[COLOR="Purple"]My example is from a jazz drummer but forget about that and just think of it as drumming. Shelley Manne had this one killer drum solo- they played it on the air on those old NYC Mel Lewis radio interviews. Mel Lewis used it as an example of a exceptionally killer drum solo and classic Shelley Manne.[/COLOR]

Basically- Shelley sectioned his entire solo in two and four bar phrases. Each little statement was sort and sweet- understandable to any listener.

Using call & response between"yourself and yourself" you can create two voices -as in a conversation. For fun you can play a little piece of a widely famous drum solo - one from Ringo (what was that song??? I can`t remember, but the one where the theme is quarter notes on the bass drum)

or sing, sing, sing or whatever.

So, I recommend you use short understandable statements, use call & response, pieces of afamous solo and then a rolling climax- anything, for example, maybe a snare to cymbals roll using accents on quarter notes triplets.

Good luck with itYes Sir

Man, a 3 to 5 minute solo, that's a lot of licks! Personally I am not a drum solo fan, there have only been a few that were not boring to me. Less is always more and something for a few bars, to me, is very tasty. Just my opinion.

To answer the first question, yes I play out. These days, I do more keyboard than drum gigs, but I still get to drum at least 6 - 10 times a year. I'd love to do more, but I also love having some weekends off. I probably average 2 gigs a month on keys.

As for soloing, I'm also not a big fan personally. There are a lot of great drummers out there who never played a solo and I dig their playing just as much as Bonham or Rich. I think my favorite recorded solos have been the shorter ones which were more musical and less technical. I never solo live and don't feel like I'm missing anything really.

As for doing a 3 to 5 minute solo, well, I'm afraid that I'd run out of ideas after the first minute - LOL!!! Can't help you there, but I can say that many experienced drummers would prefer a musical solo over a technical solo any day. Sure, it's impressive to see guys like Mike Mangini do some incredibly technical stuff, but after a minute or so, I start to get bored with it.

The Ringo solo is on the B side of Abbey Road. During The Medley and just before the song The End. It's short, sweet and to the point. I've heard rumors in the past though, that it was McCartney playing the solo and not Ringo. Who knows... sounds like a Ringo solo to me.

Hi there, Slingerland!

Yes, I play out anywhere from 2-6 times a month. Similar to you, I broke my arm a while back, needed surgery, and was told I would never have full range of my arm—let alone play drums again. Fortunately, that turned out NOT to be true and I've been fine, thanks to physical therapy.

Now on to the soloing: I play in a band that does late 40's jump and early 50's rhythm and blues. I have a few floor tom / jungle boogie solos that are part of the songs we cover. Those solos keep the beat going and are not solos for the sake of showing off and going crazy. Even though that's the case, I still feel self-conscious playing them!

What I've noticed over the years is if you let the crowd feel like they're participating with you or are part of your solo, you'll win them over and get a much better response than if you just play a perfectly delivered drum solo behind the kit—almost to yourself. Get them clapping, do a call and response with them. OR, come to the front of the stage and away from the set.

For me, simplicity is key: my best crowd responses have been when I've brought one floor tom to the front of the stage and just play simple jungle patterns (think "Sing, sing, sing") while smiling at the crowd. No stick flips. No cartwheels. No crazy Buddy Rich one-handed rolls. They eat it up! Our bass player also has a vintage aluminum bass and lets me play the side of it - they love that. Our guitarist on occasion has let me play the strings of his guitar while he changes chords. I just play eighth notes and triplets and the crowd loves it.

Remember, as drummers, we've seen all the tricks. But I would guess that the majority of the crowd has NOT, and simple things like playing in unexpected areas go a long way. The biggest piece of advice I have is to just be YOU. A lot of drummers twirl sticks, play blazingly fast, play with one hand in solos, etc. That's great because that works for them. The question is: What works best for you? And does it even have to be 3-5 minutes when one minute of something really fun / clever may make a bigger impression?

Regardless of what you decide, good luck and have a blast!

I play out for a living. Have been doing so for over 45 years. I'm going to be 70 next month. Still playing 100 or so gigs a year. No drum solos. Like Charlie Watts said, "Drum solos bore me. Particularly mine." so I can't help you there. I suppose you could just "rooba dooba" with your double pedal and play 16th notes over the top for 3 min. Or learn "Wipe Out."

Does anyone has any links to basic doulbe pedal instruction? I know their are a million out there, but if you know of one I could dial in on that would be great. I also would not mind getting some basic rudiments down to practice that would improve my overall skill level also, thanks for all the feedback,