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Can anyone help me with the sticking for the classic Steve Gadd hi-hat/cross stick lick? In particular, the one he uses on the Al Jarreau song 'We're in this Love Together'.

I'm not very good at working these things out.

Thanks!

I'll try and explain the video posted above.

The sticking is RLRRLLFF where the first R is the open sliced hi-hat.

The basic rhythm he's fitting this pattern into
starts at the end of each measure, it's this:

+a| 1e + A (2) E (+) A 3 (4)+a | 1e + A (2) E (+) A 3 4|

The tricky sticking part RLRRLLFF is all played and finished within the '+a1e+'. The double hand and bass drum strokes are just on the '1e+', the RRLLFF bit.  The bits in brackets are spaces.  And the A E A 3 complete each pattern as rim, kick, rim, kick.


RLRRLLFF L......f.....L.f........RL...RRLLFF L......f.....L..f

+a 1..e..+ ..a (2)e(+)a 3 (4) +a | 1....e..+...a (2)e(+)a 3


The next section where he plays it three times consecutively starts on beat 1, then the '+' of 2, and then the 4. He glues them together with an extra LL between each cycle.

That ends with

Kick 1 (2) e (a) 3,  Floor tom on beat 4.

Clear as mud?

On We're In This Love Together, if you mean the lick at 1:10, it sounds to me like he's playing

RLLRR..R
F..........F

but as 1/32 note triplets.

Practice the six stroke roll, RLRRLL, and you should start to hear it. You can invert it for even more fun, and move it around the beat.

He's said before that he just uses simple stuff that anyone can do.

Ha!

Great, thanks, everybody!