Francis' Drumming Blog

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Drum Grooves and Fills
3. Full Drum Transcription
4. More of Jeff Porcaro
5. Notes and References

Introduction

Toto’s 1988 album The Seventh One was celebrated as the best-received since the acclaimed Toto IV. On this album, “These Chains” stands out as a midtempo pop-rock song, featuring a 4/4 captivating groove and lush guitar layers. This foundation gives the song a classy, smooth rhythm. Building on this, Jeff Porcaro‘s drumming is remarkable for its restraint and finesse. He plays a classic half-time shuffle with tight, articulate hi-hat work, and his subtly syncopated snare ghost notes propel the groove without overpowering the song. He combines an open/closed hi-hat pattern with a light bass-drum pulse. A critic on Medium describes Porcaro’s signature shuffle here as “cathartic, maddening, and stunning.”^[1]

These elements—the locked-in pocket, ghost-note tapestry, and dynamic control—demonstrate why Porcaro’s drumming is so effective and instructive. In the analysis and transcriptions that follow, we provide an explanation for each detail. We show how a timeless drum groove can carry a song, analyzing the song’s main grooves and fills in depth and presenting the complete drum transcription.

Drum Grooves and Fills

The drum groove of “These Chains” is a half-time shuffle—a hybrid between the Rosanna and the Purdie shuffle. The driving element is the hi-hat, which features an open/closed 8th-note pattern, defining the groove as its essence. That’s reminiscent of the Purdie shuffle on Steely Dan’s tunes “Home At Last” and “Babylon Sisters,” as we saw in the previous blog post: Half-Time Shuffle – Grooves Collection. At the end of every musical phrase (four bars), Jeff Porcaro accents the last open hi-hat 8th note with the right hand. The same note is smartly replaced as a variation with the snare.

The snare backbeat falls on the third beat, creating a recognizable half-time feel. Ghost notes are placed between each hi-hat note, specifically on the second 8th note of each triplet, and are played gently to lift the groove. Following the example in “Rosanna,” Porcaro adds a ghost note just after the snare with a bounce, exemplifying his nuanced drumming. Careful control ensures these ghost notes remain soft and never overpower the groove. The bass drum part is straightforward and musical. It’s based on a single pattern, similar to “Home At Last” and “Babylon Sisters,” and a variation of the same, adding a bass drum on the upbeat of the first beat.

The two-beat intro drum fill closely resembles the “Rosanna” intro, except for the first half, which consists of an 8th note, a rest, and a double stroke of two 16th notes. The 8th-note triplet pattern that follows is repeated throughout the song as a fill, using an “RRL” sticking.

Another notable drum part is the one-bar drum fill at the end of the chorus section. Unlike most drum fills, it starts on the second 8th-note triplet of the first beat and ends on the upbeat, on the last 8th-note of the fourth beat. This drum passage required careful understanding of subdivisions to ensure the correct note placement.

In the final section, Jeff Porcaro plays interesting groove variations that support the guitar solo, giving the music momentum. First, he moves the cymbal pattern to the ride, alternating between the ride bell and the cymbal body, similarly to the “Rosanna” solo and outro sections. The groove is embellished by adding the hi-hat: the snare ghost note is simply replaced with the hi-hat on the first two beats, creating a tasteful musical variation to incorporate into your drumming.

The interlude and outro sections feature a groove variation based on the Afro-Cuban 6/8 rhythm. Here, the shuffle 8th-note pattern shifts to an Afro-Cuban 6/8 ride bell pattern, adapted to 4/4 while maintaining the half-time feel, with the toms added as a fill on the last two beats between the cymbal pattern. This demonstrates the genius of Jeff Porcaro in shaping advanced ideas into musical grooves. We discussed this type of groove in the blog post: Afro-Cuban 6/8 Funk Application: Accent Displacement. The transcription below features two groove variations: the first from the interlude and the second from the outro.

Full Drum Transcription

Uncover Jeff Porcaro’s legendary drumming with the complete drum transcription for “These Chains.” Elevate your drumming mastery!

The song was transcribed with one layer to clearly show how all drum elements (bass drum, snare, hi-hat, etc.) fit together. A revised version with two separate layers, one for the hands and another for the feet, can be requested. By the way, if you found this content helpful, give this post a like, subscribe to the blog, and share your thoughts in the comments.

More of Jeff Porcaro

Notes and References

1. O’Neill, Danielle. “Inside TOTO’s Most Underrated Ballad: ‘These Chains’.” Medium, April 29, 2025. https://medium.com/@danielle_o/velvet-breakdown-these-chains-by-toto-5922ef61ee37.