Problems Remembering the song ????

[Lexer]

One of the most challenging aspects of drumming ( for me ), is remembering different pars of a song; when to do this and when to do that.
How do you guys overcome this? What do most of the famous guys do?
Especially since many rock drummers dont read music.

[Kevaruka]

Play by ear Knowing song structures help & the way they are written. Most styles tend to be formulaic in their structures

[Spiderjig]

practice, practice, practice

[kay-gee]

Also, as far as the big guys are concerned, they've been playing those same 20 songs or so every night since forever.

all the best...

[Mottster]

I chart out a song to learn it. By chart, I mean noting the sections and how many bars are in each. Once I can see it, it becomes easy to remember. Some people can do it by hearing the song, others can do it by feeling the song. You have to figure out your primary way of internalizing information (see, hear, feel, or some combination thereof).

But whatever you do, you have to develop it with practice. Nothing comes for free.

[SuperFortress]

Learn the lyrics. If you know the song's "story" then you know where your fills,breaks and changes fit in that story. And it's usually after the 2nd chorus.

[SunDog]

Remembering long complex patterns is key. Play racing video games, the long complicated courses. The key isn't quick reflexes, it's memorizing the course. Drums are not reactionary. It's about knowing what's coming ahead of time. I can hear the improv guys honing their blades as I speak.

[xweasel]

If it's a cover, then I just listen to the song over, and over, and over again. If it's an original, then I run through it over, and over, and over again.

[drummer]

Not everyone has the same set of tools to work with. Like personalities, our memories and reflexes, etc. vary too. Some people have photographic memories and others will struggle more. You've just got to find a set of techniques that work for you. Charts help. You can also practice the tunes more often. Use the lyrics as one person mentioned to trigger certain points in the song. There are also vitamin supplements on the market that are supposed to help memory. Find what you need to make it happen.

[N2Bluz]

My problem is not remembering the song, it's the singer and guitar players remembering the song. I'm 90% improv, but I've gotten pretty good at anticipating the song structures. When the singer/guitars change it up, you got to think quick on your sticks, LOL.

[Bridie]

My tutor says practice until you get it right, then practice until you can't get it wrong.
If I do this I can play through a set without thinking about every single note.
I can enjoy myself, I still have to concentrate , but not so that I get stressed.

Bridie

[worcesterbruce]

To me, the key is practicing it enough that you don't have to think about it. Anytime that I'm struggling to remember a song or even a section of it, I'm "thinking while playing" and my playing suffers. Heaven help me when I have to actually count.... When I know the song cold, I'm far more relaxed and it shows in my playing.

I discovered this doing fill-in gigs with groups. I could practice and prep their setlists as much as I want, but if I don't play them, with them, I'm constantly trying to keep track of where I am. At least on the songs that I haven't done before, and sometimes even those too. When you're not sure where the other guys are gonna be, well....back to thinking again.

It's even worse if you sing as well.

As most everyone has said, practice, practice, practice. When you can't, listen to them as much as you can on your phone or in the car, so the song structure is as familiar as possible.

[Ricardo]

I chart out a song to learn it. By chart, I mean noting the sections and how many bars are in each. Once I can see it, it becomes easy to remember.

You don't need to be able to read music to chart a song.
Like Mottster suggests, you can write down the section structure, like this:

Verse
Chorus
Verse
Chorus
Bridge
Guitar Ride
Verse
Chorus

If needed, you can also make notes for each section, 8 bars, 16 bars, twice as long, short version, etc.

Once you learn the verse, then you know what to do when it repeats.
Same is true for the chorus.
The ride and the bridge do not generally repeat, but they might.

Some songs will be structured somewhat differently, but most look similar to the pattern above.
Sometimes it helps greatly to see the pattern visually, as well as play through it many times.

It wont be long until you get it down.

[Kevaruka]

I stand in for two bands on an as & when basis & always have a little crib sheet with me with song titles, Order of play, whether any songs run into others etc.
I will also at the side write how many verse/chorus/break/verse/chorus/end there are & write - 2-2, 3-2, 2-1 etc etc. Also a quick note on how they start - i.e. - Bum-Tish, In