fills.
I heard it too !
Yeah, that was awesome :)
its a big fan of meshuggah
Please show some respect to the brilliant band accompanying this - especially the percusionist who had to augment something that neeeded no augmentation but somehow still managed to make it even better!
Monster musician. Everything he does is sublime.
8 years too late but this man is a beast! gotta listen to more of his stuff
Surprised at his ability to keep count and timing. He truly is something else
Not just his ability, but the rest of the band, too. They had to come in and out between his solo sections and they nailed it every time. They were all locked in. These late night show bands have the best professional musicians in the business.
FANTASTIC !! What a technique !!! and style
Gavin Harrison is just amazing. Love how fluid his playing is.
I've seen Buddy Rich live 6 times. He was very smooth. It looked as if he wasnt playing "hard". Mr Harrison plays the same. I love listening to him especially with Porcupine Tree and King Crimson. This cat is a great drummer.
I remember watching and indulging this during my high school / uni times while my peers loved playing their video games, back in around 2012. Twelve years later now I've been working for like ~6-7 years and this still entertains! Gavin's my favorite monster...
Never ceases to impress me.
wow!! how have a never heard of this cat before... mad respect, just amazing.
Dillydally If you've been checking cat breeds that's why. He's a human 😂
Dan23 7 silly goose
That was killer!! Not sure why this dude isn't more well-known
he's extremely well known in the drumming scene
He’s a God on the drumming scene!
Say what!!!!!
He’s a drummer’s drummer.
His sense of space with his feel is really unique, never knew he could play like that, impressive stuff!
I have watched this once a month, for at least the last two years, and mind is blown every single time.
This gentleman has been my biggest inspiration for quite a long time now I can’t put into words what his plane means to me.
That double-kick bass is much trickier than it looks. And kudos to the band!
It's called Herta
@@chanmies What is?
@@brdnrdif you're talking about the double kick bass pattern when he plays with the bells, that pattern is called a herta, most famous in bleed by meshuggah and hot for teacher by van halen.
For me Marco Minneman, Carter Bruford and Gavin Harrison are the three drummers that I like the most for their precision and incredible ability.
Jason Rullo, Thomas Lang and Virgil Donati tô me
Gavin has been my #1 favorite drummer for a long time. Nowadays it could be Carter, coincidentally :) three great talents
strange that you spell carters last name wrong then.. or did you mean bill bruford? also understandable if you did
Carter Beauford is the drummer for the Dave Matthews Band. Bill Bruford was the drummer and percussionist for legendary bands such as Yes, King Crimson, Genesis and UK.
Sonor makes a damn fine kit, and this guy can straight tear em up
Beautiful shells...So so drummer...
@@MeanGeneSanDiego did you just call harrison "so so"?
@@RubenSprng 😝
And super expensive!!! 😅
One of the finest drummers in the world
WOW! That was super TIGHT. Fantastic musicianship. What a drummer. Love the band too.
Fantastic drum sound. Snare, kick, toms all great
The Master Drummer. Number one in my book for technique, patterns timing groove. What else.......everything!! LOL
GREAT JOB, GAVIN!!!!!!!!!
Letterman said; "Porcupine Tree" :D Makes a Progger happy :D
Absolutely superb! That kit sounds fantastic.
this is such an amazing sounding kit. so perfect and probs the best drum solo of both drum solo weeks.
That was a fun to watch drum solo. He made something hard to do look easy. Good drum tuning and tones mixed with some good technical sticking made it more of a musically sounding solo than just a thrashing.
When Gavin started his solo I thought it was 'freeform'. But when he and the band played the 'hits' I was like WHOA! I know it's just counting, but it's still impressive to solo for such long stretches without accompaniment and for everyone to be together!!! Great job all!!!
Blows my mind as well! Who knew how hard counting could be!
Bill Thew Counting is definitely tough...Truth is, I usually only count when I'm making a drum chart...just to make sure I have the hits/accents/etc...notated correctly...While actually playing the song, I really try to internalize or feel the music...I've said too much...Happy drumming!:)
I'm pretty sure it was actually freeform. The band conductor can be seen communicating with the band and Gavin through a microphone that feeds to their in-ears. Eye contact between Gavin and the conductor means that he can just count in whenever he is ready.
Listen to The Aristocrats live, the long stop and syncopation time is ridiculous impossible and funny
calvintrainer1212 Thanks for the suggestion:)
😳 Absolutely Fantastic 👌🏽
Letterman's idol and friend was Johnny Carson, who used to be a drummer himself and used to have Buddy Rich and other jazz musicians on his show regularly. I'm sure this drummer series was somewhat a modern day nod.
I thought the same thing.
Just plain cool. What a great musician.
I love that drag thing he does
I love when drummers play something ive never thought of playing it in that way
Gavin shows whats possible on drums! masterful!
Letterman loves music and was always looking for ways to help musicians whether they were famous or unheard of...giving them a shot of national exposure. So nice for everyone; we all win.
His drums sound SO GOOD
Sonor has always made the best drums out there. Build quality, sound quality, and looks. I've tried all the other brands and Sonor will always be my first and only choice.
I know right!!! I've modeled my drum sound after Marco Minnemann and Gavin Harrison. These drums are more than drums, they are musical.
The drums alone are prob about $10k
@@mercertj yeah have you ever done the custom Sonor drum maker online?! Gets to like 13k for me 😂
Sonor sq2?
So clean and musical
What a great solo and beautiful sounding kit.
Yes, I'd even put up with a few tedious moments with Letterman to listen to this guy....Outstanding solo.
Musicality...more LIKE a Buddy Rich solo than what sometimes devolves into a circus show. His solo fit the tempo and feel of the song.
MeanGeneSanDiego Hardly a fair thing to say, he’s capable of playing much, much more than that
@UC3Z12CWyTj3aB9Mx1XWYeTg Sorry, still not impressed. (Monkey-Grip Player's just don't impress me and never will.) Although this little Girl 'aint bad...czcams.com/video/V5YDxDuyKDI/video.html
Eugene Snyder comment got deleted but STILL you are the ass
maaaaan, I'm never getting tired by watching this video. I love you Gavin.
Sadly I'll admit this was my entry to porcupine tree. I missed the boat, but the music is fucking great. Better late than never!!!
Enjoy the rabbit hole
These guys are fantastically creative and some of the best musicians Ive heard
One of my favourites with PT and Gavin on drums is 'Mother and Child Divided" from one of their live releases, truly incredible.
That tone/sound he gets from that Sonor kit is the best of the best..so is he's playing..
Flawless! A really enjoyable solo. This guy is a real talent.
Steven Wilson was so fortunate to have Gavin in Porcupine Tree - their video concert 'Arriving Somewhere' is one of my favorites and I re-watch it regularly 🙂
Same--have probably watched that DVD a hundred times. 😂
I’ve soured on some parts of PT I’ve the years, but their musicianship, particularly Harrison’s, will always shock and impress me.
Never heard of this guy but man is he impressive!
An outstanding drummer
his use of flams is off the hook! such a smooth and articulate player with amazing hand and foot speed, but without sacrificing brilliant dynamics and finess; truly one of the unsung heroes of modern drumming. I hope to play like that when I grow up; (hey, it could happen...)
I like flams but hot damn, I love Gavin Harrison's flams.
I agree. Maybe I have my head in the sand, but I'd never heard of him, and I wanted to applaud my computer after that. Those flams -- the guy plays one-handed flams between the rack and floor toms and the hi-hat on the opposite side!!!
Great drummer. One of my all time favorites.
Simply amazing!! Thank you for sharing this master piece of drumming. 👍👍
The epitome of drumming. As close to perfect as l've ever seen. (l'm a player
m'self) This guy is AWESOME!!
So good. Gavin is great!
This isn't even among his greatest stuff. Simply incredible drummer!
I have much more respect for Letterman now.
Astounding, and as blase Paul and company might become to all the talent they see, I bet they were extremely impressed. The guy is one of the greats
It's like fireworks going off.Outstanding.!!
One of my favorite drummers. Whenever I listen to "Anesthetize" I always focus more on the drums for the first three or four minutes than the rest of the music.
For the first three minutes? I focus on Gavin's drumming for the whole 17 minutes.
There's just a little bit of magic that's broken when you finally hear that first cymbal crash. But yeah, the drumming is great throughout.
Dr. Corndog I think the way Gavin accompanies the song "Trains" is amazing...and his playing on "Futile" could make Bill Bruford blush....
Awesome sound,amazing playing.the man is master
Don’t forget this perfomance now! Gavin IS the best drummer ever! 🎉🎉🎉😮❤
Я - старый барабанщик с консервативными взглядами, и очень уважаю таких музыкантов, как Бонэм, Пэйс, Филлипс, Биссонетт... Но вот молодые драммеры тоже очень радуют. Этот парень отлично отстраивает инструменты, звук сухой, высокий и очень отчётливый. Это не просто примитивная демонстрация навыков и техники ( кои, безусловно, на высоте), это - музыка. Особое удовольствие от мастерского использования сплэшей и чайны. Кайф!
Gavin's got a great band behind him! I miss them & the show!
2:30 stick drop. covered it well.
FPChris bro I didn’t notice
Lol I didn’t even notice 🤣 I thought it was part of the solo
I thought he was doing the Carl Palmer kick crash haha
dude you have to have an eagle eye to notice that lol
@@ImEverythingYouCrave Ha!
woah, i am absolutely blown away by this performance, especially by a drummer i dont know much about. he grooves so damn well in this his kit sounds great!
If your a Gavin Harrison fan, you need to listen to his "Circles" cd with 05ric. The cd displays Gavin's extraordinary drumming! He's amazing!
Very fun, dynamic solo...love it
Nice solo!!! Love that drum roll on the snare!!!
saw him Monday with King Crimson
still can't believe what I saw🥇
fabulous Gavin!!!
OMG! And on Sonor - my favorite drums... Lovely!!
The MASTER is in the building!!!!
It is always an honor to hear it, he is a legend in life! 🙌🏼
I hit the like button before the video started
Incredibly creative wonderful
the best of the drum solo week!
By far the best by a mile here on drum fortnight. Gavin you the man
love that creativity!
Awesome so clean lovely to listen to
my favorite drummer ever. king of ghost notes
Off the chart. What a drummer.
I feel like his performance was incredible for me because I’m a drummer but the audience didn’t like it as much because it might not have been as flashy as other solos
His drumming is for musicians, very precise. If you don't play you probably didn't like it as much as a player because there's not enough stick tricks and so on which is what non players like. Since I drum I thoughts this was awesome, very tight and with a smooth feel!
Why do I get the feeling he's played drums before?😲😲 MAN CRUSH🤩🤩🤗🤗😎😎
Creative brilliant playing blows most out of the water
This is a real drum solo. I can't explain why but it is. I frequently tell people I hate drum solos. What I've learned is that I hate people who try to do drum solos
i watch this everyday
Talk about making it look easy. Fantastic
Giving is really at the top of his game in this video. Bravo! 👏
Steven wilson was so lucky to have him in PT!! his solo with King Crimson is epic!