Allsup on Sneed

   Simply put, Floyd is the most unique drummer in the world, at least to my knowledge and taste. Playing with him in 3 Dog Night was an adventure that changed my guitar playing forever. Floyd invented what is labeled by drummers as, "ghost beats" today. Still, the way he achieved it is different than any other method being used by today's drummers. I won't even attempt to try and explain it.

   I have seen Floyd play the snare drum back beat with the drumstick in his left hand, play the high hat with his right hand stick ... and also the snare, with the other end of the stick in his right hand. A train thang. Schermie used to say, "He's like 10 African natives, rowing down a river in a canoe ... with the sounds of distant tribal rhythms being beat out on tree trunks and skin covered barrels. Each stroke of the oars in sync with each other ... shoving you gently forward in a deep, rowing groove." (Joe had a knack for these perspectives!) Okay, so maybe I embellished Joe's original description just a tad, but basically that was it. Whatever. That definitely IS Sneed. A groove so deep it's like it has walls shaped like a "V" ... and wherever you play ... you just slide comfortably to the bottom of this perfect groove ... the bottom of this "V". The most "natural" player I've ever known. Straight from his "LaAfrican" perspective. Very Latin, but African and rock, too. Floyd is my friend, my brother. He just tans a little easier than I do.

   The following is a feature article on Floyd, that was recently done in VINTAGE DRUMMER magazine. He's on the cover. Please enjoy reading it. He's a wonderful human being, whose talent has yet to be explored satisfactorily, in my opinion. Even considering all the great things he did in Three Dog Night I still feel that we only touched the surface of his genius. Floyd has so much depth ... it should be used as a "motif", in a group structure designed explicitly to showcase his unique perspectives and abilities. The outcome would be incredible. He is a major source of UNIQUE THINKING, when it comes to the approach and application of rhythm. --Michael Allsup--

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