May brings us International Drum Month, a perfect follow-up to April’s International Guitar Month. And if you thought guitar riffs got your heart pumping, just wait until the beat drops!
Everyone has their favorite drummers. The most talented are indisputable: John Bonham of Led Zeppelin, Roger Taylor of Queen, Lars Ulrich of Metallica, Neil Peart (RIP) of Rush, Taylor Hawkins (RIP) of Foo Fighters, Phil Collins, Sheila E, Meg White, and many others. Some songs have an intriguing driving or tribal beat that makes you tap your fingers, sway your body, and nod your head; you feel compelled to get out on the dance floor.
A Beat as Old as Humanity
Drums have been around for millennia and appear in the earliest remnants of every culture. Anthropology and evolutionary biology tell us there’s a scientific reason why we love drumming. From Massive Science:
Humans are a social species, and we love a good beat. Compared to other species, we love to gather in groups, whether for joyful or unhappy reasons. Scientists have determined that the sound of drums alerts our senses and triggers the need to move our bodies. This is a common reaction you may be familiar with if you’ve ever been to a concert or dance club where the bass is especially thick.
Across history, drums have been used to mark significant events, summon people, and ignite emotion. Drum circles are seen everywhere, from medieval post-plague gatherings to ceremonial war dances. In many cultures, drums are so revered that they aren’t treated as mere objects at all.
So Many Drums, So Many Options
Drums come in all shapes and sizes:
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Acoustic drum kits (rock, pop, indie, jazz)
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Congas and bongos (Afro-Cuban origin)
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Djembe, udu, soukos (African)
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Steel drums, timpani, gongs, tambourines, and more
My bucket playlist (linked at the end of this post) contains songs with driving drumbeats from across genres and cultures—especially rock, pop, indie, Brazilian, Cuban, and African influences—perfect for the cycling studio.
Want to Get Creative?
For instructors with a curious, adventurous group of riders, consider adding something totally unexpected:
🎵 Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five”: Those soft snare drum strokes are mesmerizing!
🎵 Ravel’s “Bolero”: The snare drummer plays 4,050 beats in 15 minutes, slowly building to a crescendo. It’s a hypnotic experience—but you need a patient, trusting group for this one.
I played “Bolero” once in a class and it was magical, but not something I’d do for a brand-new group.
Try One of These Two Ready-Made Drumming Profiles
To make things easy, I’ve created two full profiles you can pull out this month. Their objectives are completely different, so you could even use them back-to-back!
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Pedal and Percussion: Climbing to the Rhythm
A crowd favorite—this ride features steady climbs powered by driving drumbeats. It’s energizing, immersive, and fun. -
Pedal and Percussion: High-Intensity Intervals with Drumming Power
This one’s all about interval work. Strong surges, short recoveries, and explosive power matched to fierce percussion tracks.
Using these profiles will save you hours—time you’d otherwise spend agonizing over which of your 100 favorite drum songs to cut from the playlist!
I’m sharing several of my favorite individual drumming songs next, including my all-time favorite drum-focused track. You’ll definitely want to bookmark these songs.
👉 ICA members: Scroll down to the end to access the full bucket playlist with 230+ songs featuring incredible drums from around the world.
Let’s get the most obvious song out of the way, one that I am 99% sure you will put in your drumming celebration playlist. (Of course, it’s in my Pedal and Percussion: Climbing to the Rhythm playlist!)
In The Air Tonight, Phil Collins, 5:36, 96 bpm
Experience the iconic drum solo that sends shivers down your spine. Let the anticipation build as you ride in silence, waiting for that defining moment to unleash your energy. When the first note of this song comes on in your cycling studio, smiles will spread across your riders’ faces; you might even see a hand pump or two or hear a resounding “YES!” emerging from the group. Ask your riders to dissociate from the beat and ride between 60 and 80 rpm; suggest they stay seated until that moment.* Then they can stand as desired for as long as desired.
*The drum solo starts at different times depending on the version you’re using. In this YouTube official music video, the solo begins at 3:15. In the remastered version on Spotify, it begins at 3:41.
Keep Yourself Alive, Queen, 3:48, 138 bpm
Listen to that drum solo at 2:13! And the rest of the time, just climb…
Take It Off, The Donnas, 2:41, 159 bpm
Celebrate the prowess of female drummers with Tori Castellano’s energetic performance. The tempo and energy of this track encourage a higher-cadence 80 rpm effort at a high intensity.
Tom Sawyer, Rush, 4:36, 88 rpm
Incredible band with incredible drumming—which is why I’m posting it here—but IMHO, it’s not the easiest song to ride in a cycling class unless you and your riders are deeply avid Rush fans—which is certainly a high probability if rock is your jam. Especially if you are from Canada.
Tusk, Fleetwood Mac, 3:30, 90 bpm
This track is the quintessential song for the cycling studio. My preference is to use it for a seated high-cadence interval. Here’s some fun trivia…did you know the band in the recording is the USC Trojan marching band? They recorded it live at Dodger Stadium in June of 1979, led by USC drum major Rodney Davis. The music video was one of the first shown on MTV when the network first aired in 1981.
You Wreck Me, Tom Petty, 3:23, 83 bpm
Feel the driving force of the drums propel you through intense intervals, courtesy of the legendary Steve Ferrone. I often use this track for short FTP tests or VO2 max (ouch!) intervals.
The Strong Rhythm, Manaca, Chus & Ceballos, 7:48, 126 bpm
Not all good drumming songs are headbangers—tribal rhythms make for phenomenal tracks in the cycling studio. Just like the lyrics of this song say, this song has a strong rhythm. The voice invites you to “release yourself” to the tribal beat, which begins at 1:30…and then it doesn’t let go of you for the next 6 minutes—from that point forward, ask your riders to surrender to the beat. (There is also a 9-minute version of this song. Search Manaca and Chus & Ceballos on whatever streaming service you use for more tribal sounds.)
Drumm Fever, Drummboys, 2:39, 142 bpm
This Brazilian rhythm track invites you to dig in for a hard push for the full length of the song. Use it for an above-threshold interval.
The End, The Beatles, 2:21, 125 bpm
Great drums for a recovery song of just over 2 minutes. (Make sure to dissociate from the beat.)
Below you will find a few more suggestions of some of our favorite drum songs (including my all-time favorite) and what to do to them in your classes, plus our drumming bucket playlist with ~230 songs perfect for your drumming-focused ride.
And don’t forget to drop your favorites in the comments if we missed any!
And don’t forget Afro Celt Sound System, they have a bunch of drum /rhythm songs. A few that I play regularly – Whirl-Y-Reel 2, Lovers of Light, When You’re Falling (with Peter Gabriel !)
absolutely Joe! I could have sworn that I had ACSS in my bucket drum playlist but looks like I didn’t, so thanks for the reminder—I’ll add all of these. I did put the song “Release” in my “dump file” that I created to select for my ride for next week (which I’ll put on ICA when I get it done). I love the drums in “Release”!
My “dump file” is that in-between playlist where I put the songs I want to consider for my profile, so instead of choosing from over 150 songs, I’m only choosing from 30-ish songs.
I have that same dump file, lol. I even have one labeled “looking for a spot” Haha!