MAJOR TOM SHIFT

"Ground Control to Major Tom.....Can you hear me, Major Tom?"

The other night a dear friend of mine called me and exclaimed, "Rush concert on VH1 Classic!  You gotta turn it on and watch it!"  Of course, he does this about once a month and I'm usually tired and busy and not interested, but this time I decided to listen.  God has finally restored within me my fascination with drums, so I decided to give old Neil Peart a look-see.  In the past, watching drummers play was severely depressing for me and I avoided it, but nobody really cares about all that drama, do they?  The bottom line is I'm over it now and God is allowing me to use my gift for Him once again.

Neil Peart's Drum Workshop kit used on "Test for Echo."

And that gift is: Stealing setup ideas from Neil Peart!

Okay, seriously.  I am in no way putting myself anywhere near the professional level of Mr. Peart, I just truly believe this guy is an awesome player, and a genius in the area of Percussion Placement as well.  He comes up with more brilliant ideas for arranging drum sets than anyone else, and I am always amazed and flattered when I come up with what I think is an original idea, only to discover Neil has already put it into practice long ago.  Sometimes I don't deliberately copy him, but find out later I inadvertently did so without realizing it.  I don't always live by the credo "WWND?" but on occasion my solution to a mounting or placement issue strangely resembles what the Neilster has done previously.

For instance, when I decided to switch from Zildjian to Sabian cymbals, I honestly had no idea that Neil had already done this.  Of course, he uses top-of-the-line Paragons and I use the cheaper HH series but still, I like to imagine that we think alike.  It's remotely possible.  As Bad Company once sang, "It's all part of my rock 'n' roll fantasy."

When I decided to expand my original four-piece by mounting the second rack tom in a floor tom position, I thought I was extraordinarily clever.  Who would think of such a unconventional move?

Neil.  As far back as 1991, for the Roll the Bones album, Mr. Peart converted to a single bass drum setup and mounted his 15" tom in the first floor tom position.  Again, mere coincidence or do I tend to channel the master?

Just recently I discovered a way to expand my kit even further, by adding more toms to my setup.  Why not?  Tama doesn't make add-on Swingstar pieces, but they do offer additional sizes in the Imperialstar line in the "Vintage Red" finish, so who would know the difference?  They are phasing out the Swingstars anyway, so Imperialstars are the perfect way for me to install additional cannons to the Mini-Fortress that match up accordingly.

Lying awake one night contemplating the expansion possibilities, I recalled Neil Peart's old Tama kit, with the 6-8-10-12 concert toms rounding the hi-hat on his left side.  Wouldn't that sort of thing be sweet?  But there were two problems: 1.) They don't make a 6" Imperialstar, and 2.) I hate concert toms.  They do make 8" and 10" double-headed toms, however, so I resolved to incorporate these smaller sizes into my arrangement.

Then I had what I thought was a brainstorm, which I later discovered was simply a metaphysical connection to my mentor (or a facsimile thereof): Why not rotate my 12" tom upwards a little, using my "Fast Clamp" to mount it off a cymbal stand, and bring my 13" tom back up over the kick drum?  This would allow me room down low to add another "actual" floor tom, perhaps a 14 or an 18 (since I already have a 16).  Or maybe both!

I dug into my research materials (meaning my old issues of Modern Drummer magazine) to figure out what sort of arrangement Neil Peart came up with when he downsized to a single-bass setup way back in the 1990s.  Wouldn't you know it?  He did the same stinkin' thing!

For the Roll the Bones (1991) album, Neil rotated all his toms slightly rightwards, mounting the 12 and 13 over the single kick drum with the 6-8-10s preceding.  This basic arrangement was maintained for the following Counterparts tour (1994), but when Test for Echo (1996) was recorded, Neil altered his setup further, dropping the 6" tom and shifting the other drums back to the left, so that he had the 8, 10 and 12 over the hi-hat and the solitary 13 on the kick (see outstanding photo at top of post).

This, quite eerily, was the exact arrangement I had devised for my own kit, not realizing at the time that I was copying Mr. Peart's percussion placement practices precisely.  It almost makes you shiver with excitement, does it not, the way I unknowingly emulate the coolest drummer that ever existed without even trying?  I know I will never be able to play a kit as well as him, but I can always find contentment in setting one up like him!

If I could just get a job as his Drum Tech, that would be perfect!

Using the 8" and 10" toms off of the Micro-Fortress to experiment with my subliminally-stolen expansion concept, I have become quite comfortable with having a couple of mini-guns added to my Mini-Fortress.  I have gotten used to the "tom shift" of my 12 and 13 and having the smaller drums up over the hi-hat.  Time to make it official.  My order has been placed and the additional pieces are on the way (from overseas) and should be permanently added to my setup in a month or so.

Now, about that second floor tom.....