580 - Tim Carman: His New Book (The Shuffle Book Vol. 1), His New Band (Parlor Greens), and His New Home (Nashville)
Working DrummerShow Notes
Tim Carman is a Nashville-based drummer, author, and educator known for his deep pocket, soulful touch, and command of blues, soul jazz, and roots music. Originally from the Boston area, Carman built his reputation on the New England music scene as a first-call sideman and session musician. From 2018 to 2024, he toured internationally and recorded with GA-20, a three-time Billboard #1 blues artist on Colemine/Karma Chief Records, helping the band earn repeated Boston Music Awards for Blues Act of the Year.
Now based in Nashville, Carman records and tours with Parlor Greens, an organ trio on Colemine Records, and continues to be an in-demand session drummer and bandleader. His playing draws on vintage electric blues grit, organ-jazz lineage, and a shuffle vocabulary that has made him a go-to voice for artists seeking deep feel and stylistic authenticity. Alongside performing, Carman is an active educator, offering lessons, clinics, and online content that connect technique to real-world musical situations for working drummers and emerging players alike.
Carman is the author of six drum books, including The Shuffle Book Vol. 1 (2026), Philly-ISM (2023), and Haynes-ISM (2022), with the latter two nominated by Modern Drummer for Educational Product of the Year. His other titles include Groove Systems (2021), Shape Beats (2020), and Shape Beats for Kids (2017).
In this episode, Tim talks about
The many changes in his life and career since we last talked in 2022
The creation and unexpected success of Parlor Greens
Colemine Records and other small record labels acting as aesthetic curators for recorded and live music
Bouncing around to a few cities over the last few years before settling on Nashville
Finding jams/hangs/residencies on a given scene, and being able to read the different vibes there
Contributing to a community by creating your own projects/opportunities
The process and goals of writing his book on Shuffles
How generalities are more useful in considering types of shuffles than definitive categories
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