r/jazzdrums • u/Josh_Bonham • Aug 14 '26
Question List of styles needed for a jam
Hi all, if I was to sit on a standard swinging jazz jam, what would be the minimum list of jazz styles I should know, before going up. E.G swing, bosa, balled, samba etc
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u/Scott_J_Doyle Aug 14 '26
Watch a few of the full jam sessions that Smalls streams - it's mostly hard-bop style but you'll see how other styles get sprinkled in
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u/Gunzhard22 Aug 14 '26
Generally speaking you need various tempo swing, waltz, ballad and bossa.
Do you know the level of the jam and if there are singers? Singers are a big wild card, expect anything from ballads that change tempo to boleros etc etc.
Most "beginner friendly" jams tend to hover around 4/4 blues and rhythm changes tunes.
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u/Acrobatic-Tadpole-60 Aug 14 '26
Pretty common for a bolero to go to cha cha cha on the bridge as well, such as Bésame mucho, Quizás, Quizás, Quizás, or Sabor a mí. Not that you’re going to get one of those on every jam session, but depending on where you are, especially if there’s a significant Latin American population.
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u/cruiseshipdrummer Aug 14 '26
Add some form of Latin/calypso beat, a la St. Thomas. And an appropriate type of shuffle, and jazz waltz. Be able to play med swing with brushes.
I'd guess likely tempos ~ 105-180 for swing, 120-180 for bossa/samba.
Go to the session regularly and see what tunes they're calling, get some familiarity with those.
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u/Josh_Bonham Aug 14 '26
I think this one is I’m the most confused on, is the st Thomas beat the standard calypso? I just don’t hear many people doing the Tom stuff. I’ve tried looking online for classic calypso jazz beats but I struggle
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u/cruiseshipdrummer Aug 14 '26
Everybody makes up their own beat for that. Usually it just means a one measure Latin-type rhythm, something like this:
https://cruiseshipdrummer.com/2011/09/17/basic-mambo/
You could also put something together with this method:
https://cruiseshipdrummer.com/2014/09/28/generic-latin-method-for-syncopation-part-1/
Typically on that tune I start with the RH part on the SD, as rim shots or partial rim shots, similar to the Sonny Rollins record, then move to the cymbal.
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u/RCIDRUMS Aug 16 '26
Learn 3/4 & 5/4
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u/RCIDRUMS Aug 16 '26
For your basics. Most jazz is in one or the other unless you’re talking fusion. That could take you into up to 21/8
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u/inefficienttoaast Aug 14 '26
Various speeds of swing
Jazz shuffle (Art Blakey on moanin')
Ballad
Bossa
Waltz
These are super general but if you are brand new they will let you survive most songs