Former drummer for The Police, Stewart Copeland, fronted a great BBC 4 documentary the other evening. (At the time of writing, still on iPlayer for another month…don’t miss it!)
I’ve long taken the view that music can teach us everything we need to know about business…but to give myself an extra challenge, I thought I’d forget the rest of the band for a change and today focus solely on the drummer.
Here’s 10 fundamental business truths courtesy of the legendary Stewart Copeland (plus a bonus at the end)…
- Even in a short-ish programme, there were a couple of times Stewart Copeland grated on me a little…apparently this was pretty much Sting’s experience too, back in the day. But, even as a big music fan, I learned so much I didn’t know before from watching his programme. (Moral of the story: don’t discount what people you don’t like are telling you. They always know things you don’t.)
- Stewart Copeland has an irrepressible enthusiasm for his craft. He’s taken the time to study it, to find out the history of it, to seek out other practitioners of it. (Moral of the story: even if you’re world-famous in your area of expertise, there’s always more to know and more to learn. The greatest drummers, and business leaders, never stop learning.)
- Stewart Copeland works really hard. If you watch him on a drum kit, he never stops. His drumming defined the sound of The Police, one of the biggest bands in the world. He had to work twice as hard as most drummers to fill out the sound because The Police were a three-piece band, rather than the more usual four or more members. (Moral of the story: if you want to be successful, hard work isn’t optional.)
- The greatest people at any task are those who think differently about the job in hand. Buddy Rich, Keith Moon, John Bonham…and indeed Stewart Copeland himself…all had a very distinctive, instantly-identifiable style. (Moral of the story: the greatest successes come from doing things very differently from everyone else, not just doing what everyone else does 5 or 10% better.)
- There’s always a place in the market for something different. In the early years of rock and roll, drummers sat at the back of the band with their heads down, doing their best to be invisible. Then Keith Moon came along and the whole country knew the name The Who’s drummer, even if they weren’t a fan of the band itself. How many other drummers do you know the names of? I’m guessing not many. (Moral of the story: never think “everything has been done already”. It never has been.)
- It surprised me to learn that modern drumming started out in the distinctly un-modern world of the Deep South just after the end of the American Civil War. (Moral of the story: there’s always a deeper reason, and a longer history, for whatever you’re grappling with than you think. Problems, and opportunities for that matter, don’t just pop up from nowhere…they started out years ago, barely noticed at the time, and snowballed into the problem or opportunity you’re grappling with today. Pay attention to the little things that cross your path…sooner or later, they’ll become the big things.)
- One little invention – the foot pedal for the bass drum – seemingly inconsequential at the time, made the modern drum kit possible. Before that, there was no way a drummer could simultaneously play several different shapes, sizes and tones of drum to engage better with a tune and drive the song the way modern drummers do. (Moral of the story: don’t wait forever for a “big idea” to come along. Continual innovation, and trying to improve even a tiny amount every day is the best way to succeed. A simple lever was all it took to change the world of drumming for ever.)
- The segment with Sheila E. (Prince’s drummer and musical director) alone was worth watching the whole programme for. She made her own way as a woman in a man’s world and, I’m sure, wasn’t always met with the support her talent deserved as she climbed the ranks of professional drummers. (Moral of the story: never let anyone tell you that you can’t achieve your ambitions. Give full rein to your talents, and work hard. You can achieve anything as long as you don’t give up.)
- Also from Sheila E…what you do between the beat is as important as what you do on the beat. A 1-2-3-4 rhythm quickly gets boring and mundane. Great drummers add light and shade to help tell the story of the song. But she also said it was important not to overdo the “between the notes” playing or you’ll lose your audience too. (Moral of the story: more is not always better. And it’s a matter of art, not science, as to what the optimum balance is, even in something that seems as mathematically-governed as playing 4 beats to the bar.)
- Stewart Copeland played with a huge variety of amateur and professional drummers on his programme…from people on the streets of New Orleans to superstars in their own right like Sheila E, Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters and John Densmore of The Doors. No matter what he was doing with another drummer Stewart Copeland had a smile on his face the size of a barn door. (Moral of the story: if you can find just one activity that makes your spirit soar, do it as much as you can for the rest of your life. Stewart Copeland won’t be going to meet St Peter grumbling to himself about spending too much time on his drum kit…it’s what he was born to do. Find out what you were born to do, then pray for one-tenth of the joy drumming gives Stewart Copeland. You’ll spend the rest of your life with the biggest smile imaginable on your face.)
Final bonus lesson…I got all this (and more, I could probably have written 50 points if I put my mind to it) from watching a TV documentary about very much a minority interest subject on a channel that is itself a distinct minority interest for the British television-viewing public. There’s always something you can learn, even in the unlikeliest places, if you keep yourself open to the learning opportunities that come your way.
If you’re a music nerd like me…or even (gasp!) someone who has no idea what this article is all about, you can see Stewart Copeland “on duty” in this great live performance… https://youtu.be/Ki97mpo6Y_Y
You see, learning opportunities are everywhere if you pay attention to what’s going on around you…and yes, even drummers can give you a lesson or ten about what really matters in your business.
(Photo by Oscar Ivan Esquivel Arteaga on Unsplash)