Rimshot Rimshot A rimshot is a percussion technique used to produce an accented snare drum backbeat. The sound is produced by simultaneously hitting the rim and head of a drum with a drum stick: "the sound is part normal snare and part loud, woody accent," "generally sharper, brighter and more cutting," as this produces large amounts of overtones. The stroke is used on the snare in rock, pop, and blues and on the tom-toms in Afro-Cuban music. The technique is very common in ska, reggae and rocksteady. In marching percussion there are three types of rimshots. The most common is the
Rimshot of jokes. His most famous line was probably, "Take My Wife . . .Please!" after he said "please", it was the drummer's duty to play a rimshot to punctuate the humor and generate great laughter from the audience. Sometimes, the comedian would react to the rimshot as if he did not expect it and in doing so, pass the reaction and responsibility for the rimshot on to the drummer. When in fact, the comedian had previously instructed the drummer when to use and when not to use the rimshot. There was really nothing surprising about the use of the rimshot