Stewart Copeland - Message In A Bottle (Drum Transcription)

“Message In A Bottle” from Regatta De Blanc

This is a great tune, and was a big hit for The Police. Its drum part was one of those created from several takes that were combined. Copeland attacks the intro with an alternating snare/kick pattern that leads into a cool reggae groove. He omits the bass drum on the downbeat, making the pattern feel a bit unusual. In the chorus, he plays the bass drum almost continuously, which gives the pattern much more forward momentum than the verse.