Behind the Beat: Recording “Take Another Chance on Me” – A Session at Amen Studio
The Setup: Vintage Meets Modern
For this drum recording session, Gavin turned to one of his favourites: the Ludwig Super Classic 1965 Vintage Kit, featuring a 20″ bass drum, 13″ rack tom, and 16″ floor tom. There’s something about that warm, punchy tone of a vintage kit that modern gear can’t quite replicate. You can check out more about Ludwig’s legendary drums here.
To complement the kit, he paired it with a Keith Carlock Sonor Signature Snare—a versatile beast with clarity and punch. (Learn more about it here)
The cymbal setup was kept tight and focused:
Zildjian Avedis 14″ Hi-Hats
Zildjian A Fast Crash 16″
Tuning Tricks & Troubles
Tuning a vintage kit can be a joy—or a challenge. In this case, it was both. The floor tom was a bit fussy, resisting stable tuning despite help from the Tune Bot (link). Gavin eventually coaxed it into submission, matching top and bottom heads for optimal resonance, then tweaking with muffling to suit the track.
Snare was tuned to F#, with toms dialled in to match the vibe—although during sections where they weren’t needed, a bit of judicious muffling helped keep the snare and kick nice and clean.
Mic Magic
Capturing a drum sound that’s both punchy and spacious is a bit of an art form—and this session pulled out all the stops:
- Overheads:Advanced Audio U47s in a spaced pair, aimed at the snare for focused shell tone.
- Room Mics:Coles 4038s, five feet back and positioned for rich room reflections. (Coles)
- Close Mics:Lauten Audio Horizons on snare and kick (Lauten Audio)
- Kick In Mic:AKG D12 VR, aimed dead centre for that thump. (AKG D12 VR)
- Additional colour came from theBeyerdynamic MC 930s, Heil Sound PR31 BWs, and a trusty Shure SM57placed dead-centre as a “wurst” mic for extra vibe.
Preamps and Processing
Signal ran through a mix of Daking Audio and Focusrite ISA 828 preamps for clean, punchy capture. (Daking, Focusrite)
One standout channel strip saw the kick in processed through a Pultec EQ and a Neve-style compressor, boosting that juicy 30Hz and adding some sheen at 10kHz.
Playing the Part
Once the kit was singing, Gavin focused on performance. Take 2–3 from the end were the magic ones. The groove needed energy without losing clarity. Think: tight hi-hat articulation with accented off-beats, a few tasty 24-note and 3-note fills, and some extra fill overdubs for flexibility in the final mix.
Mixing Moments
Mixing decisions were all about feel vs. polish. In Logic Pro (Apple Logic Pro), Gavin used Flex Time sparingly—tightening without making things robotic. A subtle snare sample helped it pop in the mix without losing natural dynamics.
As a final touch, he toyed with some hand claps and tambourine to elevate the choruses—those production layers that take a good song to great.
Every project has its quirks, but “Take Another Chance on Me” was a joy to work on. Whether it’s vintage drums, room mic experiments, or mixing in the right amount of feel, that’s what we do here at Amen Session Drummer.
If you’re searching for session drummers for hire, or a studio drummer for hire who understands how to elevate your track from a distance, Gavin’s your guy. From remote session drummer services to full online session drums tailored to your track, Amen Studio has become a trusted name for artists around the world.
Do you have a song?
We’re proud to be home to one of the top session drummers in the UK—and dare we say, one of the best session drummer options for any project needing heart, tone, and precision.
Want to bring Gavin onto your next track? Reach out—we’re ready when you are.