The 20 Most Recognizable Drum Beats

Get 1000 full song breakdowns inside Drumeo Edge: ► (Free Trial) 0:00 - Introduction There are certain songs that you can recognize instantly. Think of Slash’s guitar riff at the beginning of “Sweet Child O’ Mine”, the bass line in Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean”, or the lyric “Is this the real life?” sung by Freddie Mercury in Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”. These are all songs that you and millions of other music fans around the world can recognize within seconds just by listening to a guitar part or lyric. Since the Swing Era in the 1930s when the drum set started becoming an integral part of popular music, drummers have been playing and creating drum grooves that are just as recognizable as any of the melodic examples mentioned above. Here, we’re going to showcase the top 20 most recognizable drum beats in history. 20. “Billion Dollar Babies” – Alice Cooper (0:44) 19. “Take Five” – Dave Brubeck Quartet (3:41) 18. “Crazy Train” – Ozzy Osbou