Press Play for a country drum beat at 160 BPM. It starts with 50s Rock and Roll, and you can switch to Train Beat, Bo Diddley Beat, Ray Price Shuffle and Country Two-Step. One beat lasts 375 ms.
Playing over a country drum beat at 160 BPM
160 BPM is at the fast end for country. Stay relaxed: if your hands tense up or you start rushing, drop back ten BPM, play the part cleanly for a few minutes, then come back up.
What plays at 160 BPM
50s Rock and Roll is written at 164 BPM, so 160 BPM is its home tempo. In 4/4 at this tempo a quarter note lasts 375 ms, an eighth note 188 ms and a sixteenth 94 ms, which is the spacing of the hi-hat you hear. Switch to Train Beat, Bo Diddley Beat, Ray Price Shuffle and Country Two-Step on the page and the tempo stays at 160 BPM.
How long is a phrase at 160 BPM?
Knowing how long a phrase lasts helps you plan a song, a solo or a recording take. The drums play a fill at the end of every four or eight bars, so these are the lengths you will hear.
Phrase lengths at 160 BPM
Length
Time
One bar of 4/4
1.5 seconds
Four-bar phrase
6 seconds
Eight-bar section
12 seconds
Three-minute song
about 120 bars
How a country drum beat works
The train beat is played on the snare in steady sixteenth notes, with accents on beats two and four and the kick on one and three. It pushes forward like a moving train, so your part has to keep up without rushing.
How to play along
Guitarists: alternate bass notes and chord strums ("boom-chick") with the kick and snare accents. Bassists: play root-fifth on beats one and three. At faster tempos, relax your strumming hand and use smaller movements.