“Now I’m gonna tell you who I am.” He said with sly grin.
excerpt: “History of the Groove, drummer’s story” Russell Buddy Helm ©2013 all right reserved
2013.”Now I’m gonna tell you who I am.” He said with a sly grin. Not that I really cared. I had been on staff at this very high end recovery organization in the Pacific Palisades for about two years. Each week I would bring six Ghana Djembes around to each of their three private houses, estates actually, and drum for an hour with a few of their patients. These people were from all over the country, even other parts of the world. And they came to this organization, because of its very good reputation for helping people recover from a number of conditions; drug and alcohol are just a small portion of their treatment expertise. They handle ADHD, hypertension, various traumas, dysfunctional family issues, bipolar, depression, anxiety, bad hair days. You name it these guys have a specialist on staff. There is a whole army of psychotherapists, gourmet chefs, masseuses, yoga teachers, meditation instructors, aerobics instructors, arts therapists, nutritionists….and me on the drums. It is an easy gig for me actually. I enjoy the people. They come from other places, and I witness their recovery partially because of the healing drum therapies I have been developing over the last twenty five years. I feel vindicated, in the sense that what I suspected is true; certain types of drumming can heal.
“This is better than psychotherapy.” a few of them have stated to me. I love hearing their get well stories although I cannot relate them. I don’t know who these people are but some of them have status that I would rather not know about. So I don’t ask names. I give them a cursory introduction to drumming meditation. They invariably want to know who is doing this back in their home town. Alas, I cannot refer them yet, because there are not that many certified HelmTone Drum therapists out there in the real world. I am teaching them as fast as I can.
After keeping a very low profile and drumming with me for a month, this recent client grinned and told me,
“I am ………’s drummer.”, I nearly flipped.
“Well then, you of all people, should know if this drumming healing process is bogus or not.”
“It’s not bogus, Buddy. It really works. Thank you.” That was the greatest endorsement I could possibly have gotten. He could have been my brother, we were so much alike.
excerpt: “History of the Groove, drummer’s story” Russell Buddy Helm ©2013 all right reserved