Drumming News :
Brad Schlueter reviews Hudson Music’s Carmine Appice reissued book “Classic Realistic Rock”.
Carmine Appice is a rock drumming icon known for his powerful playing and bold stage presence. He first gained widespread attention in the late 1960s with the psychedelic rock band Vanilla Fudge, particularly through appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show. Vanilla Fudge also helped introduce Led Zeppelin to American audiences by bringing them on their first U.S. tour, and Appice’s drumming style (and many of his licks) went on to influence Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham.
After leaving Vanilla Fudge, Appice toured with the hard-rock band Cactus, where he wrote his first instructional book, Realistic Rock. Published in the early 1970s, it was one of the first drum books dedicated specifically to rock music and quickly became a staple for drummers and teachers alike.
Originally released in the early 1970s and now reissued by Hudson Music as Classic Realistic Rock, this updated edition honors the book’s legacy while adapting it for modern students through improved layout and integrated audio.
From the outset, Carmine Appice’s goal is clear. He focuses on teaching grooves, fills, and coordination patterns that drummers will actually use in real musical settings. Rather than abstract technical studies, the material emphasizes feel, phrasing, and practical application. Although the book is relatively short at just over 100 pages, it is carefully organized and delivers a substantial amount of usable content.
A major improvement in this version is the inclusion of streaming and downloadable audio. Hearing the examples played musically removes guesswork from those drummers whose reading skills aren’t strong and helps students internalize a rock feel. Bonus fills have been added to this version from Appice’s Replacements book to further expand and modernize this edition. Also, a previous version of this book introduced errors that have now been corrected.
The book covers essential rock concepts including basic grooves, linear sticking patterns, syncopation, hi hat studies, shuffle feels, odd time signatures, hand and foot coordination, and double bass patterns. The shuffle and triplet sections are especially strong, introducing these feels gradually and musically rather than as isolated technical challenges. This book will keep you busy if you work on all the hi-hat and leading hand variations offered. Little wonder it has remained one of the most influential books in drum education for over 50 years.
Visually, the restored design gives the book a vintage look rather than a modern one. The three line notation is clear and accessible for novice music readers , though it is not standard drum notation. One possible source of confusion is the section labeled “Rock Polyrhythms,” which focuses on sticking based coordination rather than true polyrhythmic concepts.
Overall, Classic Realistic Rock is an effective resource and it continues to serve beginners and intermediate players alike, offering practical tools that translate directly to real world rock drumming.
Brad Schlueter is a Chicago-based drummer, teacher and author. He has performed with a wide range of groups and recorded drum tracks from his home studio for clients worldwide. Brad has taught at The Drum Pad, The Music Room in Palatine, and his Batavia studio and also offers online lessons. As a writer, he has contributed to Drum! Magazine, Modern Drummer and Reverb.com, and he co-authored the award-nominated book by Todd Sucherman, “Methods and Mechanics”.
