tried all the ones i own (which is most)
and I’d have to say the closest would be in the stock Superior Drummer kit, Avatar, with the 13″ Sabian HHX Evolution hi-hat (not the default one).
runners up were actually also stock kits, but ones from EZ Drummer — Pop/Rock 14″ Sabian HHX Manhattan and maybe the Cocktail 14″ Zildjian – Sticks hi-hat.
did some quick research afterward, but couldn’t turn up what cymbals Mr. Willie Hall actually used for that song.
Man you’re making me feel really old…. If I’m not mistaken Willie (too tall) Hall would have been the drummer on that session. Your best bet (for 1971) is going to be 14″ Zildjian, Sabian weren’t around until (I think) 1981 (started by Robert Zildjian the son of Avedis Zildjian). I read that when Willie Hall played with the Blues Brothers (apparently) his kit included 14″ Sabians, so that’s why I am making the assumption that they would be 14″ Zildjians.
Now I need a nap…
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Back in those days it would most likely be 14″ A Zildian, possibly but less likely Paiste 2002 or 602.
The biggest contributor to the sound on the record is 1) the room, 2) the mic, 3) the eq/processing and 4) the drummer.
Hi-hats don’t generally have such a strong character trait, so anything middle of the road should replicate the sound as long as you use eq and have the room sounding right.
Even if you knew they were 14″ Zildjian hi hats or whatever, and found the same size and brand sampled in one of the S2 kits, they could still sound completely different from those you hear on the record. You can line up 10 pairs of 14″ Zildjian hi hats and no two pair would necessarily sound alike. I can speak from experience having spent a lifetime in various music stores auditioning cymbals. That’s not to say you can’t find something in one of the expansions that sounds like what you’re looking for, but there’s no guarantee that matching the name will have anything to do with the end result you’re looking for. It’s probably just a good place from which to start the search.
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