Stewart is just wired differently than 98% of the rest of the drummers in the world. He can play anything, and his syncopation is simply amazing. He also understands the rhythmic differences in music from different parts of the world. You hear a lot of it in the Ghost in the Machine album. Simply amazing.
I think the key is he’s maybe a little smarter but definitely more educated and exposed to other culture than most American drummers. As he said he’s a “frustrated guitarist”. He’s got the talent for melody instruments but didn’t pursue in earnest until later. Then through in that he grew up overseas and soaked up a variety of different ideas 98% of Americans weren’t exposed to and you have a recipe for success. Like Dave Mathews whose unique approach to guitar parts was shaped by growing up in South Africa. Or Elvis, who was just a little more curious than the other white kids and got exposed to southern black music that became Rock n Roll.
Part of what has been probably the most interesting documentary on the Police ever made , and a very interesting insight into the huge contribution made by Stewart Copeland .
Glen Gamble Never did cruise ships. I’m just a hired gun for various so and so’s. Of course I’m taking a forced vacation right now. I have drum vids if you want to check em out.
I love that he has no qualms in saying he steals licks and makes them his own. Reminds me of that saying: good artists borrow, great ones steal outright.
Damn right! He's just too cool to say it himself. I think Stuart Copeland doesn't receive the accolade he so rightly deserves. In my mind he's the greatest drummer ever!
I always thought that Stewart came off a bit arrogant and egocentric in most interviews,,and he does..however, I didn't get that impression at all from this. Good interview though, knowledgeable dude either way.
2:30 ... almost thought Blur's Song#2 was going to kick in... and had a panic attack. Wooo hooo! I saw this interview waaaay back when in the eighties -- love it.
He is so hot there....and brilliantly smart,...his understanding of music and percussion is why he is STEWART COPELAND...so great that they are back on tour this year.
Stewart Copeland is to The Police as Ray Manzarek is to The Doors! They’re both the most crucial element to their respective groups. Fucking love em all!
Even though Sting was the frontman/posterboy for The Police, Stewart Copelznd was the one most at ease with the media. He just didn't give a shit, haha! Of course, the band started because Monsieur Copeland, so...
All we drummers are in awe of Billy C...Once you've heard One Word Or Miles Beyond or his Stratus album; it will almost make you hang up your sticks...:) Have you ever practiced to Billy? ...Like foot racing Jesse Owens...:)
the drumming Ghost on the Machine is incredible, it was being recorded during this session, Copeland was such a natural, gifted drummer, he is on another level
This interview is 100% in the top 5 of videos on TH-cam that i accidentally watched & throughly enjoyed & its the first time ive seen the man & heard the voice of the genius behind the Equalizer tv theme song. Stewart Copeland is obviously highly intelligent based-on his responses & the music he produced for the show. I’ve been a fan, so unsure why it took me until today to look him up.
***** Have you played? I agree it is, but it takes a master to make something look easy. Buddy Rich, Neil Peart, Todd Suchermann, and even Stewart Copeland, make it look easy when you're doing complex timing, but where drumming shines is in making the damn thing(s) sound musical and fitting it into certain songs that way.
Michael Davis I've been playing drums for five years. The first time I played, I literally watched what a guy did for fifteen seconds and then played it on the set. Though it was nothing complex, it still seemed easy even though I had never played set before then.
People can have a natural rhythm and talent but its still hard work, Buddy Rich was able to play amazingly the first time he ever picked up sticks. When you get into memorizing things like entire shows and playing stuff like Rush, or even marching and playing like the Blue Devils, you open up a whole new world of percussion and drumming.
BananaPhoPhilly Took me 5 seconds to play barre chords on the guitar and major keys on piano,drums require just as much skill,also guitar uou can take anywhere to oractice.
I'm an amateur drummer but as I've been listening to reggae and ska since 1980 (when I was 14) I fortunately found it quite easy to grasp. Reggae is a kind of half-sibling of rock. Most modern popular music is American-derived. Reggae, as Jamaican music, is a departure from that (though it has some links with rhythm'n'blues as well). To me the reggae (and ska and rocksteady) drum rhythm sounds like a simplified version of the mento rhythm (mento being a form of Jamaican folk music closely related to calypso). Here are the drumming patterns compared: th-cam.com/video/SmUJii69RjM/w-d-xo.html
Wow I never understood that Reggae puts the base drum on the 3 instead of the backbeat of 2 and 4. Thank you Stewart Copeland. Geniuses never hesitate to share basic information because they have no ego need to build themselves up. The opposite of most people, desperate to keep the simpler basics of what they do to themselves in order to encourage others to be impressed by them.
Yeah, without Stew Copeland, the Police might not have been so distinctive as far as a musical style is concerned. I don't know if Andy Summer or Sting would have hit on the reggae thing by themselves.
Well, it was happening at the time, wasn't it? I mean, it's hardly just the Police that were playing with reggae. Remember ska? Uh huh. Lots to think about. Didn't even John Lydon go down to Jamaica to check things out?
interesting stuff. i love how loud he plays in an interview. no hesitation. class. i saw an interview once with ernest ranglin and he said pretty much the same thing; they were trying to play motown stuff and kinda got it wrong, ending up with something amazing in the process. i always think of that 'reggae' thing as being like half-time with no downbeat. i dunno. thanks for uploading. :-)
I can tell you how Stewart, in Jamaica where reggae originated, they would receive over radio waves this American music that they loved, but the distances were far and their sound systems sucked, so they could not hear the low end, no kick drum, so when they got instruments and went to recreate this music, they had to imagine where the kick was. The pioneers of reggae placed it with the 1 and 3 of the snare, thinking they hit together, with even more emphasis on 3. True Story.
@redstartn Actually, it is refreshing to see someone that actually knows what he is talking about and appreciates and understands the history and theory of what he is playing. And if you ever meet him, you will see that pretentiousness is not even in the same universe with Stewart. I believe that adjective better suits another member of this group that rhymes with "bling".
as far as I'm concerned Stewart Copeland is one of the most original, expressive and awesome drummers since the 70's. Him and Jeff Porcaro are the best for me.
I couldn't play a lick of guitar or piano but I discovered I could coordinate my four limbs to make rhythms and keep time from the start. I agree with half of what Stewart Copeland says about it being easy. Drums come very easy to some people. Not many but some.
I JUST NOW realized that the guy interviewing Stewart is the same guy who has his own show and has all these rad bands on it! I saw this interview long ago, before I even knew of his show.
i went to their final show 8/7/08 at madison square garden, and even though sting and andy didnt move all that much, copeland added the most energy with his amazing drumming and he also switched to play the gong and some bells, it was amazing!
Stewart Armstrong Copeland (Alexandria, Virginia; 16 de julio de 1952) es un músico, compositor y multiinstrumentista estadounidense, conocido por ser uno de los miembros originales del power trio de rock británico The Police.
i've played the guitar for years and i've just bought my first drum kit. they are a lot easier to plat than the axe, but the drums are waaaaaaay more fun to play!!! i feel like as kid again! copeland, great drummer.
in the last couple milliseconds, you see sting tilting his head about with a pen in his mouth, which linked up exactly to the police every little thing she does is magic music video
I would like to see Stewart Copeland, Dave Grohl and Stephen Morris (Joy Division; drummer on "Transmission") together, showing off their drumming skills.
All you have to do is go and listen to Copeland's drumming on The Police tracks 'Truth Hits Everybody' & 'Message In a Bottle' and you'll know all yu need to know about why he's considered one of the best ever.
Yea, that's assuming he counts during every live performance and recording of any reggae drum beat he's ever done. Just because he was explaining the difference between the most common 4/4 drumming and reggae drumming doesn't mean he doesn't feel the reggae rhythm. I can feel him feeling it when I listen to the police. So Lonely is one of the best reggae drums I've heard. JAH bless
You have to remember that having played your axe for years means you've been around the sounds of a drumkit for years also, you have developed rhythm through guitar. Of course its going to be easy. Same goes with me playing guitar after years of playing drums. Learning from scratch is something different for any instrument.
He was never shy, thats for sure, God bless his soul :)) Hehe i remember his opinion about classical musicians, "visual" ones, not like him of course. I love him to bits and I think he is one of the best drummers ever. But just for the sake of comparison Maxim Vengerov or Hilary Hanhn are demigods next to him
![🎤 ไปกันต่อออ! จับฉลากร้องเพลง x P’ #XXSIVK [EP.2] (1/2) เพลงของใครจึ้งสุดน้าา 💓🎤 #MXFRUIT](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/mLI_K0sAS4o/mqdefault.jpg)
his drumming was vital to the police most recognizable drumming style
Stewart is just wired differently than 98% of the rest of the drummers in the world. He can play anything, and his syncopation is simply amazing. He also understands the rhythmic differences in music from different parts of the world. You hear a lot of it in the Ghost in the Machine album. Simply amazing.
I think the key is he’s maybe a little smarter but definitely more educated and exposed to other culture than most American drummers. As he said he’s a “frustrated guitarist”. He’s got the talent for melody instruments but didn’t pursue in earnest until later.
Then through in that he grew up overseas and soaked up a variety of different ideas 98% of Americans weren’t exposed to and you have a recipe for success. Like Dave Mathews whose unique approach to guitar parts was shaped by growing up in South Africa. Or Elvis, who was just a little more curious than the other white kids and got exposed to southern black music that became Rock n Roll.
Interesting how his voice has developed over the years. So well spoken. A diplomats son.
Stewart Copeland is a force of nature.
"They're a joke" hahaha I love this guy :D
He breaks the fourth wall by looking directly at us too haha Genius!!
Total legend. The man is ridiculously talented
A magician and craftsman of the drums. Him, Andy Summers and Sting are the perfect combination.
He's not a drummer.. He's the ultimate rhythmatist
Rhytmatists make good drummers I think.
He's a percussionist....and one the best ever.
@@stevemurrell6167 Yes, indeed -- arguably one of the best percussionists ever
He's plain lousy! Stiff, Lol 😂😆😂
I just learned anybody could play drums like Copeland. I'm going for it right now
he'd be a wonderful music teacher
Part of what has been probably the most interesting documentary on the Police ever made , and a very interesting insight into the huge contribution made by Stewart Copeland .
I play drums for a living and get to see the world because of this guy.
Get to see the world? Who do you drum for?
Choco Manger cruise ships, most likely.
Glen Gamble
Never did cruise ships. I’m just a hired gun for various so and so’s. Of course I’m taking a forced vacation right now. I have drum vids if you want to check em out.
You are in a Police covers band?
I love that he has no qualms in saying he steals licks and makes them his own. Reminds me of that saying: good artists borrow, great ones steal outright.
Like Comedians
And comptrollers and plumbers.
"Drums are a joke, really easy to play".. sign of genius.
i love a man that knows his craft but is not arrogant about it. stewart is such a man.
“...drummer in the hardest working person in the studio.” You tell ‘em Stu!
I come back to this video and watch it from time to time. I don't even play drums, but I find his commentary on it completely fascinating.
"Why is your drumming different from other drummers?"
cause he's Stewart fucking Copeland
Yeah baby!
Jools is a cvnt!
Damn right! He's just too cool to say it himself. I think Stuart Copeland doesn't receive the accolade he so rightly deserves. In my mind he's the greatest drummer ever!
I always thought that Stewart came off a bit arrogant and egocentric in most interviews,,and he does..however, I didn't get that impression at all from this. Good interview though, knowledgeable dude either way.
"They're a joke!" Lol....you're the greatest Mr. Copeland!!!
2:30 ... almost thought Blur's Song#2 was going to kick in... and had a panic attack. Wooo hooo! I saw this interview waaaay back when in the eighties -- love it.
woo hoo!
He is so hot there....and brilliantly smart,...his understanding of music and percussion is why he is STEWART COPELAND...so great that they are back on tour this year.
Oh jesus lord when he does the example of reggae from 3.41, makes my hairs stand up, he's so amazingly talented.
Love the demonstration he gave. But the whole interview is great.
One if the best in the galaxy.
That last groove at the end is awesome, you get a sense of Copeland's style. Sounds a bit like Walking On The Moon.
His Reggae description was awesome. I like how he appreciates its contribution to music. Never really liked Reggae but; it does have a nice hook...:)
Stewart Copeland is to The Police as Ray Manzarek is to The Doors! They’re both the most crucial element to their respective groups. Fucking love em all!
No question.....Stewart Copland is an amazing drummer.....His beat is legendary!!!!
Not only a “one of a kind” drummer, but also a great song writer. Wrote “does every one stare” & “darkness” among others for the Police.
Even though Sting was the frontman/posterboy for The Police, Stewart Copelznd was the one most at ease with the media. He just didn't give a shit, haha! Of course, the band started because Monsieur Copeland, so...
His voice was so high then.
That was hilarious when he said Billy Cobham, ha ha The look on his face. Like it's all confusing. Too funny
All we drummers are in awe of Billy C...Once you've heard One Word Or Miles Beyond or his Stratus album; it will almost make you hang up your sticks...:) Have you ever practiced to Billy? ...Like foot racing Jesse Owens...:)
It's a pity that he doesn't even come close to Cobham.
He's the original drum n bass machine. He's fast and clean. The cymbal work is impeccable. He can play ANYTHING...WELL!
One of the best drummers. He was really good at feeling time. Beats with an emphasis on 1 or 3 are my favorite.
the drumming Ghost on the Machine is incredible, it was being recorded during this session, Copeland was such a natural, gifted drummer, he is on another level
This interview is 100% in the top 5 of videos on TH-cam that i accidentally watched & throughly enjoyed & its the first time ive seen the man & heard the voice of the genius behind the Equalizer tv theme song. Stewart Copeland is obviously highly intelligent based-on his responses & the music he produced for the show. I’ve been a fan, so unsure why it took me until today to look him up.
I say the exact same thing about drumming. The drum set is a very straightforward instrument.
***** Have you played? I agree it is, but it takes a master to make something look easy. Buddy Rich, Neil Peart, Todd Suchermann, and even Stewart Copeland, make it look easy when you're doing complex timing, but where drumming shines is in making the damn thing(s) sound musical and fitting it into certain songs that way.
Michael Davis I've been playing drums for five years. The first time I played, I literally watched what a guy did for fifteen seconds and then played it on the set. Though it was nothing complex, it still seemed easy even though I had never played set before then.
People can have a natural rhythm and talent but its still hard work, Buddy Rich was able to play amazingly the first time he ever picked up sticks. When you get into memorizing things like entire shows and playing stuff like Rush, or even marching and playing like the Blue Devils, you open up a whole new world of percussion and drumming.
***** Comes easier to some people. Others struggle for a while and don't make as much of an instant impact. I've seen it first hand.
BananaPhoPhilly Took me 5 seconds to play barre chords on the guitar and major keys on piano,drums require just as much skill,also guitar uou can take anywhere to oractice.
Amaaaaaaaaazing
He's still cute, Sooo cute.
Genius and a really enthusiastic guy. Love him.
Yeah, reggae drum beat is totally alien to me, couldn't get the hang of it at all.
I'm an amateur drummer but as I've been listening to reggae and ska since 1980 (when I was 14) I fortunately found it quite easy to grasp. Reggae is a kind of half-sibling of rock. Most modern popular music is American-derived. Reggae, as Jamaican music, is a departure from that (though it has some links with rhythm'n'blues as well). To me the reggae (and ska and rocksteady) drum rhythm sounds like a simplified version of the mento rhythm (mento being a form of Jamaican folk music closely related to calypso). Here are the drumming patterns compared: th-cam.com/video/SmUJii69RjM/w-d-xo.html
Wow I never understood that Reggae puts the base drum on the 3 instead of the backbeat of 2 and 4. Thank you Stewart Copeland. Geniuses never hesitate to share basic information because they have no ego need to build themselves up. The opposite of most people, desperate to keep the simpler basics of what they do to themselves in order to encourage others to be impressed by them.
Love music, can't play a lick, and that was fascinating to watch.
SC is my favorite musician, any genre, any instrument.
Is it just me or does Stewart sound like Schroeder from Charlie Brown?
The son from Breaking bad.
kudos to jools holland for this interview. and holland is no slouch as a musician either.
Yeah, without Stew Copeland, the Police might not have been so distinctive as far as a musical style is concerned. I don't know if Andy Summer or Sting would have hit on the reggae thing by themselves.
+NeuralNetProcessor yeah but without sting they wouldn't of been the huge success they were, it's his amazing voice and hit songs that were key
And Andy's guitar added the right amount of harmonic colour. All three were/are brilliant.
Well, it was happening at the time, wasn't it? I mean, it's hardly just the Police that were playing with reggae. Remember ska? Uh huh. Lots to think about. Didn't even John Lydon go down to Jamaica to check things out?
Guitar's pretty distinctive too. Noone else does it like Summer. All in all three amazing artists.
Oh yeah, I wasn't trying to take away from Andy Summer (or Sting, for that matter.) All 3 are amazing, truly.
I love how people think he's egotistical even though he's just smart. Even if he is, who cares? Smart people should have egos.
@West Bay K. make music is a job is you do it in a profesional level man is really hard work
"I'm an arrogant twat." - Stewart Copeland
Amazing
just plain awesome.
Longer arms, I play with my feet, and I'm a drumming demigod too.
He's so hot on this clip. Thanks for posting.
..What an Awesome Talent he Has Stewart.!
Genius! Hands down the best contemporary drummer there is. Also a great composer. Wish he would write more music like he did in the 80’s .
I love the last frame of the vid xd
fantastic!! Here at his best period!
interesting stuff. i love how loud he plays in an interview. no hesitation. class.
i saw an interview once with ernest ranglin and he said pretty much the same thing; they were trying to play motown stuff and kinda got it wrong, ending up with something amazing in the process.
i always think of that 'reggae' thing as being like half-time with no downbeat. i dunno. thanks for uploading. :-)
I can tell you how Stewart, in Jamaica where reggae originated, they would receive over radio waves this American music that they loved, but the distances were far and their sound systems sucked, so they could not hear the low end, no kick drum, so when they got instruments and went to recreate this music, they had to imagine where the kick was. The pioneers of reggae placed it with the 1 and 3 of the snare, thinking they hit together, with even more emphasis on 3.
True Story.
Drums are a joke, really easy to play, anyone can do it, come on Stewie, give us a break.
try harder, troll
@@CarinaPrimaBallerina No...he´s praising his modesty.
This is a joke, right? RIGHT?
Easy or not, the drummer is the backbone of the band.
I love this guy.
IT'S A PARADIGM FOR THE COSMOS!!!!
Copeland is just Different Gravy. 🌞 say no more ⭐️
And yet he makes it sound like it's so simple. You're absolutely right. Some of us just hear and interpret music on another level.
If you want to hear this in a Police song listen to Spirits in the Material World
@redstartn Actually, it is refreshing to see someone that actually knows what he is talking about and appreciates and understands the history and theory of what he is playing. And if you ever meet him, you will see that pretentiousness is not even in the same universe with Stewart. I believe that adjective better suits another member of this group that rhymes with "bling".
Copeland is great for his humility. Can't top this guy.
Total class, that reggae example, pure and utter class.Crisp clear percussive genius.
as far as I'm concerned Stewart Copeland is one of the most original, expressive and awesome drummers since the 70's. Him and Jeff Porcaro are the best for me.
Aww he was a sooo young here, god bless him.
a monster real inspirational underrated drummer
And they say drummers are dumb? Bollocks. Respect!!
True...I know folks that have hung out with him and I've heard good things. He really mellowed with age....thankfully
"Drums are easy to play! Anybody can do it!"
I couldn't play a lick of guitar or piano but I discovered I could coordinate my four limbs to make rhythms and keep time from the start. I agree with half of what Stewart Copeland says about it being easy. Drums come very easy to some people. Not many but some.
I JUST NOW realized that the guy interviewing Stewart is the same guy who has his own show and has all these rad bands on it!
I saw this interview long ago, before I even knew of his show.
i went to their final show 8/7/08 at madison square garden, and even though sting and andy didnt move all that much, copeland added the most energy with his amazing drumming and he also switched to play the gong and some bells, it was amazing!
Stewart Armstrong Copeland (Alexandria, Virginia; 16 de julio de 1952) es un músico, compositor y multiinstrumentista estadounidense, conocido por ser uno de los miembros originales del power trio de rock británico The Police.
2:58 best part
It's always fun to watch brilliance in action.
i've played the guitar for years and i've just bought my first drum kit. they are a lot easier to plat than the axe, but the drums are waaaaaaay more fun to play!!! i feel like as kid again! copeland, great drummer.
Reggae (and ska) is different. It is a special music.
haha what a cool dude Copeland is!
in the last couple milliseconds, you see sting tilting his head about with a pen in his mouth, which linked up exactly to the police every little thing she does is magic music video
If I shaved with an old-school single-edged razor I could sharpen it off Stewart's drumming.
Top musician
Steward is the greatest drummer of all times according to me
I would like to see Stewart Copeland, Dave Grohl and Stephen Morris (Joy Division; drummer on "Transmission") together, showing off their drumming skills.
thats an amazing style! but its really simple that they just replaced where the snare would be with the kick
All you have to do is go and listen to Copeland's drumming on The Police tracks 'Truth Hits Everybody' & 'Message In a Bottle' and you'll know all yu need to know about why he's considered one of the best ever.
Yea, that's assuming he counts during every live performance and recording of any reggae drum beat he's ever done. Just because he was explaining the difference between the most common 4/4 drumming and reggae drumming doesn't mean he doesn't feel the reggae rhythm. I can feel him feeling it when I listen to the police. So Lonely is one of the best reggae drums I've heard.
JAH bless
This is just fucking great.
i get the feeling he's got a really high IQ
What a great man!
I think I actually understand Reggae now after that explanation.
Its a paradigm of the cosmos!
3 is the magic number
You have to remember that having played your axe for years means you've been around the sounds of a drumkit for years also, you have developed rhythm through guitar. Of course its going to be easy. Same goes with me playing guitar after years of playing drums. Learning from scratch is something different for any instrument.
He was never shy, thats for sure, God bless his soul :)) Hehe i remember his opinion about classical musicians, "visual" ones, not like him of course. I love him to bits and I think he is one of the best drummers ever. But just for the sake of comparison Maxim Vengerov or Hilary Hanhn are demigods next to him
Yes he is.
Stew plays more than drums. He plays random things with his drumsticks.