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Southern soul drum pattern

A heavy, steady backbeat with almost no fills (Al Jackson Jr., "The Human Timekeeper"); straight eighths with a live push, never fully quantized. Here are its drums on a step grid, at the tempo it starts at, to hear and to change.

108 BPM · Live kit · 1 bar · 52% swing

The pattern, step by step

Each step is a sixteenth note, four to a beat: step 1 is beat 1, 5 is beat 2, 9 is beat 3 and 13 is beat 4. A lit square is a hit; a fainter one is played softer.

  • Hit
  • Softer hit
The southern soul drum pattern: the steps each drum plays
DrumSteps
Closed hat1, 3 (soft), 5, 7 (soft), 9, 11 (soft), 13, 15 (soft)
Snare5, 11 (soft), 13
Kick1, 5, 9, 13
Open these drums in the editor

They open as one drum lane on a step grid, at 108 BPM. No account needed to start.

How southern soul drums go

A kick on every beat under a hard snare on 2 and 4 with a pickup on the and of 3, eighth hats; no fills, just dynamics.

Questions about southern soul drums

What BPM is southern soul?

Usually 100 to 115 BPM. This pattern plays at 108 BPM.

How do you make a southern soul drum pattern?

Start with the kick on steps 1, 5, 9 and 13, the snare on steps 5, 11 and 13 and the closed hi-hat on steps 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 and 15. Each step is a sixteenth note, four to a beat: step 1 is beat 1, 5 is beat 2, 9 is beat 3 and 13 is beat 4. Open it in the free editor to change any step.

Do southern soul drums swing?

Yes, about 52% swing: every second step comes a little late, so the groove bounces. The editor plays it that way, and its Steps view can change it.

More soul and funk drum patterns

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Make a southern soul beat

The free editor opens with a whole southern soul beat: drums, bass and chords, each part yours to change, add to or take away.

Make a southern soul beatAll drum patterns

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