The One Drop drum groove
The pattern, step by step
One cell per sixteenth note, sixteen cells to the bar — exactly what the hub's drum machine plays. Downbeats are shown in bold.
Reggae One Drop
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kick | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · |
| Snare | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · |
| Hi-hat | · | · | ● | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | ● | · |
- Kick · 1 hit · steps 9 · beats 3
- Snare · 1 hit · steps 9 · beats 3
- Hi-hat · 4 hits · steps 3, 7, 11, 15 · offbeat eighths
Where to start
Count four beats out loud and play NOTHING on the 1. Hit kick and snare exactly together on the 3. It is counter-intuitive, and that is the whole exercise.
What the hands and feet actually do
The hi-hat holds the off-beats while the 1 stays empty: that is what keeps the track from collapsing. Carlton Barrett played it with metronome steadiness, never forcing.
The trap
Putting a hit back on the 1 "to be safe". The moment you fill that hole it is no longer a one drop: it is a slow rock beat. The emptiness is not an absence, it is the pattern.
Listen to this
To hear the One Drop groove in its element:
No Woman No Cry (Bob Marley) · Is This Love (Bob Marley) · Waiting in Vain
Drummers of this groove
Carlton Barrett
The inventor of the one drop: beat 1 left empty, absolute steadiness and never one stroke too many.
Barrett built the rhythmic grammar of reggae with his bass-playing brother Aston. His discovery, removing the downbeat, defined an entire genre. Murdered in Kingston in 1987, he remains little known to the public although his pattern is played daily across the world.
No Woman No CryExodusGet Up Stand UpNeighbouring grooves
Play it right now
The Drum Hub's drum machine loads this pattern, plays it at any tempo and lets you edit it cell by cell.
Open the Drum Hub →Frequently asked questions
How do you play a One Drop groove on drums?
Count four beats out loud and play NOTHING on the 1. Hit kick and snare exactly together on the 3. It is counter-intuitive, and that is the whole exercise.
What tempo is One Drop played at?
The usual range runs from 65 to 95 BPM. The hub's 1 pattern(s) are set to 80 BPM, and the tempo stays free inside the drum machine.
Is One Drop straight or shuffled?
Straight: the eighth notes are even, with no delay on the offbeats. That is what the hub's pattern plays.
Which drummer should you listen to for One Drop?
Carlton Barrett, The Wailers. In the hub, Carlton Barrett is attached to this groove.