(Don't Fear) The Reaper
Blue Oyster Cult · 1976
The famous cowbell part teaches limb independence and steady mid-tempo time.
- Artist
- Blue Oyster Cult
- Year
- 1976
- Genre
- classic rock
- Drummer
- Albert Bouchard
- Tempo
- 141 bpm
- Time
- 4/4
- Feel
- steady cowbell-accented rock
- Difficulty
- intermediate
Drummer's Quick-Start
Practice tempos
Woodshed
84bpm
Building
112bpm
Target
141bpm
The feel
A steady cowbell-accented rock in 4/4 around 141 BPM. It moves — stay relaxed in the hands so you don't tense up and rush.
What to watch
- •Play to a metronome and prize consistency over speed — even time is the whole game.
How to learn it
Well-known tutorials exist for this one — use the links below, and play along from your own copy.
Generated from this song's groove profile — analysis only, no notation. A human-reviewed AI brief with a full groove breakdown, key moments and song map replaces this as briefs roll out.
Learn it
Find drum tutorials on YouTube ↗iDrum links to where lessons already live — we don't host recordings or publish transcriptions. Play along from your own music.
Discussion
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