Learn to playIsn't She Lovelyas made famous by Stevie Wonderon drums
ChatGPT prompt: “Provide a 170 character description of the drum beat for SONG NAME"
Build the shuffle from the ground up, then add the swing and feel. Finish with Stevie's busy triplet fills and expressive groove.
With our step-by-step drum lesson you can recreate the beat behind Isn't She Lovely. We’ve broken down the main sections of the song and will take you through each part beat by beat, with video demonstrations.
Isn't She Lovely
Drums Tutorial - Step by Step
Intro
Launch into the shuffle groove on the hi-hat, with kick variations in the first 2 bars. Watch for the fills throughout this section, leading with your hi-hat hand.
Chorus
Continue the groove through the chord change of the chorus. Play double stop triplets on snare and hi-hat, finishing with hits with the band. Fill into the solo.
Solo
Play through a verse and chorus section for the solo, watching for the fill variations, and once again finishing with the double stops into the hits.
Verse 2
Continue the groove through verse 2 and into chorus 2. Pay attention to the triplet fill in bar 8, and fill into the outro section.
Outro
Groove out over another solo, with more fill variations, and finishing on the hits with the band.
Combine and play
Now combine the sections to play the full arrangement.
Learn to play
Isn't She Lovely
with Melodics
Behind the track
Isn't She Lovely
by Stevie Wonder
"Isn't She Lovely" landed on Songs in the Key of Life in 1976, written with Burnetta "Bunny" Jones to celebrate the birth of Stevie's daughter Aisha Morris. Her voice is on the recording - captured on tape during bath time, near the end of the track. Stevie refused to cut it down for a 7" single, which meant it was too long for radio at over six minutes. It charted in 1977 anyway. Nathan Watts, Stevie's longtime bassist, tracked a guide bass part for the sessions - but Stevie replaced it with his own playing for the final mix. The drum part on the record? Also Stevie.
Tips for learning Isn't She Lovely on drums
Tip 1: Slow it down
Break it down: Tackle each section of Isn't She Lovely individually for precision mastery. With Melodics, you can slow the pace of the song and work up to full speed.
Tip 2: Review your performance
Identify growth areas: Listen to playback of your performance to learn where you need to develop your timing, technique & rhythm. Melodics provides instant feedback on your performance.
Tip 3: Practice makes perfect
Stay consistent: With regular, focused practice you'll see rapid progress when learning the song. Even a short session each day will make a huge difference.
- Get access to 100s of interactive lessons and popular songs
- Instant feedback on your performance and tracking of your progress
- The fun and effective way to stick to your drum kit
Other popular songs available in Melodics
Easy - Commodores
Lay back with this breezy swung groove from Lionel and the gang.
Running Up That Hill - Kate Bush
Get those toms galloping up that hill with this viral cult classic hit.
Chop Suey - System of a Down
Move between half, regular and double time in this heavy rock hit.
FAQs
- Isn't She Lovely is an advanced level song. Fortunately, there are beginner versions of the song available on Melodics to check out!
- You will need a handle on the shuffle groove and triplet fills.
- 119 bpm
- 4/4
- E major
- New songs are released every week on Melodics! And we love to take requests - the best place for this is within our Discord community where you can also connect with other music learners around the world. Check out https://melodics.com/info/community.