Sticking with the beat — Drummer Samuel Tyler plays his own way

Samuel Tyler doesn't wax poetic about his start on drums. In his telling, there's no kaleidoscopic first encounter with Buddy Rich tapes; no obsessive reverse-engineering of Questlove grooves. He just saw a friend playing drums one day and thought it looked fun. So he started with the basics, which for him was less about how to hold down a 4/4 rhythm and more about how to hold the drumsticks without hands.

Tyler, now 14, was born without hands or feet, but that hasn't stopped him from playing the drums, joining a wrestling club or playing Upward basketball. With a couple Velcro straps for his arms and the use of his prosthetic legs to work the bass drum and high-hat, he's now in his third year of drum lessons at the Southeast Missouri State University Music Academy at the River Campus.

He plays mostly gospel or Christian rock songs, especially those of the band Newsboys, but he's also learning other songs like Kenny Loggins's "Footloose" and Cupid's "Cupid Shuffle."

"I sometimes like to play Christian rap, but not a lot," he said. "It's just so doggone fast."

Since his stick motion comes from the shoulder instead of the wrist, he's not as fast as other drummers, but by working out alternate patterns he can hold down a beat and add fills where necessary.

Samuel Tyler's drum tutor Thomas Landewee, right, helps Tyler strap on his drumsticks before a lesson at the Southeast Missouri State University River Campus March 6.TYLER GRAEF

His mother, Becky, said she wasn't surprised when her son expressed interest in playing the drums.

"For one, that's one of the only instruments that he could realistically play," she said. "But the drums, that's just his personality."

She said he's showed an exuberance and willingness to overcome obstacles since she and her husband, Ed, adopted him from Vietnam at age 4.

"He was a spitfire. He had six-pack abs when we met him," Becky said. "And nothing was stopping him. As long as there was a surface he could scoot around on, he was fine."

She said it's gotten to the point where Tyler's dyslexia can be more of an obstacle than his lack of hands and feet.

Samuel Tyler's prosthetic feet are seen working the bass drum and hi-hat during a lesson at the Southeast Missouri State University River Campus.TYLER GRAEF

At his most recent practice session, Tyler wore a shirt that summed up that attitude: "No feet, no excuses" it read.

"It's really astounding," she said. "It just knocks us off our feet. At first, it was 'What will he be able to do?' but now it's "What can't he do?'"

Tyler's drum tutor, Thomas Landewee, said the teen's work ethic is a pleasure to work with and that every week he makes progress.

"He makes it easy," Landewee said. "I mean, he practices every week, so that really makes all the difference. Plus, he's got the passion for it."

Tyler said he practices an hour a day.

Samuel Tyler's drum tutor Thomas Landewee, left, listens as Tyler plays through a tricky passage of Kenny Loggins's "Footloose" during a lesson at the Southeast Missouri State University River Campus.TYLER GRAEF

"I like to learn fast," he said.

"And I just like to play the drums."

tgraef@semissourian.com

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