Can we talk a little bit about drums in general? How do they fit into a jazz band?
Jimmy Cobb: It’s the foundation of the band. If you don’t have a good drummer, and you have a band that requires a drummer, then you don’t have a good band. If the drummer is not able to propel everybody into where they need to be, then it’s not a good band, and it’s not a good drummer. Most kids grow up trying to learn, wanting to play the drums. Like if you take them in a room or something, and there’s a whole room full of instruments, they will probably run to the drums first. Q: How do you approach a drum solo? What makes a good drum solo? Jimmy Cobb: I approach it maybe sometimes off of the melody, sort of like the way Max Roach would play it. He would probably play it like it was chord changes, like it was chord changes in the drum solo. I play it like rhythm patterns or something off the form of the tune. Instead of trying to count it, I would just be singing the tune to myself in my head. Not singing, but it would just happen to go through there. I would try to play off of that
