Philly Joe Jones Solo Book

Update August 2021 – There is a new post with updated photos and a full table of contents that lists every solo included in the book.

Updated July 2019 – This post was originally posted in 2017. Two years later there’s a new version of The Philly Joe Jones Solo Book available with an additional 32 transcribed drum solos! I’ll list them at the bottom of this post.

The Philly Joe Jones Solo Book is well worth the $50 – $60 price tag. It was transcribed over the course of 10 years by Joerg Eckel, a student of John Riley’s.

There are over 320 380 pages of Philly Joe Jones drum solo transcriptions in the book. Each one includes stickings and lists the album that each solo is on.

You can get a copy at Memphis Drum Shop or Columbus Percussion. I’ve heard that Maxwell’s Drum Shop will be getting some copies as well.

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Read on for details, photos and the list of solos included in the book.

Using the Book

I typically learn the solos by ear and then use the transcriptions to check myself or get help with a sticking.

The transcriptions are copies of handwritten music charts and might be harder to read for some people, but it’s not that big of a deal. When I’m working on a solo, I’ll typically scan the page in so I can load it on my iPad and zoom in. I’ve sometimes made an enlarged and darker photocopy so I can make notes and mark up the pages.

Here’s a sample page:

Table of Contents

For those curious about the full list of songs/solos in the book, here is the table of contents. These photos are from the 1st version of the book – See below for the list new songs/solos that have been added to the updated 2019 version of the book.

Update July 2019

New solos that have been added to the book:

• Ahmad’s Blues
• Aw C’mon Hoss
• Awful Mean (Alt tk)
• Brownie Speaks
• Carving The Rock
• Cookin’
• Daahoud
• Fit For A Hanker
• Gaza Strip
• Hackensack
• The Head
• Hotel 49
• Just One Of Those Things (Alt tk)
• Lady Bird
• Modal Mood
• Moe, Jr.
• The Most Beautiful Girl In The World
• Muse Rapture
• Need I?
• On It
• Ping Pong Beer
• Plexus (Alt tk)
• The Prophet
• Sam Sack (Alt tk)
• Second Balcony Jump
• Steeplechase
• This Time The Dream’s On Me
• Wee-Jay (Alt tk)
• When Lights Are Low
• Woody ‘N You
• Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams
• Zambia

Reviews & Praise

“This is an incredible work to study. A document of devotion, dedicated to one of the greatest masters of the art form.”
– Adam Nussbaum

“The Philly Joe Jones Solo Book represents the pinnacle of jazz drumming transcription. Joerg Eckel’s book is a “must have” for every teaching studio where jazz drumming is taught. My students and I at the Thornton School of Music at USC refer to this book throughout the year, and I learn something new every time I consult it. Highly recommended.”
– Peter Erskine

“Musicians have been digging the swing, flow, creativity and hipness of Philly Joe Jones’ drumming for decades. Listening to the recordings he’s contributed to is awe-inspiring. Joerg Eckel’s book is the encyclopedia of this vast jazz language. Get it, listen, practice!”
– John Riley

Philly Joe Jones on CD

Thankfully it’s easy to find recordings of the tunes in the book, on CD or streaming. I like CDs so I can rip them into my computer and use an app like Transcribe or Anytune to slow them down.

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This book is highly recommended! Thanks to Joerg Eckel for his work and the amazing resource he has created for jazz drummers and for documenting the great drumming of Philly Joe Jones.

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Modern Rudimental Swing Solos

Modern Rudimental Swing Solos is a collection of challenging rudimental snare drum solos for the advanced drummer that Philly Joe worked out of religiously. Kenny Washington also uses this book and teaches from it. It’s not uncommon to hear phrases from this book show up in his solos.

Sections and solos from the book:

• List of Rudiments
• The Flam Stomp
• Rhythmania
• Paradiddle Johnnie
• Swinging Accents
• Deep Central
• Roughing the Single Drag
• Elyria Four Stroke
• Study in Accents
• Lorain Post Dug-Out
• The Corn Belt Jive
• Modern Flam Accents
• The Flam Accent Fantasy
• The New Downfall
• Heating the Rudiments
• Old Sue
• The Rhumba
• Home Cookin’
• Ubangi Serenade
• Sweet Susan
• Mr. J. Edward Heeps
• The Tiger
• Loosen Up
• The Scotty
• Rudimental Jam
• The Spanish Three Eight
• Swinging the “26”
• Three Camps
• Three Camps in Paradiddles
• Three Camps in Ratamacues
• Battin Em’ Out