The quick guide to the American Drumbeat Part One

Most drumbeats of the last 100+ years of American pop music have a common core. I’ll call it the “boom”, “chuck”, “boom”, “chuck”, with “ting, ting, ting, ting” on top. First variation is “boom, boom, boom, boom”, with the “chucks” on the 2nd and 4th “booms”. “Boom” is the bass drum, “chuck” is the snare drum, and ting is a cymbal.

You can hear this beat with simple variations from Ragtime to EDM through early jazz, swing, rock and roll, Motown, disco, punk, grunge, and pop. From the sublime to ridiculous. 
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Written out it looks like this in music notation:

The following videos trace this beat backwards. Have fun listening. 

​If I can help you get started at the drum set, call me up.
David