Josh Crawford is know as the "reactionary-in-chief" on Youtube...
...but that pretty substantially undersells his drum ability.
So, I react to one of his drum covers, break down some licks, bish-bash-bosh, right?
Well, of course there's a little more to it.
In truth, this lesson was the perfect story of "cool stuff to transcribe/share" with "ultimate irony."
I'll admit it: I was mixed about the reaction videos at first. I misunderstood it. "This other guy's doing all the work, and you're just filming yourself, watching him, then getting tons of views from it."
Like many-a-YouTuber hoping for more video views, and getting outmaneuvered by this upstart, I was salty.
I now understand that I misinterpreted two things:
First, if you actually watch one of those reaction videos, Josh comes across as humble, funny, and disarming, and his commentary does add to the enjoyment of the original video.
What's more, many of his reaction/tribute videos have more views than the original (yes, with a few exceptions), which means he's bringing additional exposure to the artists.
Second, Josh's not an armchair ninja weighing in on other playing. He's a high-level player himself.
Who could feature himself more often, but frequently chooses to relinquish the spotlight to the drummers he's featuring.
But Josh's recent videos, by-and-large, have featured his own playing, and good goddamn thing, because he's killing.
Anyway, sensing the overlap of genuine admiration and funny irony, I messaged Josh to see if he likewise saw the potential in the idea, and, luckily, he did.
As such I bring you - The Josh Crawford Lesson.