I listened to the newest episode of Drummer Talk last night, and found myself particularly interested in their "Drummer of the Week" segment.  This week's featured drummer was Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, inventor of the famous Purdie Shuffle.

Because I was listening to the audio version of the podcast, I only heard the shuffle and didn't get to watch specifically what was going on.  The beat itself is so interesting- it's hard to even envision what kind of stick gymnastics Purdie is doing.  So, this morning I did a little research and watched the YouTube videos of Purdie himself 'splaining how to do the shuffle:

Wow!  What I find particularly interesting is what's going on on the snare drum.  As Purdie masterfully keeps the triplet beat going between the hi-hat and the snare, the left stick appears as if it is dancing on the drum head of its own volition, free of the drummer's control.  But I know better. :)

The Purdie Shuffle is so cool sounding I really want to learn it.  I just added it to my Goals list for part of the Drummer Improvement Project!  Thanks for the inspiration, and the endearing tutorial, Mr. Purdie!