The pattern
120 BPM · 4/4 · 32 step
| Instrument | Beat 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 | Beat 2 | Step 6 | Step 7 | Step 8 | Beat 3 | Step 10 | Step 11 | Step 12 | Beat 4 | Step 14 | Step 15 | Step 16 | Beat 5 | Step 18 | Step 19 | Step 20 | Beat 6 | Step 22 | Step 23 | Step 24 | Beat 7 | Step 26 | Step 27 | Step 28 | Beat 8 | Step 30 | Step 31 | Step 32 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kick | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest |
| Snare | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest |
| Ride | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest |
| Crash | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest |
| Cowbell | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest |
| High conga | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | hit | rest |
| Low conga | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest |
| Timbales | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | hit | hit | hit | rest | rest | rest |
How to play it and where it comes from
The Santana sound (Abraxas, 1970; "Oye Como Va" is a Tito Puente cha-cha-chá brought into rock at ~120): rock drums with a backbeat on 2 and 4 (Michael Shrieve) over an Afro-Cuban percussion section. The congas (Michael Carabello) play the tumbao with a slap on 2 and open tones on 4 and the "and" of 4; the timbales (José "Chepito" Areas) keep the cowbell on the quarter notes and close phrases with fills and abanico. Kick follows the bass (1, the "and" of 2, 3). For a hybrid with hip hop: keep congas and cowbell, replace the drums with a swung boom bap at 90–95. Variants: 2-3 clave on the rim, switch to cáscara on the timbal shell in the verses, ride in place of the hi-hat in the solos.