I used to jam with a great sax player, Jimmy McKinney, who was inducted into the Maryland Musicians Hall Of Fame. On the forum, he was known as Jimsax. Jim said the one thing a drum machine did for him was hone his timing and made him a much better player, especially when he was jamming with a full band. I couldn't agree more. Jim passed away several years ago while playing his sax on the job at a nearby marina restaurant. He owned a Tyros2 and played his sax along with midi files. He was also a pretty good vocalist. He was just 62 when he passed away.

Most players of individual instruments, and often, vocalist, had lousy timing when jamming and playing with a full band, at least that was my experience. My departed friend Jerry Burns, who was a Peabody trained musician, once told me that a good drummer had to be as exact as a drum machine or he would not be allowed to play in the Army band, which Jerry played in during his time in the US Army. Jerry also was the piano player for the Zim Zimerel Orchestra, and said that Zim was a real stickler for timing, and hired the best of the best for his big band, which played throughout the mid-Atlantic region for 4 decades, including several times at the White House. Pay close attention to the drummer and bass player in the attached video - it's as if they had a metronome in their hands.



Gary