Best way to learn covers fast

[DanRH]

LiveBPM app for your phone. Gives you a "speedometer" of your tempo so if you bump up a BPM or two you can cap it there or even gently bring it back down. It also plots a graph that can settle arguments if people think you were speeding up when you weren't.

This!

 

[Nathan Scott]

Wow I certainly wasnt expecting all this input! You guys rock! thank you so much for all of the help guys!
I will have to comb through all these answers andI will let you all know how it goes and what worked best!

 

[Nathan Scott]

Hi Nathan! Welcome! (I see it's your first post.) I'm frequently faced with learning a bunch of songs in a short period, so I have a couple of suggestions.

Since you don't read music, I would make a simple "song map" in whatever code makes sense to you. It could be as simple as Intro: 6 Bars, Verse 16 Bars (fill), Chorus 8 Bars, etc. This kind of memory aid will alleviate some stress that comes from not being sure you're remembering correctly in the moment. Most drummers who don't read music actually do read enough to make themselves a cheat sheet. Pay particular attention to the transition parts of songs. You'll remember the chorus without a problem, but how many bars are between the chorus and the next verse? Is it the same each time? (It often isn't - arrangers will sneak in an extra bar before the last chorus, and THAT's where you'll sscrew up.) Those transitions are the tough parts to remember, so count them carefully, and come up with a memory code for yourself. (That's all reading music really is, after all.)

Since you say you tend to rush in certain situations, and you have limited time, I would identify the tricky bits, pay close attention to them, and play them over until they're comfortably under your hands. Don't waste time practicing the simple chorus 50 times. Play that 6-beat bit near the end that turns you around a few more times. You'll have a much better chance of staying relaxed on the day.

Your chart doesn't need to be complicated. For example, this is what I scratched down while listening to this song the first time. It's enough to guide me through it on stage tomorrow night, and it barely requires reading music. I'll probably perform it never having played it on a drumset.

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Thanks !

 

[Malc]

If I need to learn a cover song I usually check out youtube to see if there's a drum cover available to watch. Not all are great but I can usually find one to emulate.

 

[fusseltier]

Listen to them several times then try to play along with them.

 

[m_anderson]

Play them and when you're not playing them listen to them.

This is how I used to do it. I go back to the days of cassette and CD players in cars. Ten is a lot if you don't know the tunes at all. Most times I knew them but just hadn't played them before. I would play them over and over until they were beaten into my brain. If they were really simple, sometimes I didn't even need to practice.

Don't be nervous. You'll probably have a lot of fun with this. Good luck!