SKF NOTE: Jason Carey, my friend, is an excellent guitarist. Recently Jason started a one-hour YouTube “Morning Ritual for Guitar Growth;” a wake-up session for guitarists.

Broadcasting from his Maine farm house “dog room,” Jason and viewers from around the globe run through guitar finger exercises, breathing techniques. Much like a jam session, Jason’s morning guitar session moves among many topics, depending on what Jason and his viewers want to discuss.

While performing most of the audio cleanup on my recently posted Michael Shrieve interview, Jason found that many of Shrieve’s ideas on making music on a drumset could be applied to making music on guitar.

Tuesday of this week, January 28, Jason invited me to join his morning session to test the concept that guitarists have something to learn from drummers and vice versa.

I had no doubt about the concept. In my life, non-drummer musicians taught me plenty about becoming a better, more sympathetic, more supportive drummer. From the pages of a jazz book or magazine, I believe, great tenor saxophonist Lester Young was first to stress the importance of knowing song lyrics when playing instrumental song interpretations.

Early on my high school music teacher and jazz pianist, Art Simeone, taught me the basics of accompanying piano players.

The concept of cross-learning among musicians is sound. And I thoroughly enjoyed being with Jason Carey for last Tuesday’s “Morning Ritual for Guitar Growth.” There aren’t many times now I get to chew the fat about drumming with other musicians.

Tuesday in the “dog room,” listening to the conversation, answering questions, I was channeling lots of drummers i.e., Ed Soph, Michael Shrieve, Neil Peart, Baby Dodds, and Keith Copeland. Their words/answers were entering my head. And, when possible, I passed on those drummers’ wisdom to “Morning Ritual” participants.

One person asked, What can a drummer play to help a guitarist not lose time during guitar solos?

Tony Williams’s circa 1972 came to mind. Asked in a DownBeat interview if he was Miles Davis’s Second Great Quintet’s timekeeper, Tony answered with a firm “no.” He said musicians who can’t keep time without relying on a drummer had no business on the bandstand.

The next time you’re awake at 7:30 am, think about grabbing your sticks and drum pad and join the folks on YouTube at Jason Carey’s “Morning Ritual for Guitar Growth.”