How to play shuffle

Guitar basics: how to play with shuffle feel

By Total Guitar ( Total Guitar ) published 5 June 18

Set your tunes on shuffle with this tab and audio lesson

A key part of many styles of music, we help you find your groove and get jamming with a shuffle.

“What is this ‘shuffle feel’ you speak of?”

Most music is divided into groups of four beats called bars. Each beat can be split in two to give eight notes per bar. These ‘eighth’ notes are usually the same length. A shuffle feel makes the first of each pair of notes slightly longer. It’s very popular in blues and jazz.

“Ugh. That sounds complicated, is there a lot of difficult notation?”

“Okay, that doesn’t sound so bad. You mentioned something about blues and jazz?”

“Enough talking! Let’s get to it.”

The first thing to do is get used to the way a shuffle sounds by comparing it to non-shuffle or ‘straight’ feel. In a shuffle the first of each pair of eighth notes is longer. Try saying ‘murder-murder-murder-murder’ to verbalise the feel; ‘mur-’ should be slightly longer than ‘-der’. Straight feel is more like ‘ladder-ladder- ladder-ladder’, where ‘ladd-’ and ‘-er’ are the same length. As we say, it’s all about feeling the groove.

“Nice exercise, but how does it work in the real world?”

Example 2 is a classic shuffle riff that’s used in countless blues and classic rock tracks. It’s an excellent introduction to the shuffle rhythm as it’s a steady stream of notes that’s nice and easy to play. There are countless variations to this pattern, so don’t be afraid to experiment.

“I think I’m set. Any parting advice?”

Palm-muting can help the riff sound tighter and give the notes clarity. This is especially true if you’re using a distorted tone. If you’re comfortable with the shuffle feel then try it out.

Beat it!

Tips for snappier offbeats.

1. Pieces of eight

Two eighth notes are the same length. A stream of eighth notes would have a ‘ladder-ladder- ladder-ladder’ feel.

2. Counting in threes

If you’re really precise, in a shuffle feel, the first note is twice the length of the second note and sometimes shuffle grooves are referred to as ‘triplet feel’. Note the ‘3’ that indicates this.

3. Feel the shuffle

So the symbol says, ‘when you see two eighth notes written, play a note the length of two triplet notes, followed by another the length of one triplet note’. Or in plain English: play with a shuffle feel!

Moving between straight and shuffle feels

Although the notation looks the same, bar 2 has the shuffle mark. Play the backing track and listen to the rhythm switch from ‘ladder’ to ‘murder’ feel.

Blues shuffle riff

This is a classic shuffle riff that’s used in lots of blues and classic rock. To give it some extra edge, try adding palm-muting.

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How to turn on shuffle on Spotify, using either your computer or phone

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From watching music videos on YouTube to streaming music on platforms like Spotify, it’s never been easier to listen to music.

Aside from the standard features, Spotify also includes a shuffle feature, which allows you to switch up the order of songs in your playlists or favorite albums.

Here’s how to turn on the shuffle feature on Spotify.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

How to turn on shuffle on Spotify using your computer

1. Turn on your PC or Mac computer and launch the Spotify desktop app.

2. Search for the album or playlist you want to listen to. At the bottom of the screen, click the shuffle icon, which looks like two overlapping arrows.

3. The shuffle button will turn green when enabled.

How to turn on shuffle on Spotify using your phone

Firstly, it should be noted that if you don’t have Spotify Premium and are using the mobile app, some playlists can only be played in shuffle mode. You can tell which playlists these are beecause they’ll start with a listing of who the playlist «features.»

Otherwise, here’s what you’ll need to do:

1. Launch the Spotify app on your iPhone or Android device.

2. Search for the playlist or album that you want to listen to.

3. Tap the «Shuffle Play» button to shuffle an album or playlist.

4. If you have Spotify Premium, you can shuffle an album or playlist from the «Now Playing» bar at the bottom of the screen. When playing a song, simply tap the bar at the bottom of your screen and then tap the Shuffle icon so it turns green.

How to Play Shuffles and Shuffle Variations

By Brad Schlueter

Can’t play a convincing shuffle? You might as well cross a whole range of potential gigs off your bucket list. Shuffles play a crucial role in every professional drummer’s vocabulary, and those still struggling to get the hang of this particular feel might be surprised to learn there’s a lot more to it than meets the eye.

Shuffles can lightly bounce behind a track or drive like a freight train, and everything in between. You may be content knowing a handful of basic patterns, but there are dozens of types of shuffle grooves that can help you develop greater control and coordination while expanding your fluency. So let’s take your shuffle to the next level.

WHAT IS A SHUFFLE?

As you dig deep into shuffle pedagogy, you’ll find that they’re sometimes written as triplets in 4/4 and other times as 12/8. So, to help you adjust to this idea, we’ve presented the following examples both ways—in either case, they’re more or less equivalent. I’ll refer to both patterns as being counted as 1 & ah 2 & ah 3 & ah 4 & ah because it’s easier to count them that way, even though my music theory teacher would slap my wrists for that.

Shuffles generally sound like a child skipping, with a cymbal pattern playing the pattern 1 – ah 2 – ah 3 – ah 4 – ah. However, as you’ll soon see, there are countless variations on this idea. Sometimes the feet play the shuffle, or it’s divided among several limbs, or occasionally it’s just implied.

GETTING STARTED

For those new to shuffles, we’ll start with a few blues beats that aren’t technically shuffles, but will help you get used to the feel of triplet-based beats. These grooves are written in 6/8, and since they’re shorter, they’re easier to master. Practice each slowly until it becomes comfortable, and then try speeding up the tempo.

Keep your snare and bass drum medium strong, and play your hi-hat softer using the tip to create a musically balanced sound. Once you’re comfortable with these, you can link pairs together to create longer and more interesting patterns. The second line has some simple shuffles.

When playing these on the ride cymbal, you may close your hi-hat with the snare note. The third line is trickier. To master these, play the unaccented snare notes very softly. More advanced drummers can expand these by buzzing or playing soft drags instead of ghost notes for different textures. Feel free to add variations on the cymbal, foot, or snare patterns to spice up any shuffle once you’re comfortable playing it.

MORE SHUFFLE VARIATIONS

There are dozens of shuffle variations and, just to confuse you even more, their names sometimes change by geographical region. Here are a few of the best ones.

KICK DRUM SHUFFLE. The bass drum plays a shuffle rhythm beneath the hands. This is a tiring and loud groove that doesn’t work everywhere, but it’s well worth the time to develop it for situations where it fits. Once mastered, the hands are free to play fills over it.

SAMBA SHUFFLE. You can think of this as the strange progeny of a samba and a kick drum shuffle hookup. The hi-hat pedals the second triplet partial (the &s) for a constant rolling feel.

PURDIE SHUFFLE. Here’s a simple version of a this celebrated shuffle (we dig deeper into it below). Note how the snare ghost notes maintain the momentum of the groove. Many other bass drum patterns are possible. Try to come up with some of your own.

CHEATER SHUFFLE. Okay, this isn’t really a shuffle, but it’s something I’ve seen hard rock drummers and beginners play from time to time, and it can be useful as a fill pattern too.

FLAT TIRE SHUFFLE. Also called an Inside or Backward Shuffle, it sounds like a flat tire turning. This is a key blues groove.

DOUBLE BASS SHUFFLE. An indispensable tool for rock and metal drummers, here we shift the shuffle pattern to the feet. Lots of drummers lead these left-footed, since their left foot is already used to keeping four-on-the-floor time on the hi-hat.

STEVE GADD SHUFFLE. This is similar to a double bass shuffle, but uses the hi-hat in place of the second bass drum.

LAZY MAN SHUFFLE. Here’s a useful variation to use when you want to let the rest of the band play the shuffle feel while you drive right down the middle of it. This can groove really hard.

JAZZ/SWING SHUFFLE. In this permutation a jazz ride or hi-hat pattern takes the place of the shuffle pattern. Drummers often place a quiet snare on (1) ah to complete the feel.

HAND TO HAND SHUFFLE. If you’re ever asked to play a shuffle at a ridiculous speed, this version may become your best friend.

TRAIN BEAT SHUFFLE. Basically a triplet version of the country classic.

LA GRANGE SHUFFLE. On the ZZ Top classic “La Grange,” drummer Frank Beard plays this variation of a Hand To Hand shuffle on the rim of his snare, and embellishes the pattern with flams and drags.

SNARE SHUFFLE. This is a great country or blues groove, and sounds fantastic when using a brush in your right hand while playing a rim-click with your left.

ROCK SHUFFLE. Played heavier than many other variations, the kick and snare suggest the shuffle as much as the hi-hat pattern does. Lots of rock drummers begin learning to shuffle with this kind of beat.

HALFTIME SHUFFLE. Here the snare accents count 3 and the groove feels more laid back and often funkier than a regular shuffle.

GLAM ROCK SHUFFLE. This variation transfers the hi-hat part to the floor tom for a powerful jungle feel.

BUILDING THE DOUBLE SHUFFLE

The Double Shuffle is also known as the Chicago Shuffle, the Full Shuffle, the Prima Shuffle, and sometimes the Texas Shuffle, as well as several other names. It goes by so many aliases it almost makes you wonder if it’s on the lam from the law. This groove has been around for quite some time. Drummer Bobby Morris played it on Louis Prima’s song “Just A Gigolo,” though you’re probably more familiar with David Lee Roth’s 1985 redo of it.

This is an essential shuffle groove. If you can’t play any other shuffle, you should at least have a handle on the Double Shuffle. However, it’s a bit tricky to master. The challenge is getting the left-hand dynamics just right, so practice playing all the unaccented notes very softly. Admittedly, you can also perform this groove with medium level “soft” notes, but by practicing them softly you’ll be ready for any musical situation.

The accented snare note can be played in the middle of the drumhead for a meaty sound, or as a rimshot for a higher pitched ringing timbre. Here’s a tip: To play a quick accent after a soft note, it can help to use a Moeller “whipping” motion or use your fingers to “grab” the stick briefly. Most drummers accent both the snare and ride together, mainly because it’s easier to do it that way. For greater control, work on just accenting the snare hand and keeping the ride or hi-hat even.

ADD-A-NOTE METHOD. One way of teaching this groove is to start with a basic shuffle and add notes to the snare and bass drum parts until you’re eventually playing the whole pattern. Keep in mind that patterns C and D are often interchangeably referred to as Texas Shuffles.

LIMB PAIR METHOD. Another way I often teach grooves is to isolate the hand pattern (the first limb pair) in order to master it first. Once that’s solid and the dynamics are consistent, layer it on top of the much simpler foot pattern (the second limb pair). The slower you work on the hand pattern, the sooner you’ll be able to get the dynamics under control. Once you get these down, experiment with other bass drum patterns.

SHUFFLE FEELS

Once you learn a variety of these grooves you may wonder why some drummers’ shuffles feel so good. It could be a number of things, but first, check out their dynamics. Is the drummer accenting differently from you? What about their overall volume range? It may depend on musical context, but it’s good to be able to adapt your levels to different situations.

Another common stumbling block is dynamic contrast. Is there enough of a difference between your soft and loud notes? Record yourself and listen closely. Make a quick video to check your stick heights for consistency. Playing rimshots on your accents is a great way to add tonal contrast at every volume range between the notes you want to emphasize and those you don’t.

Some drummers employ a more subtle way of altering their feel by varying the note spacing. By deviating from a straight triplet feel, you can drastically alter the music’s feel. Straightening out the notes a bit, notated here with the cymbal on the first and fourth note of a quintuplet rhythm, will give the shuffle a rounder, lazier feel.

This can occur naturally when the tempo becomes so fast that it’s hard to play an even triplet. Think of rockabilly or early rock and roll—lots of those hi-hat patterns had a slightly uneven, somewhere-between-straight-and-swung type of feel.

If you slightly delay the skip note (the last triplet partial—the ah), here shown as the first and fifth note of a septuplet rhythm, you end up with a harder, more driving feel. Now, I’m not suggesting blues drummers are counting fives and sevens, but hopefully this notation will help illustrate their subtle feel changes.

Our last example here uses accents on every ah to give the groove a pushing quality.

ROCKING SHUFFLES OFF THE RECORD

There are many well-known shuffles you should know. Here are a select few of them.

“BALLROOM BLITZ.” Glam rock band The Sweet had a hit with “Ballroom Blitz” and Mick Tucker created this up-tempo driving snare shuffle for the song.

“RADAR LOVE.” Drummer Cesar Zuiderwijk came up with this great pattern for the classic Golden Earring single. Even though he played a right-handed kit, he actually reversed the stickings we notated on this version.

PURDIE SHUFFLE. There are many different versions of this groove played by Bernard Purdie, but perhaps his best known is this one from the Steely Dan song “Home At Last.” This is a halftime shuffle with the snare emphasis on count 3, and he closes his hi-hat on all the beats creating openings on every ah.

“FOOL IN THE RAIN.” This Led Zeppelin track finds John Bonham playing another variation on a halftime shuffle. His hi-hat opening is funky and a little tricky to get down.

“ROSANNA.” The Toto hit features the late studio great Jeff Porcaro behind the kit. He created this funky groove that somehow combines elements of the Bo Diddley beat, the Purdie Shuffle, and “Fool In The Rain.” The challenge is playing the ghosted snare immediately following his accented backbeat.

“QUADRANT 4.” Jazz and fusion innovator Billy Cobham kicked the drumming world in a bombastic new direction when he decided to play a shuffle on two bass drums.

“SPACE BOOGIE.” Simon Phillips soon followed in Cobham’s footsteps with Jeff Beck’s “Space Boogie” (in 7/4), and its swing ride cymbal pattern. Note that Phillips leads his double bass shuffles with his left foot.

“HOT FOR TEACHER.” Alex Van Halen put his own tasty spin on the double bass shuffle by superimposing this unique ride bell pattern over it.

This article originally appeared in the April 2015 issue of Drum! magazine. This is the first time it has been published online.

How To Play Shuffleboard

Welcome to Venture Game’s “How to Play Shuffleboard” page. The object of a regular shuffleboard is to slide, by hand, all four of your shuffleboard weights alternately against those of your opponents to the highest scoring area without them falling off the end of the shuffleboard into the alley. Only the winner receives a score. To be the winner, your Weight(s) must be further down the board than your opponent’s. You can achieve this by knocking off your opponent’s Weight(s), or by outdistancing them on the board.

The Hammer is the last shot in the frame (or round). The person or team who has the Hammer in any given frame is considered to be on the defensive. In other words, it is an advantage to shoot last.

How To Play Shuffleboard with Two Players

Start a two-person game by standing, with your opponent, at the same end of the shuffleboard. Toss a coin – or use another method you prefer – to see who will shoot the first Weight and the color of the Weight. Each player will play with 4 Weights, of the same color.

The winner of the toss should slide their first Weight toward the opposite end of the board, the Scoring End. Their opponent then shoots their first Weight in a similar manner, attempting to either knock off the other player’s first Weight, or to outdistance it. Both players should continue shooting their Weights alternately, until all eight Weights have been shuffled. This action completes one round of play.

NOTE: It is allowed to knock your opponent’s puck off the playing surface…this is part of the game strategy.

Like in the diagram above, whatever color puck is farthest down the table without falling off scores.

In this diagram, the red team got 3 points… PLUS one extra point for being over the edge and not falling off. Called a “Hanger”. BUT this point is only possible if the puck is at the very end of the table, not the edges.

If you have 2 pucks that are farthest down the table then you get points for the area they are located in (1 point for area labeled1, 2 points for area labeled 2 and so on).

The player whose leading Weight is farthest down the board is the winner of the round. Their score is then totaled and registered on the scoreboard.

Both players should now proceed to the opposite end of the shuffleboard, where the Weights are now resting. With the winner of the previous round shooting first, play another round of shuffleboard in exactly the same manner as described above. The game continues until one player scores 15 points.

How To Play Shuffleboard with Four Players

With four players, split into teams of two players each. Place one player from each team at the opposite end of the board. Like a two-player game, toss a coin or use another method to determine who will shoot first and the color of the Weights. Then each team should designate who will shoot the first round.

These two players will shoot each of their four Weights alternately, until all eight Weights have been shuffled. Their actions conclude one round of play.

The winner of the round is the team player whose leading Weight is the farthest down the board. Their score is then totaled and registered on the scoreboard.

The team players at the opposite end of the board, where the Weights are now resting, clear the board and begin another round of play from their end – in exactly the same manner as the first round. The partner of the previous round’s winner shoots the first Weight. The game continues as many rounds as necessary, until one team score a total of 21 points.

Conclusion: How To Play Shuffleboard

If you have any questions arising from the instructions on How To Play Shuffleboard, feel free to leave us a question on our Instagram or Facebook page.

How To Play Shuffleboard: Basic Rules For Beginners

There are records of people playing a game similar to Shuffleboard from as early as the 15th century. Of course, at the time, the game was known as “Shoffe-Groat,” and instead of pucks, the players used large currency coins.

Over the years, Shuffleboard has evolved in different ways. A game once primarily played in taverns has now made its way into people’s homes, becoming a competitive sport and a favorite pastime among many people around the world.

In this article, you will be able to learn how to play shuffleboard as quickly as possible. In fact, reading this guide alone will set you ready to play the beautiful game in no time.

What Are the Rules to Shuffleboard?

In as short as possible, below are the basic rules to play shuffleboard right away. There are of course more nuances that need to be explained and which will discuss later in this guide.

1. Before the players start playing, all pucks should be counted and placed visibly in the trough. When it’s a player’s turn to shuffle, they should only be holding one puck in hand. No puck should be in the non-shooting hand.

2. The players should be mindful of their feet placement. At least one foot needs to be behind the table. A player may lean forward, and they may even support their weight on the cradle. However, one foot must always remain planted on the ground behind the shuffleboard table at all times.

3. Players can lean against the table for support using their non-shooting hand, but no player should shake or move the table in any way. Doing so will attract a 1-point penalty, and the violating player has to shoot first in the next round. As you will come to see, later on, shooting first in Shuffleboard is actually disadvantageous.

4. As far as supporting yourself goes, players shouldn’t touch the table surface when shuffling. One can lean against the cradle but do not place a hand on the playing surface.

5. So, what happens when one sees a dry spot on the playing surface? Well, a player is allowed to add powder onto the dry patch but a player can only do this when it’s their turn to shoot.

6. Much like golf, players aren’t allowed to distract their opponents or obstruct their line of view. In fact, when a player is done shooting their pluck, they are supposed to stand behind their opponent while they are shuffling.

Additionally, a player isn’t supposed to touch the table when it’s their opponent’s turn to shuffle. Likewise, do not take a puck from the trough while the opponent is shooting. Players only pick up a puck when it is their turn to shoot.

How Do You Score in Shuffleboard?

The players stand at the same end of the table, and they get to shoot the pucks alternatively (i.e., red shoots then blue shoots or vice versa) until all eight pucks have been played. This then concludes one round of play and points are then awarded.

When playing, not all pucks will be eligible for points. If a puck fails to make it clear past the foul line in the middle of the table, then it is not eligible for points and consequently, should be removed from the table.

The only pucks eligible for points are those which land farther than the opponent’s highest-scoring pucks. This is to mean, therefore, that only one player can score per round.

In an instance where the shuffleboard table uses the 1-2-3 scoring system, then a puck is awarded points depending on the scoring zone in which it has landed. For a puck to score specific points, then it must completely clear the line preceding that particular scoring zone (1,2 or 3). A puck which fails to do so will only be worth the lower points on the preceding section of the line.

Any puck hanging over the edge of the table is referred to as a hanger. Such shots are worth 4 points, and by agreement of the players, the puck can be pushed back towards the table a little, to be “made safe.”

Can You Go Over in Shuffleboard?

In Shuffleboard, there is much discussion regarding what score should finish the game. Typically, most games end when a player gets to 15 or 21 points, but in recreational play, the winning score is basically whatever the players agree to play to.

Players cannot go over the decided scoring value, and so the win will go to the first team or player that gets to exactly 15 or 21 points. If there happens to be a tie in a play, then neither team collects points.

Who Goes First in Shuffleboard?

All Shuffleboard table games start with the players shaking hands. This is seen as a show of good sportsmanship.

The decision of who goes first can be made in a couple of ways as the players deem fit. However, the most popular method used is the good old toss of a coin. The winner of the coin toss gets to choose whether they want to go first and this player also chooses the puck color they wish to use.

In Shuffleboard, it is considered advantageous to play second i.e., not win the coin toss. This is because the player who draws seconds gets to shoot the last shot in a frame.

This last shot is known as “the hammer,” and most players consider it an advantage to have the hammer. As a result, coin toss winners will often prefer to go second.

The player who scores the highest points in one round gets to go first in the next round.

What Is The 10 Off Area in Shuffleboard?

Outdoor Shuffleboard is played on a table that is 52ft long, and on either end of the court, there are scoring triangles. Each triangle is divided into scoring zones with ten at the tip, then eight, then seven, and lastly, there is the “10 off” area at the base of the triangle.

10 off is used to mean minus 10 points, and this is a penalty zone. A player whose puck goes into this zone receives a penalty of minus 10 points. If instead, the puck touches the 10 off line, then this attracts a 5-point penalty.

How Do You Play Triangle Shuffleboard?

Different shuffleboard tables employ different scoring systems, but the outdoor Shuffleboard courts popularly use the triangle scoring system.

Basically, from each end of the 52ft long court, there is a line set off 6.5ft from the edge. This line is known as the baseline, and the zone between the baseline and the end of the court is called the shooting area.

Beyond the baseline is where the triangular scoring system starts. The scoring area is 9ft long to the tip, and the triangle has five areas: a 10-point zone, two 8-point zones, and two 7-point zones. Lastly, there is the afore-mentioned 10 off zone at the bottom of the triangle.

In the middle of the outdoor shuffleboard court, there are two lines known as the “dead lines.” For pucks to be eligible for earning points, then they must shoot past the dead line farthest from the shooter. Any disk that fails to do so will be removed from the playing field.

Do Points Cancel Out in Shuffleboard?

Points do not cancel out in Shuffleboard. Points are earned when a puck lands in one of the numbered scoring areas, and points are only awarded to the pucks that have been shot the farthest. Therefore, in this game, a player either earns points or gets zero points; It all depends on the play.

Points do not cancel out, but players are allowed to aim their shots at an opponent’s puck. This is done with the purpose of either removing the opponent’s puck from the scoring zone or pushing them into the 10 off area so that the opponent gets penalized minus 10 points.

Do You Have to Score Exactly 21 In Shuffleboard?

If the players have decided to use 21 as the pre-determined points to attain to win the game, then yes, a player has to score exactly 21 points.

Besides 21, some players may choose to aim for 11 or 15 points. Whichever the case, the players will keep playing rounds until a player gets to the exact figure agreed on (11, 15 or 21).

The first player to get to the winning score is declared the winner, and that marks the end of the game.

Can Two People Play Shuffleboard?

Shuffleboard can be played by either two players of by four players. When playing with two players, then both stand on the same end of the table and slide their pucks towards the other end of the table.

When four people are playing Shuffleboard, then they have to team up in teams of two. Teammates stand on opposite ends of the table such that each player is standing next to an opposing player.

Each player has to stay on their end of the table throughout the game, seeing as alternating sides is not allowed.

How Much Space Do You Need for Shuffleboard?

The amount of space needed for Shuffleboard will largely depend on the size of the shuffleboard table. Small tables measure 9-12ft long, mid-sized tables measure 14-16ft long and large tournament-size tables measure 18-22ft long.

Regardless of the size of the shuffleboard table, there needs to be room on either end of the table for players to stand and shoot from. Additionally, there also needs to be room on either side of the table so that it isn’t touching the wall.

Industry experts advise that there should be a clearance of least 2ft all around the shuffleboard table to allow for movement and ease of shooting.

Conclusion: Now What?

Shuffleboard Tables is pretty much a game of skill rather than one of chance and a court ruling in 1848 arrived at the same verdict.

Once a player is familiar with the rules and basics of playing Shuffleboard, then the game will work in one’s favor, regardless of whether the players are playing competitively or casually.

Looking to build your own shuffleboard? check out our DIY shuffleboard plans article