Note-for-note transcription of Pat Zgoda’s drum part on Summer of 69 from Bryan Adams’ Reckless (1985).
Around 136 BPM, 4/4. A straight-ahead, no-frills rock groove that locks in and doesn’t let go. The kick and snare sit in the pocket from bar one, the hi-hat keeps a relentless eighth-note pulse, and the whole thing drives forward like it has somewhere to be.
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The Summer of 69 drum transcription is one of those parts that sounds completely effortless until you try to replicate it with that same locked-in feel. Pat Zgoda doesn’t do anything complicated here.
The eighth-note hi-hat runs through the entire song, the snare cracks on 2 and 4, the kick sits right where you expect it to. What makes it so effective is the consistency. There’s no wandering, no rushing into the chorus, no fills thrown in just to fill space. The groove just sits, and it sits perfectly.
That kind of playing is deceptively hard to execute well. Beginners sometimes underestimate it because the notes are simple, and then find out quickly that keeping a steady eighth-note hi-hat locked against a solid backbeat for three and a half minutes without tension creeping into your arms is a real physical discipline.
The tempo never wavers on the recording, and if yours does, you’ll hear it.
The fills are sparse and purposeful. A short snare run or a quick tom drop at a section change, and then it’s straight back into the pocket. There’s nothing here that exists to show off, every hit is in service of keeping the song moving forward.
If you’re new to reading the chart format and want to get across it quickly before you sit down at the kit, our drum notation guide will get you sorted.
For more classic rock drumming built on the same philosophy of pocket over flash, our Back in Black drum transcription is the natural companion here. Phil Rudd and Pat Zgoda are operating from the same playbook: lock in, serve the song, trust the groove.
And if the stamina side of holding this tempo cleanly for a full song is exposing some gaps, our guide on how to build drumming stamina will help you get there without tensing up.
Once you’ve got Summer of 69 sitting right, the Living on a Prayer drum transcription is a solid next step, same era, same straight-ahead arena energy, but with a few more dynamic shifts to navigate. This chart lives in our free drum transcriptions library alongside 160+ others.
Difficulty: Beginner — Easy/Intermediate
Tempo: ~136 BPM
Time Signature: 4/4
Key Technique: Steady eighth-note hi-hat, locked backbeat, fill economy, tempo consistency
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